Children make up 30 per cent of the 2935 visas issued to people with Palestinian documents since the Israel-Hamas war began in October.
The Home Affairs Department rejected three out of four visa applications by Palestinians in the week the Coalition ramped up its political attack on Labor for letting people from war-torn Gaza come to Australia.
Former deputy immigration secretary Abul Rizvi said neither political party had owned up to their mistakes as the issue dominated parliamentary question time all week. The Coalition has accused Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of compromising national security while Labor has painted Opposition Leader Peter Dutton as divisive and distracted from Australians’ cost-of-living concerns.
“The Labor Party, they have gone down this path due to fear. And the Liberal Party is going down their path to promote fearmongering. I would suggest both of them develop a bit of integrity and honesty,” he said.Continuing his attack on Labor last week, Dutton claimed in parliament that: “It’s without precedent ...
“The criticism, that by issuing visitor visas we put national security at risk, is a complete beat-up. And here’s why: there has been no cohort that I can remember, in our history, that has ever been subject to more checks than this cohort,” he said, notingbefore facing Australian Border Force checks upon arrival.
Its survey of the 230 adults who had sought consular services showed 80 per cent of adults held an educational qualification beyond high school, while 75 per cent were Muslim and 25 per cent were Christians. “All persons are routinely checked multiple times along their journey to, and once they are in, Australia ... The government’s security checking procedures draw on information from a number of sources, including, but not limited to, information provided in the application form, departmental alerts, alerts from other agencies, and intelligence provided by other countries,” they said.
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