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Child Safety Toolkit Tools & Resources - Institute of Community Directors Australia

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ourcommunity.com.au strengthens Australia's community groups, education institutions and non-profit organisations by providing grants and funding advice, training, a free online donations service and practical information on fundraising, governance, financial management, technology and much more

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How Australia should deal with asylum seekers and refugees

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Offshore detention must end and processing done in Australia, argue Eva Orner and Steven Glass.

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Last updated 14 August 2015

Over the last decade the Commission has worked to promote and protect the rights of asylum seekers and refugees in Australia. The Commission aims to provide clear, factual information to highlight the human rights issues involved in the treatment of these groups of people.

On this page:

Who are asylum seekers and refugees?

An asylum seeker is a person who has fled their own country and applied for protection as a refugee.

The United Nations Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, as amended by its 1967 Protocol (the Refugee Convention), defines who is a refugee and sets out the basic rights that countries should guarantee to refugees. According to the Convention, a refugee is a person who is outside their own country and is unable or unwilling to return due to a well-founded fear of being persecuted because of their:

race

religion

nationality

membership of a particular social group or

political opinion.

Asylum seekers or refugees and migrants have very different experiences and reasons for moving to another country. Migrants choose to leave their home country, and can choose where to go and when they might return to their home country. Asylum seekers and refugees, on the other hand, flee their country for their own safety and cannot return unless the situation that forced them to leave improves.

What are Australia's human rights obligations in relation to asylum seekers and refugees?

Australia has international obligations to protect the human rights of all asylum seekers and refugees who arrive in Australia, regardless of how or where they arrive and whether they arrive with or without a visa.

While asylum seekers and refugees are in Australian territory (or otherwise engage Australia's jurisdiction), the Australian Government has obligations under various international treaties to ensure that their human rights are respected and protected. These treaties include the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). These rights include the right not to be arbitrarily detained.

As a party to the Refugee Convention, Australia has agreed to ensure that asylum seekers who meet the definition of a refugee are not sent back to a country where their life or freedom would be threatened. This is known as the principle of non-refoulement.

Australia also has obligations not to return people who face a real risk of violation of certain human rights under the ICCPR, the CAT and the CRC, and not to send people to third countries where they would face a real risk of violation of their human rights under these instruments. These obligations also apply to people who have not been found to be refugees.

For an overview of the key human rights issues that arise from Australia's approach to asylum seekers and refugees, see the Commission's publication Asylum seekers, refugees and human rights: snapshot report 2013.

How many refugees does Australia grant permanent protection to each year?

Under the Humanitarian Program, Australia accepts a certain number of people every year who are refugees or have special humanitarian needs. The Humanitarian Program has two main components:

offshore resettlement for people who are found to be refugees (and others whose need for protection has been acknowledged) in another country before they come to Australia, and

onshore protection for people who come to Australia with a valid visa and make a successful claim for asylum after they arrive.

The Australian Government has indicated that in the 2014-15 financial year, it intends to provide 13,750 places in the Humanitarian Program.

In addition, asylum seekers who arrived in Australia without a valid visa but are not transferred to Nauru or Manus Island may be granted temporary protection visas or safe haven enterprise visas.

Why are asylum seekers and refugees in immigration detention?

Asylum seekers may arrive in Australia without a valid visa or other documentation for a number of reasons. For example, a person who is fleeing persecution by the government of their country of origin might not be able to obtain a passport from officials in that country. Alternatively, a person fleeing persecution might travel without documentation to avoid being identified as they leave their country of origin in order to reduce the risk to themselves and their family.

Under the Migration Act 1958 (Cth) (the Migration Act), asylum seekers who arrive in Australia without a valid visa must be held in immigration detention until they are granted a visa or removed from Australia.

There is no limit under Australian law to the length of time for which a person may be held in immigration detention. Some asylum seekers spend long periods of time in immigration detention waiting for their refugee claim to be assessed; waiting for the completion of health, identity and security checks; or awaiting removal from Australia if they have been found not to be a refugee nor someone who is owed 'complementary protection'. Click here for more information about immigration detention and human rights.

While the legal framework for mandatory detention remains in place, over the past few years, increasing numbers of asylum seekers have been permitted to reside in the community while their claims for protection are assessed, after spending an initial period in closed detention. The Commission has welcomed the increased use of alternatives to closed immigration detention such as community detention and the grant of bridging visas, but remains concerned that thousands of asylum seekers and refugees are still held in closed immigration detention facilities.

How are asylum seekers' claims decided?

Asylum seekers who arrive in Australia with a valid visa

Asylum seekers who arrive in Australia on a valid visa and then apply for protection (i.e. as part of the onshore protection program mentioned above) have their claims assessed through the refugee status determination and complementary protection system that applies under the Migration Act.

The Department of Immigration and Border Protection (Department) will make a primary assessment as to whether the person is a refugee as defined by the Migration Act.

In some cases, a person may not be a refugee, but may nevertheless face significant human rights abuses, such as torture, if returned to his or her country of origin. If an asylum seeker is found not to be a refugee, the Department will assess whether he or she meets 'complementary protection' criteria - that is, whether he or she is owed protection under the ICCPR, CAT or CRC because if they were to be sent to another country there is a real risk they would suffer serious harm.

If a person is found to be a refugee or to be owed complementary protection, providing he or she satisfies health, identity and security requirements, he or she will be granted a protection visa.

People who are refused protection by the Department at the primary stage have access to independent merits review by the Refugee Review Tribunal (RRT), or in some circumstances the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT). In some circumstances, they can seek judicial review of decisions made by the RRT or the AAT. In some exceptional circumstances they can seek Ministerial intervention to allow them to remain in Australia on other humanitarian or compassionate grounds.

Asylum seekers who arrive in Australia by boat without a valid visa

Since August 2012 there have been a number of changes in law and policy in relation to what happens to people who come to Australia seeking asylum without a valid visa. What policies apply to these asylum seekers now depends on their mode of arrival, and on what date they arrived.

In August 2012, the Australian Government introduced a system of third country processing for asylum seekers who arrive in Australia by boat without a valid visa. Under this system, asylum seekers who have arrived by boat must be transferred to a third country as soon as is reasonably practicable unless the Minister for Immigration and Border Protection decides otherwise.

If asylum seekers are transferred to a third country, their claims for protection will be processed under that country's laws. For more information about the transfer of asylum seekers to third countries, click here.

If asylum seekers who arrive unauthorised by boat after August 2012 are allowed by the Minister to remain in Australia, they are only able to apply for temporary protection visas or safe haven enterprise visas - they are not able to apply for permanent protection. How their applications will be processed depends on when they arrived in Australia. If they arrived on or after 1 January 2014, they apply through the refugee status determination and complementary protection system that applies under the Migration Act the same way as for asylum seekers who had a valid visa (ie with access to merits review by the RRT, etc).

However, asylum seekers who arrived unauthorised by boat between 13 August 2012 and 1 January 2014 and are permitted by the Minister to apply for a visa may be put through the new 'fast track' assessment process (introduced in April 2015).

Under the 'fast track' process, the Department will make a primary assessment of an asylum seeker's claim for protection. If the Department makes a negative assessment, fast track applicant will not be able to apply to the RRT for merits review of that decision. Instead, these applicants will only be able to apply to the newly established Immigration Assessment Authority (IAA) for a much more limited review of their application. The IAA generally will not hold hearings, and will not consider any information not raised by the applicant at the primary interview with the Department. Unlike the RRT, the IAA cannot make a decision to grant a (temporary) protection visa to an applicant if it determines that the Department wrongly refused one - it can only send the matter back to the Department for reconsideration.

There is more information about the asylum application process, including the fast track assessment process, temporary protection visas and safe haven enterprise visas, under the section 'Protection visa processing' on the Department's website here.

What is the 'enhanced screening process'?

In October 2012 the Australian Government introduced an 'enhanced screening process' for people who come unauthorised by boat to Australia from Sri Lanka.

The Commission is concerned that this process may not contain sufficient safeguards to protect people from being removed to a country where they face a real risk of significant harm ( refoulement).

Under the enhanced screening process an individual is interviewed by two officers from the Department. If the Department determines that an individual raises claims that may engage Australia's non-refoulement obligations, they are 'screened in' to the third country processing regime.

If the Department determines that an individual does not raise claims that engage Australia's non-refoulement obligations then they are 'screened out' of the protection assessment process and removed back to their country of origin.

