A major protest has broken out in two compounds of MITA North (Ford and Glenelg), of Melbourne’s immigration detention centre in Broadmeadows.
All Serco guards, including the emergency response team, have withdrawn from the compounds, leaving detainees in control of MITA North.
Detainees broke through the fences separating the two compounds in MITA North. They are also demonstrating on the roofs of the two compounds.
It is understood the protest is over the continuing ban on detainees receiving visits.
Even though a Covid-safe visiting area has been built inside MITA, visits have been banned for over a year. Detainees see the ban on visiting as yet another way that Border Force can punish them.
All detainees in MITA should have been released when Covid first broke out, but consistent advice to the government to that effect has been ignored.
Sunday night’s protest is one more symptom of the growing tensions inside MITA, as detainees are deprived of visits and are also the victim of the inconsistent arbitrary approaches to Covid risks.
Yet another Serco officer was tested for Covid on 14 December after being identified as a close contact, but was allowed to continue to work while waiting for the test result, which returned a positive result on 16 December.
Because of the potential exposure to the guard, detainees in Bass 1 and 2 in MITA South have been locked down since 16 December.
“Instead of organising reprisals and further punishment, MITA should be closed,” said Ian Rintoul, spokesperson for the Refugee Action Coalition, “Detainees have the right to be treated as human beings. Many of the detainees have families in the community who could safely accommodate them; instead they are separated from them – putting their mental and physical health at greater risk.”
For more information contact Ian Rintoul 0417 275 713
