A Kaldor Centre Virtual Conference 2021 key panel session held on 21 October 2021. Sometimes the impacts of disasters and climate change mean that whole areas may become unsafe to live in. Communities may be faced with the prospect of relocation. But who decides – to move at all, and if so, where? Planned relocations traverse a complicated cultural, legal and land title landscape. What does a ‘successful’ planned relocation look like? Hear from Erica Bower, Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law; Daniel Fitzpatrick, Faculty of Law, Monash University; Salote Soqo, Climate Justice & Crisis Response, Unitarian Universalist Service Committee; Merewalesi Yee, University of Queensland; and chaired by Elizabeth Ferris, Institute for the Study of International Migration, Georgetown University

Should I stay or should I go? Planned relocations

NZYQ v Minister for Immigration (NZYQ) changed the landscape for immigration detainees in Australia. It led to the release of at least 149 people from indefinite immigration detention where there was no real prospect of removing them from Australia in the 'reasonably foreseeable future’. It also led to the rapid passage of new legislative provisions that could be used to restrict the freedom of those released. Under this legislation, the Commonwealth can seek Community Safety Orders if those released are considered to pose an ‘unacceptable risk of seriously harming the community by committing a serious violent or sexual offence’, allowing re-detention or the imposition of other restrictive conditions. 

Continuing detention orders have been accepted by the High Court of Australia as valid for people convicted of serious violent, sex or terrorism crimes in Australia. Community Safety Orders, however, differ from continuing detention orders in important ways, and they have not yet been tested in Australian courts. 

This fully subscribed event was held on 3 April 2024, and sought to examine Community Safety Orders in detail, explaining what they are and what you should do if the Commonwealth seeks to issue one to your client. It also sought to examine the broader ramifications of NZYQ, including the conditions that people are being released under.

Speakers included:

Scientia Professor George Williams, UNSW Law, leading Australian constitutional scholar, who can advise on the possible constitutional ramifications of NZYQ and follow up cases.
 
Paul Coady, NSW Public Defender, who has ample experience responding to continuing detention orders under state and territory legislation and can provide insight into how the existing system operates.

Sanmati Verma, Acting Legal Director at the Human Rights Law Centre, who represents a number of clients in immigration detention and, along with the Kaldor Centre, intervened as amicus curiae in NZYQ v the Minister for Immigration. Sanmati will explain how NZYQ has impacted on immigration detainees since it was determined and what the future might hold for them.

Chair: Anna Talbot, Affiliate and Strategic Litigation Network Coordinator, Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law

After NZYQ – Community Safety Orders

The Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law at UNSW is the world’s first research centre dedicated to the study of international refugee law. Through high-quality research feeding into public policy debate and legislative reform, the Centre brings a principled, human rights-based approach to refugee law and forced migration in Australia, the Asia-Pacific region, and globally.  It provides an independent space to connect academics, policymakers and NGOs, and creates an important bridge between scholarship and practice.  It also provides thought leadership in the community through public engagement and community outreach. 

After NZYQ – Community Safety Orders

UNSW Kaldor Centre

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