For information about the enhanced screening process and the Commission's concerns about the process, see the Commission's fact sheet: Tell Me About: The 'Enhanced Screening Process'.

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Last updated 14 August 2015 Over the last decade the Commission has worked to promote and protect the rights of asylum seekers and refugees in Australia. The Commission aims to provide clear, factual information to highlight the human rights issues involved in the treatment of these groups of people.

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MentalHealthPromise for World Mental Health Day on October 10 www.1010.org.au

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Psychological Well Being of Child and Adolescent Refugee and Asylum Seekers:
Overview of Major Research Findings of the Past Ten Years

Prepared by Trang Thomas and Winnie Lau

Major Research Findings
i. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Symptomology ii. Co-existence of several disorders and symptomology iii. Risk (Vulnerability) and Protective (resilience) factors
Conclusions References and Suggested Readings About the Authors

Abstract

This paper outlines major international research findings of the past ten years reflecting knowledge gathered about the psychological health of child and adolescent refugee/asylum seekers. In doing so, several key areas of consistency are identified. First, with the majority of research in this area centered on the prevalence of psychopathology, and particularly post-traumatic stress symptoms, it has been clearly demonstrated that refugee children and adolescents are vulnerable to the effects of pre-migration, most notably exposure to trauma. Second, particular groups in this population constitute higher psychological risk than others, namely those with extended trauma experience, unaccompanied or separated children and adolescents, and those engaged in the uncertain process of sought asylum. Third, certain risk and protective factors appear to exist that temper or aggravate poor psychological health. These include family cohesion, parental psychological health, individual dispositional factors such as adaptability, temperament and positive self-esteem, and environmental factors such as peer and community support.

The research is less clear however in a number of areas. These include the mechanisms by which risk and protective factors exacerbate and temper the effects of trauma and migration experience, as well as the role of culture as a mediator in the experience of trauma and migration.

Despite being a perennial issue, circumstances of irregular migration across the world have only recently impelled psychological interest into the mental health of refugee and asylum seekers. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimates that there are 22.3 million refugees worldwide. A refugee is someone who "owing to well founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality or membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country; or who, not having a nationality and being outside that country of his former habitual residence as a result of such events, owing to such fear, is unwilling to return to it" (Article 1A(2), Convention relating to the Status of Refugees (1951)). This definition is contrasted with that of an asylum seeker, whose status as a refugee is yet to be formally determined by the host society (Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, 2001). More importantly, these definitions are to be differentiated from that of an economic migrant whose mobilisation is voluntary and primarily motivated by improved material circumstances as opposed to human rights and safety (Morrow, 1994).

While there is considerable and growing literature in the mental health of adult refugee/asylum seekers, current research acknowledges a lack of understanding in the mental health of child and adolescent refugee/asylum seekers (Dybdahl, 2001; Hicks, Lalonde & Pepler, 1993; Hyman, Vu & Beiser, 2000). This is particularly the case regarding the mental health of child and adolescent refugee/asylum seekers in detention. This is surprising given that as many as half the world's refugee population is comprised of children and adolescents (Cole, 1998). Such limited investigation however, may in part be due to the difficulties associated with population access, systematic sampling, cultural and language barriers, limited cross culturally validated measurement techniques, and wariness of parents and participants to trust researchers (Richman, 1993; Silove, Sinnerbrink, Field, Manicavasagar & Steel, 1997).

Though not all refugee and asylum seeking children and adolescents are subjected to these circumstances, experiences often claimed to be encountered by them include the violent death of a parent, injury/torture towards a family member(s), witness of murder/massacre, terrorist attack(s), child-soldier activity, bombardments and shelling, detention, beatings and/or physical injury, disability inflicted by violence, sexual assault, disappearance of family members/friends, witness of parental fear and panic, famine, forcible eviction, separation and forced migration (Burnett & Peel, 2001; Davies & Webb, 2000).

Other forms of trauma might include the endurance of political oppression, harassment and deprivation of human rights and education (Burnett & Peel, 2001). Such experiences not only make refugee/asylum seeking populations heterogeneous, they also create vulnerability in children and adolescents due to their incomplete biopsychosocial development, dependency, inability to understand certain life events (Kocijan-Hercigonja, Rijavec & Hercigonja, 1998) and underdevelopment of coping skills (Ajdukovic & Ajdukovic, 1993).

This summary outlines major international research findings of the past ten years reflecting knowledge gathered about the psychological health and well-being of child and adolescent refugee/asylum seekers. It incorporates a search of literature from the psychINFO, Medline, BioMedNet, Academic Research Library, EBSCO, Proquest, Science Direct and Wiley-Interscience databases using criteria restricted to articles from 1990 to date and in the English language. Search terms included single and combined forms of the following descriptors: refugee camp, refugee detention, imprisonment, child and/or adolescent refugee, asylum seeker, displacement, Australia, development, long term effects, long term stress, post-traumatic stress, stress, psychopathology, mental health, psychiatric effects and psychological well being.

The review is divided into major sections of studied areas in the literature, namely post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), co-existence of several symptoms and disorders (a term that broadly means serious problems), and risk (vulnerability) and protective (resilience) factors at both pre- and post- migration phases. It should be noted that this paper does not aim to provide an exhaustive discussion of theoretical issues, methodological considerations (e.g., problems in retrospective data collection) or treatment issues, but rather to highlight major findings and conclusions of this research. It should also be noted that the paucity of research in child and adolescent refugee/asylum seekers necessitates at times reference to knowledge from adult populations. Where such reference is made, caution should be taken to avoid overgeneralisation of these findings to this new risk population of children and adolescents.

Major Research Findings

i. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Symptomology

Given that war and political violence are major causes of forced migration, many child and adolescent refugee and asylum seekers migrate with a history of traumatic stress exposure (Almqvist & Brandell-Forsberg, 1997). Investigations directed at the evaluation of the impact of trauma on psychological well being in these groups have predominantly focused on the prevalence of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and/or its symptomology (Richman, 1993; Weine, 2002).

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) refers to a configuration of symptoms experienced after a traumatic event and is classified as an anxiety disorder, which may in nature be acute or chronic, and of short or long term duration (Cunningham & Cunningham, 1997).
Children and adolescents who present with PTSD may exhibit symptoms of confused and disordered memory about events, repetitive play themes related to trauma, personality change, imitation of violent behaviour and pessimistic expectations regarding survival (Hicks et al., 1993). Although symptoms vary across age groups, in preschoolers, they are generally manifested in very high anxiety, social withdrawal and regressive behaviours. In school-aged children, symptoms can include flashbacks, exaggerated startle responses, poor concentration, sleep disturbance, complaints of physical discomfort and conduct problems. In adolescents, symptoms may include acting out, aggressive behaviours, delinquency, nightmares, trauma and guilt over one's own survival (Hicks et al., 1993).
Despite controversy surrounding the application of PTSD to refugee/asylum seeking children and adolescents (e.g., the diagnostic approach 'medicalises' and 'westernises' emotional disturbance and 'pathologises' perfectly normal reactions to abnormal situations), investigations across various countries have shown that trauma symptomology is common in refugee children and adolescents (Ajdukovic & Ajdukovic, 1993; Hjern, Angel, & Hoejer, 1991; Kinzie, Sack, Angell, Manson & Ben, 1986; Mollica, Poole, Son, Murray & Tor, 1997; Sack, Clarke & Seeley, 1996; Sack, Seeley & Clarke, 1997).

While the nature and extent of trauma exposure varies cross culturally, and from direct to indirect and single to repeated events, studies particularly document the prevalence of post-traumatic stress symptomology. Though not conducted within the last ten years, the pioneering work of Kinzie et al. (1986) is cited frequently throughout the recent literature. In this classical study, these authors interviewed 46 Cambodian refugees aged between 14-20, all of who were exposed between the ages of 8-12 to starvation, separation, beatings and executions. Almost half of these subjects having been exposed to trauma, exhibited PTSD symptoms alongside less effective adaptation, which was considered to be within clinical range.

In a larger study with 209 Cambodians aged between 13-25 resettled in the United States, Sack and colleagues (1994) found an 18% prevalence rate of PTSD and an 11% rate of depressive disorder in their participants. High rates of psychiatric disorder were also observed in participants' parents, with 53% of mothers reporting symptoms consistent with a PTSD diagnosis, and 23% with a diagnosis of depression. Amongst fathers of this sample, 29% indicated PTSD symptomology and 14% indicated depression.

