November 11, 2023
Nearly 30 detainees held in WA whom the High Court ordered to be released have walked free from Yongah Hill Detention Centre, only to be dumped at a suburban motel on the outskirts of Perth.
Home Affairs officials attended the centre, near Northam, on Saturday, calling detainees to reception one by one to tell them to pack their bags.
“They said to us we were being released as unlawful non-citizens until further notice,” Ted, one of the detainees released on Saturday, told The West Australian.
“They are waiting for the minister to decide what visa we are going to get …(and) said something about bridging visas.
“But at the same time they said I’m still classified as being an unlawful non-citizen.”
It’s believed the up to 27 detainees released on Saturday is the largest number of people ever released from immigration detention at once in WA.
And three white vans carried 10 of those detainees out of the facility just after 3pm on Saturday afternoon.
“When we left they (immigration officials) said to us, you guys are going to a hotel in Perth,” Ted said.
In reality, the 10 men were taken to a motel on the outskirts of Perth’s metropolitan area and were told by Serco staff, who operate Yongah Hill, “you’re on your own”.
“They came here, they dumped us here and said ‘that’s it, you’re on your own now,’” Ted said
“Then they took off.”
The 10 detainees, some with no money for food, were left to fend for themselves.
Ted said there were five rooms booked for the detainees, and each one had a bed and an extra mattress on the floor to allow them to share rooms.
A few hours later, an advocate from MercyCare arrived at the motel to assist, giving the detainees about $660 in cash each.
“All the rooms have got an actual mattress on the floor,” he said.
“Things are clean, they’re okay. I’m just happy that I’m out. I’m free.”
Originally from Zimbabwe, Ted first arrived in Australia as a teenager in 2006.
He has been in detention the past three years after his visa was revoked due to imprisonment.
“I served some time in jail ... It ended up costing me my visa,” he said.
“When I got released after seven years … straight from prison they came and picked me up, and took me to Villawood Immigration Detention Centre in Sydney.”
He was then moved to Christmas Island before being one of the last detainees to leave the island in September, before being taken to Yongah Hill.
Detainees were on Saturday sharing pictures to social media they prepared to leave the facility, carrying bags of clothes and other belongings.
The mass release of detainees across Australia means was triggered by the landmark decision on Wednesday, which saw the High Court rule that indefinite detention was unconstitutional — even for people convicted of serious crimes.
It’s prompted the Federal Government to move to release scores of detainees held across the country.
The test case, dubbed NZYQ, was a man convicted of raping a 10-year-old boy in Sydney in 2015, who Federal Immigration Minister Andrew Giles confirmed on Friday had already been set free.
It now has no choice but to release 92 refugees who have been refused visas.
“I knew about this (High Court) case a fair while back,” Ted said.
“To be honest with you, I wasn’t holding my breath.”
It’s understood a Home Affairs representative isn’t expected back at the motel until Monday to assist with matters including booking flights interstate.
The Opposition accused the Government of being caught off-guard by the decision, with no plan in place to protect the community.
Shadow Home Affairs minister James Paterson said the Government’s handling of the case had “gone from bad to worse”.
“Let’s remember that these people have either committed serious crimes or otherwise violated the character provisions of the Migration Act. They are not Australian citizens,” he said.
“They do not have valid visas to be here and they are now going to be released into the community.”
