Dear SPQR,

This issue should not be made into a Left/Right dogfight.
And frankly I'm surprised at your asking me such an
asinine question. You're better than that. I select
things on content that I think is relevant. It's an
occupational hazard. My aim is to challenge and provoke.
I look for quality - independent journalism. I am tired
of "pack journalism." Therefore I do prefer to use
independent media because there aren't that many alternatives
in the barren Australian media landscape. We live in an
age where so much news and opinion is free - quality
journalism is not.

As for the mainland detention centres and what's being
happening there - and why. I shall have to Google that
and get back to you - but in the meantime
keep an open mind - or at least try to.

Dear SPQR,

I've just done a quick scan on the Villawood riots
and it appears that the Villawood detention centre
holds both irregular maritime arrivals - people
arriving in Australia by boat to seek asylum as well
as people already on the Australian mainland who have
violated their visas. So its a mix of people - with
various complaints.

The complaints from detainees seem to be about
overcrowding and the time it takes to process their
applications. Mental health experts telll us that the
mental health of some of the asylum seekers was
deteriorating because of the uncertainty over their
situation and the crowded conditions in which they
were being held. Overcrowding and mental health
played a big part at Christmas Island and other detention
centres.

Lexi,

Kevin Rudd and Greens Bob Brown and Christine Milne got Australia into this mess. You are an apolosist for policies that have drowned hundreds and enabled criminal gangs of people smugglers to flourish.

You make excuses for the violence in detention centres but Australia welcomed thousands of refugees and displaced people from war-torn countries, particularly following WW2. They didn't riot and burn millions of taxpayers' dollars of public assets.

http://libcom.org/news/riot-asylum-seekers-detention-centre-christmas-island-18032011

otb,

"...Australia welcomed thousands of refugees and displaced people from war-torn countries..."

Yes, they did. Once upon a time we did "welcome" them, albeit sometimes grudgingly.

The reason these people didn't riot was because they weren't stuffed into detention centres for years on end...

If they had have been, they probably would have rioted too.

Poirot,

Where did you come from and how recently that you have such poor knowledge of post WW2 Australia?

onthebeach,

I'm not making excuses. Merely trying to explain the
conditions people have to live under.

The Displaced People who came to Australia after WW11 were
invited to come. They helped to solve an acute labour
shortage in Australia, especially in outlying areas.
These migrants joined in the rebuilding of Australia's
capital structures that were to serve the nation for many
decades to come. They could have accomplished a great deal
more, if the Australian authorities had made full use of
their skills and knowledge, instead of treating them all
as unskilled labour. Nevertheless, their economic
contribution was significant at a time when Australia
needed it most.

These migrants were classified in only two occupations:
"Labourers", which denoted all males, and "Domestics", which
meant all females. The Australian employment officials
had full details of each immigrant's skills and
qualifications, no effort was made to match these with the
jobs offering. The Australian authorities enforced labour
contracts (2 year) strictly.

And we should remember that the early conditions of migrant
settlement were inadequate. There was no family accommodation
in many places to which contract workers were sent. Men had
to live in tents or tin huts, in most primitive conditions.
Their wives and children remained in holding camps such as
Northam, W.A. and Woodside, S.A. to mention just two, for
long periods of time ofen a long distance away from their
husbands' and fathers' workplaces. Marriages suffered,
and the psychological scars of forced separations have
remained for life.