Examining the case records of 191 clients presenting for service and treatment at a torture and trauma rehabilitation centre in Australia, Cunningham and Cunningham (1997) identified patterns of torture and trauma experience and symptomology. Of the six core patterns of symptomology revealed in the analysis, PTSD symptoms featured most dominantly. Saigh (1991) similarly administered the children's PTSD inventory to 840 Lebanese children aged between 9-12 living in Beirut. While violent traumatic exposure varied from direct to indirect among children, no comparable differences were observed in PTSD scores. In all, 27% of these children met PTSD criteria, supporting the view that children can be traumatised in numerous ways (Berman, 2001).

The relationship between trauma exposure and PTSD symptomology however is not confined to South East Asian and Lebanese children (Kinzie et al., 1986; 1989; Macksoud & Aber, 1996; Sack et al., 1994). Over recent years, such findings have been established cross culturally among children and youth from regions such as:

Afghanistan (Mghir, Freed, Raskin & Katon, 1995);

Bosnia (Geltman, et al, 2000; Papageorgiou, et al, 2000; Weine, et al, 1995);

Chile (Hjern, Angel & Hojer, 1991);

Croatia (Ajdukovic & Ajdukovic, 1993);

Central America (Arroyo & Eth, 1996; Espino, 1991; Rousseau, Drapeau & Corin, 1997);

El Salvador and Nicaragua (Arroyo & Eth, 1996);

The Gaza Strip (Thabet & Vostanis, 2000);

Iraqi-Kurdistan (Ahmad, Mohamed & Ameen, 1997);

Israel (Laor, et al, 1996);

Iran (Almqvist & Brandell-Forsberg, 1997; Almqvist & Broberg, 1999);

Sudan (Paardekooper, de Jong & Hermanns, 1999); and

Tibet (Servan-Schreiber, Le Lin & Birmaher, 1998).

Although studies have consistently linked trauma symptomology with the experience of trauma related events, which are usually attributed to organised violence and war, fewer investigators have attempted to relate exposure to a diagnosis for PTSD. Hence, the focus on symptomology renders it unclear as to whether a complete diagnosis can be applied to trauma experience (Green, et al., 1991). The implications of such issues are important to consider given the position of those seeking formal refugee status. Notwithstanding, Almqvist and Brandell-Forsberg (1997) are among few researchers to demonstrate effectively the applicability of PTSD criteria to symptomology expressed in children. Similar diagnoses have been demonstrated by Schwarz and Kowalski (1991a).

One controversy noted throughout the literature relating to refugee children and adolescents and PTSD is whether it is the totality of exposure to war related stress that is harmful, or whether in fact trauma responses are dependent on the nature, type, amount and duration of exposure to stress (Athey & Ahearn 1991; Jensen & Shaw, 1993, cited in Berman, 2001; Mghir et al., 1995). Reviews of such studies indicate evidence for the suggestion that the greater the nature and extent of exposure, the poorer one's psychological outcome in terms of onset and severity of PTSD symptoms (Espino, 1991; Papageorgiou et al., 2000).

Extending their diagnostic approach to trauma symptomology, Almqvist and Brandell-Forsberg (1997) also investigated whether the amount of trauma exposure is related to the prevalence and stability of PTSD over time. Whilst finding it is possible to diagnose PTSD during initial stages of assessment and one year later, these authors also found that one fifth of children directly exposed to organised violence and persecution (e.g., through assault on parents or bomb attacks within 50 metres) were at risk for developing chronic states of PTSD.

Similarly, though not drawing directly from a refugee but rather displaced and war exposed population, Macksoud and Aber (1996) examined the relationship between the number and type of war traumas and psychosocial development among 224 Lebanese children aged between 10-16. Using measures of war exposure, war trauma, mental health, PTSD and adaptation, these investigators assessed ten categories of war exposure. As predicted, the number and type of traumatic exposure were positively related to PTSD symptoms. Children exposed to multiple traumas (e.g., shelling, combat) and those who were bereaved, victimised by or had witnessed violent acts, showed more PTSD symptoms than those who had not witnessed such acts. Moreover, depressive symptoms were more evident in children who had experienced separation from their parents and displacement than those who remained with their parents.

Finding that 34% of adolescent and young adult refugees from Afghanistan met criteria for PTSD, major depression or both, Mghir et al. (1995) similarly demonstrated an association between the presence of these disorders and the total number of events experienced. In her investigation of Khmer adolescent refugees exposed to community violence, Berthold (1995) also noted the impact of multiple traumas before and following resettlement in the US on PTSD.

Sinnerbrink and colleagues (1997) also examined the relationship between exposure to violence and mental health outcome in Khmer adolescents in the USA. A quarter of these subjects partially or fully met criteria for PTSD with the number of violent events experienced predicting PTSD and level of functioning. Not only was pre-migration exposure predictive of PTSD, the number of violent events exposed to across subjects' lifetime (i.e., time in Cambodia and US) also and more strongly predicted PTSD and level of functioning. This finding is noteworthy as it demonstrates the cumulative effect of trauma and its predisposing features to future distress and function (Sinnerbrink et al., 1997).

Lonigan and colleagues (1991, cited in Almqvist & Brandell-Forsberg, 1997) and Pynoos, Steinberg and Wraith (1995) in their investigations of school-aged children have also shown a correlation between the amount of traumatic exposure and PTSD prevalence. The association between severity of exposure in terms of number and proximity of experienced events and the presence of PTSD in children and adolescents has been supported in different cultures including Bosnian (Papageorgiou et al., 2000); Vietnamese (Mollica et al., 1997); Cambodian (Sack, Clarke & Seeley, 1996); Palestinian (Garbarino & Kostelny, 1996; Thalbet & Vostanis, 1999), Middle Eastern (Montgomery, 1998) and Central American (Espino, 1991).

So far, the studies reviewed have clearly outlined the shorter-term consequences of organised violence and war and their resultant traumatic outcomes for children and adolescents from a cross sectional perspective. Little research however, has been conducted into the evolution of PTSD symptoms and its long-term development and persistence in refugee/asylum seeking children and adolescents (Punamaki, 2001). The preliminary nature of longitudinal research in this area therefore, has produced equivocal findings. Nevertheless, there are some studies that demonstrate the persistence of PTSD symptoms across time.

The work of Kinzie et al. (1986; 1989) represents one of the few attempts to evaluate the persistence of PTSD over several years. As discussed earlier, these researchers examined the effects of massive trauma on 40 Cambodian refugees who had been imprisoned for up to two years in concentration camps during the Pol Pot regime. All subjects had endured separation from family, forced labour and starvation and many had witnessed killings and other forms of torture. Four years after leaving Cambodia, up to 50% of subjects developed PTSD. Mild but prolonged, depressive symptoms were evident in 38% of subjects. Results of a 3-year follow up with 30 of the 40 original subjects revealed that although depressive symptoms had diminished, 48% of subjects still exhibited symptoms meeting the criteria for PTSD, supporting the notion that traumatic symptoms endure over time. Subjects with poorer PTSD outcomes also showed poorer social adjustment. Six years following the initial study, 38% of subjects still exhibited PTSD criteria, though there was a reduction in the rate of depression (Sack, Clarke, Him, Dickason, Goff, Lanham & Kinzie, 1993). Twelve years after the initial study, 35% of subjects still exhibited criteria for PTSD and 14% had depression (Sack, Him & Dickason, 1999).

These authors add increasing empirical weight to the idea that PTSD in children and adolescents can persist from several up to twelve years. These authors also note however, along with the prevalence of depression, the intensity of PTSD symptoms tend to diminish over time. Where depression was initially shown to co exist with PTSD symptoms, depressive symptoms were no longer evident after six years. Such findings are important as they sustain the theoretical argument that PTSD symptoms are distinct from symptoms of depression and are indeed a manifestation of massive trauma, contrary to the result of resettlement stress (Sack et al., 1993; Sack et al., 1995). Despite the persistence of PTSD, participants in Sack et al's. (1993) study were generally adaptive. Most, for instance, were able to pursue some forms of college education. As Kinzie et al. (1990) and Sack (1998) state though, the impact of trauma is likely to affect child development over time resulting in fluctuating symptom profiles of both PTSD and depression. Of the more recent studies investigating the long-term consequences of trauma, Almqvist and Broberg (1999) assessed the prevalence of PTSD in Iranian preschoolers following two and a half years of resettlement in Sweden. For a fifth of children previously exposed to trauma, PTSD diagnoses remained stable. Supporting the argument that PTSD can be enduring, these authors also remarked on the problem of much research, which relies heavily on parental interviews for data (Almqvist & Broberg, 1999; Geltman et al., 2000). In their interviews with both children and parents, a significant difference was observed in the initial investigation, where according to parents, only 2% of children met criteria for PTSD. When the children were interviewed however, 21% met PTSD criteria. That is, parents were found to underestimate and/or deny symptoms of trauma re-experience in their children, a major criterion for PTSD.

