With the Coalition on his right and a High Court ruling and the Greens on his left, Anthony Albanese finds himself in a fraught political position that could prove catastrophic to his government, writes Brett Worthington.
Squeezing from one side is a Peter Dutton-led opposition with an insatiable desire for a fight. From the other, the highest court in the land and rulings that have blown a hole in Australia's immigration detention system.
The landmark ruling came quicker than almost anyone expected and while human rights campaigners were celebrating, the government was caught flat-footed and left scrambling to treat an almighty political headache.The year is 2004, John Howard's Coalition government has been in power for eight years and the High Court is hearing a case known as Al-Kateb v Godwin.
He pleaded guilty and went to jail. Authorities released him on parole in May 2018 and then immediately detained him because he didn't have a visa to remain in Australia. H has been here ever since. The ruling sets a new test for a person in immigration detention: Is there a real prospect of removal from Australia becoming practicable in the reasonably foreseeable future? "Detention can no longer be forever," human rights lawyer David Mann told the ABC. "Right now there are people who must be released in accordance with this ruling."
Benbrika, who was jailed for leading a terror cell in 2008, was due for release in 2020. But Dutton cancelled his citizenship prior to release and he has remained in immigration detention. Whatever internal celebrations he might be having, externally his government is in an insidious position.
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