A significant class action lawsuit brought on behalf of over 120 Indonesians who claim that Australia imprisoned them as adults when they were really just juveniles has been resolved.
The victims were imprisoned and, in some instances, prosecuted for their roles as human smugglers. According to a BBC report, they will each get more than A$27 million (U$17 million) in compensation from the government, which has consented to make the payment.
Some of the minors were as young as 12 when they were taken into custody, and they had all been detained together.
It is the most recent in a series of incidents that may be linked to the policy that the Australian government has for those who are seeking refuge.
Sam Tierney, one of the attorneys representing the plaintiffs, was quoted as saying, "It's fair to say we're delighted to have gotten this outcome... this has been [ten] years in the making," referring to the length of time it took to reach this point.
Wrongfully Incarcerated
After landing in Australia aboard people smuggling boats, the majority of the applicants who are part of the class action complaint were held in detention on Christmas Island or in Darwin, as reported by Arise News. This took place between 2009 and 2012.
They claim they were lured onto the boats as minors by promises of well-paid labor. But at the time, they were uninformed of either the boats' final destination or the fact that they would be used to carry people seeking refuge.
In accordance with the legislation that was in effect in Australia at the time, any crew members of those boats who were discovered to be juveniles should have been sent back to the countries in which they were originally from rather than being charged with a crime.
However, in order to verify the ages of the minors, the authorities relied on a wrist X-ray analysis, which has now been rejected. They jailed anybody who they believed to be older than 18 years old.
Colin Singer, one of the prison guards who assisted in the investigation and helped expose the case, said in a 2018 interview with the BBC that he felt the Australian government had knowingly imprisoned the children. He also believes that the Indonesian government was not willing to do anything to help the individuals.
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Negligence and Discrimination
In addition to discovering multiple violations of the young boys' rights, the groundbreaking report that was published by the Australian Human Rights Commission also argued that their cases had been improperly handled. The primary plaintiff, Ali Jasmin, also raised allegations of carelessness and racial prejudice against Australian government officials who were engaged in the case.
As for the Australian government, this case is not the first time. BBC said several unjust detention cases against its local governance have been resolved in recent years.