Though these findings might be attributable to parents' desires to protect their children, they demonstrate that parents may also down play the presentation of symptoms in children. This is supported by arguments that PTSD is difficult to observe in young children due to problems in identifying avoidance symptoms, a further criterion of PTSD. Lastly, Macksoud and Aber (1996) and Ahmad et al. (1998) have also observed chronic/continuous PTSD in samples of Lebanese children exposed to single events in civil war and Iraqi Kurdish children respectively. The high level of PTSD persistence in the above studies is consistent with general studies regarding children who develop PTSD following exposure to other trauma (McFarlane, 1987, cited in Hodes, 2000). Regarding the long-term effects of trauma, age at the time of traumatic experience does not appear to influence its persistence (Dreman & Cohen, 1990).

It should be noted that disagreement and inconsistencies regarding mental health in refugee populations does exist despite evidence for poor psychological adaptation (Dybdahl, 2001; Beiser, Dion, Gotowiec, Hyman & Vu, 1995). Of studies which have produced equivocal findings, Becker, Weine, Vojvoda and McGlashan (1999) investigated the psychiatric sequelae of Bosnian adolescents after a year of resettlement to assess delayed PTSD onset. Of those initially diagnosed with PTSD, none met criteria for diagnosis a year later and only one subject not previously diagnosed, displayed PTSD symptomology. Becker et al. (1999) concluded that the diminution of PTSD over time might reflect the fact that symptoms are transient and not representative of enduring psychopathology. Hence, while there is evidence to support the chronic nature of PTSD in refugee children and adolescents, there is also evidence to suggest that such long-term effects may be mediated by other factors. Becker et al. (1999) did nevertheless observe that the symptoms shown at one year follow up remained similar to the clusters of symptoms observed in their initial investigation and that Bosnian adolescents had also remained with their parents, potentially offsetting PTSD symptomology. Indeed, Ajdukovic and Ajdukovic (1998) cautioned that the child's exposure to extreme intense trauma can have delayed effects and can cause difficulties in psychological functioning in adulthood.

As indicated above, parental psychological well-being is a key factor in the mental health of child/adolescent refugee and asylum seekers (Papageorgiou et al., 2000; Sack et al., 1994). Research directed at parental and familial influences has demonstrated that disorders associated with child and adolescent refugee experiences cluster in families. Sack, Clarke and Seeley (1995) for example, interviewed 118 Khmer adolescent refugees and one of their parents (usually mother). These authors found that the risk for PTSD increased for adolescents when one parent exhibited PTSD. When environmental influences to this relationship such as separation/divorce of parents, therapeutic intervention and socio-economic status were examined, no significant impact was found.

While such findings may underscore a genetic susceptibility to PTSD (Sack et al., 1995; Hodes, 2000), they also implicate the role of learning factors in the concurrence of PTSD in children and their parents. Lukman and Bach-Mortensen (1995, cited in Hodes, 2000) provide support to the role of learning factors in PTSD and argue that such is the established link between parent and childhood disorder that children of torture victims, who seek asylum in resettlement countries, may have high levels of emotional and physical symptoms such as stomachache or headache, even when not exposed to the traumatic events themselves. Moreover, parents' own experience of persecution, war violence, terrorism, powerlessness and exhaustion can compromise their ability to care for their children, increasing child/adolescent susceptibility to PTSD and other psychopathology (Sack et al., 1986). Garbarino, Kostelny and Dubrow (1991) and Richman (1993) further maintain that PTSD can be evident in multiple family members, particularly when marital relations are strained.

The findings observed above are consistent with Green et al. (1991) and Punamaki (2001) who argue that parental capacity and family cohesion after traumatic exposure are of equal or greater importance in the post-traumatic stress reactions of young children. These authors provide evidence that family dysfunction before exposure may predispose PTSD in children and adolescents. Drawing similar conclusions, Arroyo and Eth (1996) found that those children and adolescents in nuclear families were less likely to receive psychiatric diagnoses than those who lived alone or were fostered.
While psychological problems in the family are significantly related to child psychopathology in refugee children and adolescents, the role of mothers appears to be particularly important as shown by Ajdukovic and Ajdukovic (1993) who found that mothers' emotional well-being best predicted emotional well being and adaptation in children.
So far, consistent psychological outcomes have been reported in the literature for children and adolescents regardless of their different experiences, backgrounds and cultures. While these consistencies in the literature are important to identify, the specific effects of culture have been largely unexamined across studies. The complex role that culture plays in the psychological health of child and adolescent refugee and asylum seekers is highlighted by Rousseau, Drapeau and Corin (1997). Comparing Central American and South East Asian refugee children, Rousseau et al. (1997) showed that the impact of family factors on post-traumatic symptomology is mediated by contextual as well as cultural factors. In Central Americans, greater trauma exposure in families was found to be more related to family conflict and depression, whereas in South East Asians, increased trauma exposure was found to be associated with less parental depression.

Arroyo and Eth (1996) have similarly observed contrasting symptom profiles between Latin American and South East Asian refugee children, where the former display more prevalent academic and conduct problems. While not replicated, these differential findings across cultures reflect the need to investigate systematically cultural influences on child and adolescent mental health among the refugee and asylum seeking populations.

ii. Co-existence of several disorders and symptomology

Although the majority of literature lies in the investigation of trauma sequelae and family psychopathology as a mediating and moderating factor of trauma, there have been investigations of other psychological outcomes among child and adolescent refugee/asylum seekers. It should be noted in any discussion of psychological problems however, that refugee and asylum seeking children and adolescents are more likely to have serious health problems associated with malnutrition, disease, physical injuries, brain damage and sexual or physical abuse (Westermeyer, 1991). Hence, the influence of these potential health problems cannot be overlooked when considering psychological health and disorder in this population (McCloskey & Southwick, 1996; Westermeyer, 1991).

Simultaneous presence of more than one disorder associated with PTSD is a common finding in the literature concerning the mental health of refugee children and adolescents. For example, Kinzie et al. (1986) noted depression and anxiety as problems most commonly associated with PTSD symptomology. Similarly, Hubbard, and colleagues (1995) found that the existence of more than one disorder in their sample of 59 Cambodian adolescents and young adults exposed to trauma as children. Of the 24% of adolescents and young adults that were diagnosed with PTSD, 57% of these had at least one additional diagnosis, all being affective and anxiety related.

Using the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) [1], Sourander (1998) also found that in addition to PTSD, depression and anxiety were most common among their participants. When interviewed, most children also reported somatic complaints, uncertainty about the future and in some cases expressed suicidal thoughts. While the presence of anxiety is not surprising given its overlap with PTSD, Clarke et al. (1993, cited in Hodes, 2000) note that depression may commonly occur due to ongoing adversity following resettlement.

Tousignant and colleagues (1999) present the results of a psychiatric epidemiological survey of 203 refugee adolescents aged between 13-19 from 35 different countries resettled in Canada. Using the Diagnostic Interview Assessment Scale [2] and global assessments of general functioning, these authors showed a 10% difference against refugee adolescents in rates of psychopathology compared to normative data obtained from a province wide survey of Quebec adolescents. 21% of participants displayed psychopathology in forms of simple phobia (25%), overanxious disorder (13%), depression (5%); conduct disorders (6%) and attempted suicide (3%). Elevated rates of phobia and overanxious disorder according to these authors were probably due to their association with PTSD. Females displayed more psychopathology than boys in this sample with similar ratios evident in the Quebec survey, but neither age at arrival nor cultural differences were found to be significant factors. Despite the high rates of psychopathology when compared with a normative population, according to global functioning assessments, these adolescents had good social adaptation.

Good adaptation following multiple traumas has also been reported by Berthold (1995) and Punamaki (2001). Such unexpected findings of positive adaptation imply that while diagnosis does not always suggest severe functional impairment (Sack, 1995), the changeability of dysfunction does, in fact, demand further investigation into the mechanisms that promote such adjustment.

