Australia had a policy that if you reach our territory you were assessed for refugee status this led to a huge problem of a literal flood of "illegal boat people". Several hundeds died in leaky boats forced to sea by wealth driven evil greedy people smugglers who charged their victims $1000's taking rabid advantage, abusing Australia's open kindness. These smugglers are simply murderers.
I am human and feel strongly for these poor people, but the issue is, is it better to be alive or dead?
I am not particularly enamored with our present conservative government, but one thing they have done is stop these boat people.
How?
Against all the morals of modern society we introduced concentration camps eg Manus Island, where all boat people, men, women, children, old and young, sick and healthy are incarcerated indefinitely. A severe curtailing of their human rights and a horrible place.
see latest UN report
Asylum seekers, refugees and human rights - Snapshot Report | Australian Human Rights Commission
"Australia maintains one of the most restrictive immigration detention systems in the world. It is mandatory, not time limited, and people are not able to challenge the need for their detention in a court of law. The Commission has for many years called for an end to this system because it leads to breaches of human rights obligations under treaties to which Australia is a party."
However the effect of this policy is that it has STOPPED the boat people and smugglers dead in their tracks. So at the cost of an unfortunate several hundred refugees incarceration and denial of human rights, we have in fact has SAVED literally hundreds of lives.
Refugee boat arrives at Christmas Island 2010 hits rocks in heavy seas
Half hour later boat destroyed with the loss of 50 lives
Irregular Boat Refugee Drownings by Year
2009 171
2010 71
2011 330
2012 242
2013 217
Mandatory detention implemented
2014 4
2015 0
Sometimes you have to be CRUEL to be KIND.
I would suggest Europe look closely at our example if they actually want to save lives. Mass immigration from Africa and the Middle East to Europe will destroy the european economy and cause a massive drop in standard of living, this is simple economics. Also the rate of assimilation is at breaking point, see rise of right wing parties, due to saturation, so mass violence will follow and erupt more frequently.
The real issue is in addressing the despotic, particularly Islamic, regimes, these people are escaping from, with education and aid, so the need to escape is diminished. As the West we need a concerted effort to raise the standard of living of the third world through education using the internet and mobile phones, which have penetrated even the poorest nations. Raising the standard of living reduces the need for large families as more of the children survive, so population pressure reduces.
Of course it is a complex problem. When the West goes in to help we are branded invaders, polio workers trying to save the lives of millions of children are murdered because ONE doctor was rumored to have been involved in Bin Ladens execution (something I agree with), hospitals blown up and the rise of neanderthal feudal tribal warlords flourish under a tyranny of murder. It is about time the Middle East and African nations stood up for themselves and dealt with own problems instead of blaming and demanding the West rescue them. The west escaped the religious theocracies a century or so back and has blossomed since turning secular, gaining a massive rise in its standard of living. It will take time and many poor souls will suffer and die but that is the nature of the human condition.
Cheers