Kocijan-Hercigonja, Rijavec and Hercigonja (1998) also investigated the existence of more than one disorder and alternative problems in refugee and displaced children. They compared three groups of children aged between five and fourteen. The first group comprised of Muslim refugee children from Bosnia and Herzegovina; the second of displaced children from Croatia and the third of non-displaced local children. Using structured interviews, coping and adjustment measures, self-rating behaviour scales, and anxiety and depression scales, these authors found significant differences in the prevalence of eating disorders, with displaced children exhibiting more eating disorders than non-displaced and refugee children. Significant differences were also observed in sleeping disorders with more sleep problems found in displaced children followed by refugee and non-displaced children. Refugee children used significantly fewer coping strategies than displaced and non-displaced children and effectiveness of these strategies were reported to be greater in displaced and non-displaced children. In terms of adjustment, displaced children were less satisfied with their present situation than other children. Refugee children also felt generally worse than other children and were less optimistic about the future. Displaced children were lower on anxiety than refugee children, however, no differences across the sample on depression measures were found.

When Kocijan-Hercigonja et al. (1998) compared parent and child assessments, parents did not report their child's fatigue, palpitation, breathing problems, trembling or crying, reinforcing earlier suggestions of the importance of attaining data directly from children. Kocijan-Hercigonja et al. (1998) attributed sleeping and eating problems in displaced children to the severity of trauma these children experienced. Furthermore, displaced children tended to evaluate their life at present as worse than others because of difficulties associated with camp life. Elevated anxiety in refugees was attributed to trauma whereas in displaced children, this was attributed to uncertainty in status and the future.

In all, these findings highlight that children have negative beliefs and expectations about their futures, indicating potential adjustment problems (Kocijan-Hercigonja et al., 1998). Obradovic and colleagues (1993) similarly investigated 102 children and young people aged between 8-19 from Bosnia, Herzegovina and Croatia in collective accommodation. 88% reported feeling sadder than before the war, 87% reported being more worried and 62% reported feeling more tense. Satisfaction from play was reduced in 65% of participants. Of the physical symptoms reported, all increased following the war and included lack of appetite, disturbed sleep, excessive perspiration, headaches, respiratory problems and gastric complaints.

In their investigation of varied psychological outcomes, Howard and Hodes (2000) note the distinction between disorders observed from neuropsychiatric origins (i.e., causes attributable to biological functioning) and those from psychosocial ones (i.e., causes attributable to family and social processes). In their study of problems such as PTSD, minor affective disorders, anxiety, conduct, eating and sleep in three groups of refugee, immigrant and British children, these researchers found that refugee children received more diagnoses of a psychosocial nature than the other two groups of participants. While similar social impairment was observed across comparative groups, refugee children were more isolated and disadvantaged. This tendency to manifest disorders of a psychosocial nature is consistent with Rousseau, Drapeau and Corin (1996) who found a positive association between learning difficulties, academic achievement and emotional problems in South East Asian and Central American refugee children in the US.

Furthermore, the tendency of traumatised refugee children to report more psychological problems, diagnostic and otherwise (e.g., guilt, uncertainty) has been found to be associated with the occurrence of more daily stressors and less perceived social support (Paardekooper, 1999). Although the exact rates of disorder and dysfunction tend to vary across studies and frequently reaches 40% to 50% prevalence, there is nevertheless consensus across studies investigating PTSD and other psychological problems, which show these rates to be much higher in refugee than non-refugee populations (Hodes, 2001)).

Although evidence is weighted towards PTSD related problems in refugee children and adolescents, some studies have nonetheless observed findings that challenge the relationship between trauma experience and stress outcomes.

Loughry and Flouri (2001) for example, investigated the behavioural and emotional problems of 455 former unaccompanied refugee children and youth aged between 10 and 22, three to four years after their repatriation to Vietnam from refugee centres in Hong Kong and South East Asia. Collecting data using measures of internalising and externalising behaviour, self efficacy, trauma and social support, these authors found no differences between age matched controls who never left Vietnam and repatriated children. Similarly, no differences between the groups were observed for perceived self-efficacy and the number and experience of social support. These authors concluded that the exposed trauma and experience of living without parents in refugee camps did not lead to increased behavioural and emotional problems in the immediate years following repatriation.

While these findings may reflect adaptive capacities despite traumatic experience, they also pose additional questions regarding the reliance of PTSD as a single outcome measure. Although alternative outcomes of trauma are currently being addressed by research into the presence of accompanying disorders and problems, the differential response to trauma that children and adolescents from different cultures may exhibit has been largely unexplored by research (Rousseau, 1995). Equivocal findings in the research nonetheless, warrant further examination of the mediating variables that are likely to diminish and potentiate adaptive capacity (Beiser, et al, 1995).

iii. Risk (Vulnerability) and Protective (resilience) factors
a) Pre-Migration Risk and Protective factors
Although the dynamic interplay between various risk and protective factors in refugee psychological health is not fully understood, there is widespread agreement that of those pre-migration factors that pose serious risk, trauma exposure is the single most identified (Berman, 2001). Alongside the associated existence or absence of parental psychopathology, trauma has been discussed in detail above. Other major pre-migration risk factors include child disposition, environmental factors, as well as individual and family functioning before the traumatic events.

Individual and family functioning before migration have been found to influence psychological outcome in refugee children and adolescents. Almqvist and Broberg (1999) for instance, have suggested that family climate and cohesion before and after migration are the best predictors of mental health in children. These claims are supported by Green et al. (1991), Hicks et al. (1993), Rumbaut (1991) and Thabet and Vostanis (2000) who argue that family dysfunction, parental incapacity, qualities of family life prior to exposure and resettlement are influential in post-traumatic stress reactions and adjustment in young children.

Psychiatric disturbance in refugee children is also related to mental health difficulties experienced by other family members prior to migration. As discussed earlier, parents' experiences of persecution, war violence, terrorism, powerlessness and exhaustion compromise their ability to care for children (Fox et al., 1994; Hicks et al., 1996; Matthey et al., 1999; Miller, 1996; Sack et al., 1986). Ajdukovic and Ajdukovic's (1993) study of the influence of maternal mental health on children's stress reactions and stress indexes emphasised the emotional and behavioural state of mothers as major mediators between children's traumatic experience and psychological functioning. Rousseau et al. (1997) also argue that while the family enables a child to rediscover safety and security amidst destruction, parental stress on the other hand is conducive to destroying parent-child relationships due to parent physical and psychological unavailability.

Alongside family and parental factors, child disposition and environmental factors prior to migration are also implicated in the psychological health of refugee children and adolescents. In their review of children's responses to stressful situations, Garmezy and Rutter (1985) in addition to the protective role of families, highlight two other protective factors - dispositional attributes of the child and a supportive environment. Regarding both factors, these authors argue that a child's ability to respond to new situations, positive self-esteem and positive environmental support through strong peer relationships are protective.

Though age, gender and other individual characteristics such as social ability, coping style, temperament, good health and development have been shown to buffer against adverse life events, these characteristics are not systematically discussed in relation to how they influence children affected by organised violence (Almqvist & Broberg, 1999). Good temperament however, has been shown to decrease vulnerability to poor psychological outcome (Almqvist & Broberg, 1999). Social support, especially from parents is emphasised as a factor of resilience during war in the literature, so long as they are not pushed beyond stress-absorption capacities (Dybdahl, 2001; Garbarino et al, 1991).
b) Post-migration Risk and Protective factors
While there are few empirical studies investigating unaccompanied children and adolescents and those separated from family members, these populations are consistently argued to be at greater risk for psychiatric and mental health problems than their accompanied peers (Ajdukovic & Ajdukovic, 1993, 1998; Hicks et al., 1993; Kinzie et al., 1986; McCloskey, Southwick, Fernandez-Esquer & Locke, 1996; Rumbaut, 1991; Servan-Schreiber, Le Lin & Birmaher, 1998; Sourander, 1998). By definition, an unaccompanied refugee/asylum seeking minor is an individual under 18 years of age who has been separated from both parents and is not being cared for by an adult who has a responsibility to do so (Sourander, 1998).

Among those studies focused directly on unaccompanied minors, Felsman, Leong, Johnson and Crabtree-Felsman (1990) compared three groups of Vietnamese refugees encamped in the Philippines- adolescents, young adults and unaccompanied minors. Whilst anxiety remained high across the three groups, young adults and unaccompanied minors were over represented in clinical ranges on measures of psychological distress. The findings that children and adolescents accompanied by family members are less distressed than those who arrive accompanied by relatives corroborate the findings of Kinzie et al. (1986; 1989) who demonstrated that it was neither the amount nor type of trauma witnessed, nor the child's age or gender that predicted PTSD in Cambodian refugees. Psychiatric effects rather decreased in the presence of a nuclear family member. Although these refugees had lost an average of three family members, those who had been able to re-establish contact with at least one family member reported fewer adjustment problems than those without family contact.

Sourander (1998) examined traumatic events and emotional and behavioural symptoms of 46 unaccompanied refugee minors awaiting placement in an asylum centre in Finland. Having experienced a number of losses, separations and threats, most of these minors exhibited symptoms of PTSD, depression and anxiety. Half of these children and adolescents were found to be functioning within clinical or borderline ranges on the Child Behaviour Checklist with children aged younger than 15 years found to be particularly vulnerable.

Procedures related to awaiting asylum also contributed to elevated stress levels in these children and adolescents. When interviewed, they reported several complaints of physical nature, uncertainty about the future and suicidal thoughts. Sourander (1998) concluded that unaccompanied children and adolescents are highly vulnerable towards emotional and behavioural symptoms, which are exacerbated by asylum-seeking stress. In a systematic investigation of unaccompanied Vietnamese Americans, McKelvey and Webb (1995) showed that high rates of psychopathology prior to forced migration were significantly exacerbated during stays in a processing centre in the Philippines. Findings of these studies are pertinent as they reflect areas of research in unaccompanied samples and direct effects of the asylum seeking process that are largely under investigated in the empirical literature.

Rousseau (1995) notes that the majority of unaccompanied children and adolescents are boys, reflecting either the family's or boy's decision, the goal of which is to remove them from war given their vulnerability to soldier activity and their ability to support the family in the future. Such realities underscore the increased risk to psychological health, given the added burden faced by these children and adolescents.

The interaction between traumatic experience and multiple separations has also been noted to increase the psychological risk to unaccompanied youth (Rousseau, 1995). Moreover, it has been suggested that unaccompanied adolescents and youths are particularly vulnerable as their increasing autonomy causes them to relive past separations creating difficulties in adjustment (Lee, 1988, cited in Rousseau, 1995). According to the research in this area, adaptive strategies that are most effective with these populations are those that promote continuity with the past and balance the demands of the external reality (Rousseau, 1995). This is supported by research, which has shown that unaccompanied children have better mental health outcomes when they are placed with foster families of the same ethnic group (Linowitz & Boothby, 1988, cited in Rousseau, 1995; McCloskey & Southwick, 1996). Hicks et al. (1993) particularly note the exacerbation of problems in unaccompanied children and adolescents when placed with adults of dissimilar cultural backgrounds.

It must be noted, however, that irrespective of whether substitute caregivers are of similar or dissimilar ethnic and cultural backgrounds, the vulnerability of these unaccompanied minors is evidenced by research that shows when natural caregivers are substituted, antisocial behaviours may be exhibited(Kinzie et al., 1991).

Again, while the negative effects of separation and sole migration are evident in children and adolescents (Richman, 1993), there are some studies that report good adaptation following separation and unaccompanied migration (Krupinski et al., 1986; Rumbaut, 1991; Wolff et al., 1995). Krupinski et al. (1986) for example, found that while separation contributes to difficulties experienced during the first year of resettlement, psychological problems are not influenced by separation after this time. Additionally, Wolff et al. (1995) compared 4-7 year old Eritrean refugee children and Eritrean children orphaned due to the loss of parents. Whilst emotional and behavioural distress was experienced by children who had lost both parents, these children were found to function better than accompanied refugee children on measures of cognition and language. Given the lack of generalisation in these findings and as is the case with trauma, little is known about how separation distress persists or diminishes over time in children and adolescents.

In addition to separation and unaccompaniment, increased psychological risk also occurs as a result of the process of sought asylum (Silove et al., 1997; Sourander, 1998). This element constitutes particular risk as children and adolescents awaiting asylum are subjected to the compounded stress of being supervised and/or communal living with others outside their family/cultural group. Among adult populations, Sinnerbrink et al. (1997) assessed 40 adult asylum seekers attending English classes at a community welfare centre in Sydney. These authors found that asylum seekers experienced ongoing sources of severe stress including fears of being repatriated, barriers to social work services, separation, and issues related to the process of refugee claims. More than a third of participants had difficulties attaining health services. Thus, salient aspects of the asylum seeking process may compound the stressors suffered by an already traumatised group (Sinnerbrink et al., 1997).

Whilst noting difficulties in accessing samples of asylum seekers who have not been accorded residency status, Silove et al. (1997), interviewed and assessed trauma, anxiety, depression and living conditions in forty asylum seekers attending a community resource centre in Sydney. In these subjects, high anxiety scores were associated with female gender, poverty, and problems with immigration officials. Loneliness and boredom were associated with anxiety and depression. Of the 79% of the sample who had experienced a traumatic event, 37% obtained a PTSD diagnosis. This diagnosis was significantly associated with greater exposure to pre-migration trauma, delays in application processing, dealing with immigration officials, obstacles to employment, racism, loneliness and boredom.

Regarding children and adolescents in the process of sought asylum, the study of Ajdukovic and Ajdukovic (1993) stands among very few in the published literature. These authors compared two groups of children who were uprooted and displaced together with their families into two different housing arrangements: those living with host families and those living in communal shelters. According to parental reports, children in host families showed lower rates of stress related signs than those living in sheltered environments. 43% of those in homes showed no signs of abnormal functioning while 24% in shelters showed no signs. During displacement, the number of stress related symptoms in host family children decreased for 25%, but symptoms decreased in only 10% of children in shelters. Nearly half of the children in host families no longer experienced nightmares (47.6%) and more than half ceased their fearfulness (59%). 31% were no longer despondent and 24% were no longer unsociable. Among those in the collective shelter, 20% still showed aggression and 28% still showed despondent emotions.

These authors also correlated difficulties in the adaptation of these displaced children and youth. They found that those in shelter had significantly higher incidences of stress reactions than those in host families. These scores were then correlated with their internal and environmental sources of stress. Results showed that childrens' stress indexes were associated with mothers' ability to cope with displacement. Those mothers who reported adaptive problems, worsened relations with children since displacement, negative perceptions of communal housing and burdened conflicts also had children with higher stress indexes.

Ajdukovic and Ajdukovic (1993) attributed their findings to the unfavorable living conditions in shelters where families are generally larger with decreased socio-economic status and where displacement duration is longer or in occupied territory. They concluded that there is a considerable range of stress reaction in displaced children with a higher incidence of stress associated with mothers' poor ability to cope with the stresses of displacement. Similarly, in a large-scale survey of 600 Vietnamese children living in a refugee centre in Hong Kong, McCallin (1992) observed anxiety and depression in a majority of children surveyed, with pronounced effects among those children unaccompanied.
Together, these findings corroborate that children and adolescents living in shelters, camps and processing centres are subjected to increased risk for psychological dysfunction (Rudic, Rakic, Ispanovic-Radojkovic, Bojanin & Lazic, 1993). Though it is unclear which specific factors exist to exacerbate problems of well being in these particular risk groups, some researchers have suggested that such negative psychological outcomes are attributed to the inability to maintain traditional mother and father roles, the loss of perceived control and learned helplessness (Garbarino & Kostelny, 1996). Indeed where traditional roles are maintained and length of communal living, such as in refugee camps, is decreased, less adverse psychological effects have been observed (Markowitz, 1996; McKelvey & Webb, 1997).
Given the risk and protective factors of parental pressure, parental psychopathology and family problems in the pre-migration period, it is not surprising that such factors also pose risk and protection in the period of post-migration. Kinzie et al. (1986) for example have noted the protective effects of re-established parental contact following migration. The protective presence of family is similarly noted by Arroyo and Eth (1996) who found that children and adolescents remaining in nuclear families were less likely to receive a psychiatric diagnosis than those who lived alone or were fostered. Similarly, Masser (1992) and Melville and Lykes (1992) have also found less emotional distress and better adjustment following migration in children who arrive with family members than children who survive the refugee process alone.

Parental depression and anxiety secondary to trauma or to post- migration difficulties are also often associated with more serious symptoms in children (Hjern, Angel & Jeppson, 1998; Meijer, 1985, cited in Rousseau, 1995). As shown in Hjern et al's. (1998) study of Chilean and Middle Eastern refugee children in exile, important family life events such as the birth of a sibling and divorce among parents play a significant role in the mental health of child and adolescent refugee and asylum seekers.

Acculturative stress (that is stress due to difficulties associated with adapting to a new culture) also place refugee/asylum seeking children and adolescents at greater psychological risk. For example, difficulties at school and in language acquisition have been shown to predict poor adaptation. In contrast, academic achievement as influenced by language acquisition and good peer relations is predictive of good psychological outcomes (Rousseau, 1995).

More widely noted throughout the literature, however, are two important factors in the adaptation to a new culture that either increase or decrease susceptibility to poor mental health. First, conflict in the development of identity among adolescents has consistently been related to poor psychological adjustment (Rousseau, 1995). Second, even though the adaptive process to a new culture can make provision for good outcomes, it can also increase psychological vulnerability through the creation of inter-generational stress.

Intergenerational conflict arises when children and adolescents, particularly adolescents, adapt much faster than their parents. As such, the authority of parents is often compromised by virtue of their dependence on children for language and cultural access to the host society. Lastly, high parental expectations have also been shown to significantly predict intra-personal conflict in refugee children and adolescents, thereby posing further risk to poor adaptation (Hyman, Vu & Beiser, 2000).

Other factors to have a negative influence on the mental health in refugee children and adolescents include low socio-economic status (Howard & Hodes, 2000); long-term unemployment in parents, particularly fathers; school problems, language problems; and discrimination and bullying (Hyman et al, 2000).

With regard to individual characteristics, those found to enhance resilience in children and adolescents at a post-migration level have included a realistic expectation of adjustment (McKelvey & Webb, 1996, cited in Hodes, 2000). Inconsistent findings regarding individual characteristics however are more common throughout the literature. For example, contradictory findings have been obtained for the protective nature of age and gender. While some suggest the cognitive immaturity of younger children is protective at migration (Dybdahl, 2001; Elbedour, ten-Bensel & Bastien, 1993; Garbarino & Kostelny, 1996; Papageorgiou et al., 2000), others suggest it is the inability to articulate and express distress or the attribution of egocentric explanations in younger children, which constitute risk (Berman, 2001).

Similarly regarding gender, it has been found that boys are more vulnerable than girls (Elbedour et al., 1993; El Habir et al., 1994) and where under conditions of accumulative risk factors such as injury through political violence and physical violence or maternal depression in the family unit, boys are particularly vulnerable to emotional and behavioural problems (Garbarino & Kostelny, 1996). Contrarily, the results of studies on children exposed to the Gulf war have found that females show higher frequencies of stress reactions than males (Greenbaum, Erlich & Toubiana, 1993; Klingman, 1994) and greater decreases over time in boys relative to girls in post-traumatic stress, anxiety and depression (Stein, Gardner & Kelleher, 1999). Differences in gender may reflect cultural expectations for the display of emotion or females being more adept to openly report symptoms. Importantly, they also reflect the complex and dynamic interplay between risk and protective factors yet to be understood by the research.

The availability of support systems facilitates successful adaptation even when children and adolescents have survived extreme trauma (Fox, Cowell & Montgomery, 1994). Almqvist and Broberg (1999) for example, investigated the relevance of peer relationships, exposure to bullying or harassment, marital discord/harmony and parental mental health in the mental health and social adjustment of refugee children and adolescents in Sweden. They noted the protective nature of good paternal and maternal mental health, marital harmony and positive peer relationships. Conversely, isolation from support has been found to be a major predictor of poor psychological adaptation (Jupp & Luckey, 1990).
In line with the positive influence of social support, the maintenance of close ethnic community ties has also been shown to be a protective factor to mental health in children and adolescents, alongside cultural and religious traditions which assist to restore continuity in the past and present (Punamaki, 1996; Rousseau, 1995; Sack, 1995).
Though discussion of treatment issues is beyond the scope of this paper, early intervention and psychosocial assistance have frequently been reported as crucial protective factors PUNAMAKI (2001) despite low rates of help seeking behaviour in refugee populations (Howard & Hodes, 2000). Indeed, in her assessment of young Chilean adults who experienced childhood war related traumas of parental loss, Punamaki (2001) concluded that both the nature of trauma and the timing and duration of assistance were critical to wellbeing in adulthood.

Conclusions

Although preliminary in nature, the research in the psychological well-being of children and adolescent refugee and asylum seekers has identified key areas of consistency. It is apparent that most research in this area is directed at the prevalence of psychopathology, with particular emphasis on post-traumatic stress symptomology. This research clearly demonstrates that refugee children and adolescents are vulnerable to the effects of pre-migration, most notably exposure to trauma. It is also apparent that particular groups in this population constitute higher psychological risk than others, namely those with extended trauma experience, unaccompanied or separated children and adolescents and those still in the process of seeking asylum. Finally, it is apparent that certain risk and protective factors exist to temper or aggravate poor psychological health. Such factors include family cohesion, family support and parental psychological health; individual dispositional factors such as adaptability, temperament and positive esteem; and environmental factors such as peer and community support.

The psychological research however is less clear in a number of areas. These include the mechanisms by which risk and protective factors exacerbate and temper the effects of trauma and migration experience and the role of culture as a mediator in the experience of trauma and migration experience.

Though not presently discussed, future research needs to be directed at the improvement of methodologies (e.g., cross cultural validation of measurement techniques); the extension of knowledge and outcomes beyond PTSD and psychopathology (e.g., the development of theoretical models incorporating systematic effects of risk and protective factors), the influence and comparison of cultural context; the investigation of long term effects and impact of acculturation and the investigation of treatment issues centered around individual and family systems (Weine, 2002).

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About the authors

Trang Thomas, Ph.D is Professor of Psychology at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology

Winnie Lau, BBSc (Hon) is a Clinical Psychology Researcher at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology

1.The Child Behaviour Checklist is a commonly used test for children from 2 to 16 years of age to monitor their well being, such as whether they are anxious, uncommunicative, depressed, aggressive, delinquent, withdrawn or hyperactive.

2. The Diagnostic Interview Assessment Scale are structured interview schedules employed to yield information about the presence, absence, severity of symptoms or give a global indication of psychopathology.

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Psychological Well Being of Child and Adolescent Refugee and Asylum Seekers

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This paper outlines major international research findings of the past ten years reflecting knowledge gathered about the psychological health of child and adolescent refugee/asylum seekers. In doing so, several key areas of consistency are identified.

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Leaving everything behind in one life and beginning another in a different country with different laws, different education and health systems, different languages and different cultural expectations requires a period of adjustment.

For people who seek asylum and refuge, this process is all the more difficult due to the circumstances under which they depart their home country.

Some of the documented challenges faced by people from refugee backgrounds in Australia are:

finding affordable housing

finding employment

language and communication barriers

racism and discrimination

community attitudes

impact of disrupted education on schooling

learning English

distance and lack of communication with families in the home country and/ or countries of asylum (particularly if/where the family remains in a conflict situation)

ongoing mental health issues due to trauma, including survivor guilt

financial difficulties

visa insecurity (temporary visa holders)

separation from family members; living in blended families

changes in roles and status of family members.

IMPACT ON CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE

Young people face particular challenges because of their age and experiences. They carry the scars of war and displacement with them. Sometimes children are forced to flee alone and arrive in Australia as unaccompanied minors.

Although children are very resilient some children experience:

physical and psychological effects of trauma

language and literacy difficulties due to disrupted or limited prior education

issues with identity and belonging

changing family responsibilities.

Specialist counselling may be required for students from refugee backgrounds upon settlement in a new country. In New South Wales, support is offered through the NSW Service for the Treatment and Rehabilitation of Trauma and Torture Survivors (STARTTS).

Governments have a responsibility to provide on-arrival settlement support to people from refugee backgrounds in areas such as housing, health and education. For more information about the assistance provided for people from refugee backgrounds in Australia refer to Refugees in Australia.

In 2018, the Office for the Advocate for Children and Young People (ACYP) conducted consultations with young people from refugee and asylum seeker backgrounds to learn what they found helpful and challenging about settling in Australia.

More information

Read about Settlement challenges Refugee Council of Australia (RCOA)

Watch Life in Australia: Celebrating young people from refugee and migrant backgrounds (MYAN)

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refugee asylum seeker migrants stateless internally dsiplaced persons idp persecution laws crossing borders refugee journeys supporting

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Department of Education, Multicultural Programs

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Refugee settlement challenges & impact on children

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Refugee settlement challenges & impact on children - Leaving everything behind in one life and beginning another in a different country with different laws, different education and health systems, different languages and different cultural expectations requires a period of adjustment

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The Sydney Refugee Team seeks to bring the hope of Jesus Christ to refugees and asylum seekers, and see their lives transformed by the power of God through building of genuine relationships and through equipping and empowering them to live in a new culture; and to actively engage and equip the local church to reach out to refugees and asylum seekers in their community.

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Reverend Nicole Fleming, who is a minister with the Uniting Church Balmain, wants to open up rooms in the church for asylum seekers.
Photo: Steven Siewert

Other members of her congregation were similarly dismayed. "One rang me saying: 'What can we can do?' "

And so, after getting approval from the national director of Uniting Justice, Fleming went ahead and invoked the centuries-old principal of church sanctuary, offering protection from civil authorities to any refugee who could make it onto church grounds.

"It means we would provide them with accommodation and whatever protection we could."

A former social worker, Fleming became a Uniting Church minister 15 years ago, and has been the celebrant at Balmain since 2011. "Our congregation is small - 45 on a Sunday if everyone shows up. But we have a history of seeking social justice and equality for all people."

After the Tampa crisis, in 2001, church members formed Balmain for Refugees, which continues to assist asylum seekers who need legal support. Civil disobedience is an important part of the church's ethos.

In 2014, Fleming and another member of the Balmain congregation were among 10 people who staged a "pray-in" at the Manly office of then Prime Minister Tony Abbott. "We were arrested and released without charge. But in other states, people who did similar pray-ins had to go to court."

"All people have a right to refuge from persecution, especially the most vulnerable. We are not doing our Christianity right if we don't support these people," she said.

Other church members agree. "When this idea was first raised, I thought about what the word sanctuary means," said Balmain congregation chairwoman Felicity Barclay. "It means refuge, safety, freedom from persecution. If churches can't provide that, then who will?"

Barclay says it's the role of the church to step in and act when the government and authorities won't. "It's all about putting faith into action," she said. "I work for a non-profit community pre-school, so I have particular concerns about children in detention. It's not rocket science to see that detention has a deleterious effect on children, and so find it extraordinary that the government is sanctioning it."

The legality of the church sanctuary initiative has been challenged by Immigration Minister Peter Dutton. But Fleming hopes that her church's actions will embolden others. "No matter what our theological differences, people are on board with the idea of offering compassion and recognising our common humanity."

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Sydney church offers sanctuary to refugees

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Other members of her congregation were similarly dismayed. "One rang me saying: 'What can we can do?' " And so, after getting approval from the national director of Uniting Justice, Fleming went ahead and invoked the centuries-old principal of church sanctuary, offering protection from civil authorities to any refugee who could make it onto church grounds.

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Andrew & Renata Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law

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Professor Jane McAdam - The Refugee Convention

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Please watch: "UNSWTV: Entertaining your curiosity" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQ7UO8nxiL0 -~-~~-~~~-~~-~- What is the Refugee Convention and what are Australia's obligations under that treaty? Video 1 in the series "Refugees - Rights, Protection and Policies" Understanding the international legal obligations that Australia has to refugees and asylum seekers is crucial when it comes to separating myths from facts in contemporary Australian debates.

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manus island report

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abuse of asylum seekers at sea

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In an open letter to the Australian media, Amnesty's Jessie Mawson calls on journalists stop referring to asylum seekers as 'migrants'. Asylum seekers wait at the Macedonia border near the village of Idomeni, Greece, 24 August 2015 © AI/Richard Burton
Dear journalists,

Please stop referring to refugees in Europe as 'migrants'. Please, please, please.

I know you're just taking your cue from the European newswires. I get it. But you need to do some find-and-replacing on that stuff before it goes to air/print.
Here's why:
It may seem like a small thing, but it's not. It's important. Language is important.

These aren't folks on some international jaunt of their own choosing - they're people running for their lives. They're refugees (or 'asylum seekers' - the correct term for people who haven't been given a chance to prove their refugee status).

And they're the very same people showing up in Australia (sometimes by boat, but mostly not) searching for a place to be safe. The 71 people who suffocated to death in the back of a van in Austria, and the desperate father selling pens on the side of the road in Lebanon, and the drowned little boy washed up on a beach in Turkey - are the same people we're locking up on Manus and Nauru.

Jessie Mawson

Al Jazeera gets it. A couple of weeks ago, online editor Barry Malone wrote "the umbrella term 'migrant' is no longer fit for purpose when it comes to describing the horror unfolding in the Mediterranean. It has evolved from its dictionary definitions into a tool that dehumanises and distances, a blunt pejorative".

He went on to explain that he and his colleagues at Al Jazeera have decided to start calling these people 'refugees'.

Malone is right, of course. When journalists use insensitive (and inaccurate) words to describe human beings, they help create an environment where hate speech can creep into our public discourse and where "thinly veiled racism can fester".

But there's another reason this 'migrants' thing bothers me so much: it discourages Australians from making the link between what's happening in Europe, and what's going on here.

In Australia, our Government does its best to keep refugees out of sight and mind by locking them up on far-flung pacific islands and just flat-out refusing to talk about them. And when ministers do talk, it's usually in three-word slogans like "Operation Sovereign Borders" and "Stop The Boats" that divorce the issue from its global context.

This is unhelpful. Because the truth is we're in the midst of a worldwide refugee crisis - and it's something we should be talking about.
For thousands of people from Syria and Iraq seeking asylum, the route to a new life lies through Greece and the Western Balkans © AI/Richard Burton
In 2014, 42,000 people were forced to flee their homes every day. In the pile of rubble where Syria once was, more than half of the population has been displaced - mostly to neighbouring countries like Lebanon and Jordan, now struggling under the pressure. In Lebanon, one in five people is a Syrian refugee. One. In. Five.
Please spare 30 seconds to fight for human rights

Only when we understand this can we hope to do better. Jessie Mawson is the Social Media Specialist at Amnesty International Australia.
When you, the Australian media, talk about 'migrants' in Europe, you perpetuate the idea that refugees are an isolated, domestic problem that can be fixed with crude (and cruel) domestic 'solutions'.

Refugees aren't an Australian problem.

All over the world, people are on the move in large numbers - because their homes are being bombed or their families are being murdered or their countries are disintegrating in front of their eyes.

Amnesty International has called it "one of the defining challenges of the 21st century" and it demands a global response; a paradigm shift.

Only when we understand this will the absurdity of cordoning off small groups of traumatised men, women and children in shoddy barbed-wire camps become horribly, embarrassingly apparent.

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An open letter to the Australian media: Why you need to stop talking about 'migrants'

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In an open letter to the Australian media, Amnesty's Jessie Mawson calls on journalists stop referring to asylum seekers as 'migrants'. Asylum seekers wait at the Macedonia border near the village of Idomeni, Greece, 24 August 2015 © AI/Richard Burton Dear journalists, Please stop referring to refugees in Europe as 'migrants'.

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Racism in the workplace: What you can do to protect your white employees from hearing about it. https://www.facebook.com/ajplusenglish/?hc_ref=NEWSFEED

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Joint World Conference on Social Work , Education and Social Development

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The Forum of Australian Services for Survivors of Torture and Trauma

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Forum of Australian Services for Survivors of Torture and Trauma

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Australian Transcultural Mental Health Network

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Inclusive Community Practice Oxford University Press

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Working With Survivors of Torture and Trauma

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Robin Bowles is a high quality Psychotherapist with over 20 years experience, and also has over 15 years experience of supervising other mental health professionals. I have much experience in working with relationship problems, loss and grief, migration and trauma, depression, anxiety and many other issues.

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Updated August 23, 2016 13:47:00
Monday 22nd August 2016 Children on the Frontline: Escape from Aleppo
Next on Four Corners, Children on the Frontline, one family's extraordinary story of life in the rubble of Syria and their escape to a new life, told through the eyes of four children.

"We're here and, at any moment, the army could attack us." Helen, 10

In the Syrian city of Aleppo, 10 year old Helen and her siblings live and play in the ruins of their city as war rages around them.

"The other day a bomb exploded inside the warehouse down in the garden." Farah, 7

Along with their mother, the children have chosen to stay in the city as their father commands a group of rebels fighting against the Assad regime.

"They want to stay with their dad. I tried leaving with them for two months and I suffered a lot with them because they wanted their dad." Hala, mother

The camera captures life for these children, as they wait in fear at the sound of incoming artillery, how they keep up with their schoolwork, and pick their way through the shattered apartment blocks to fill in time.

"Take them inside because of the firing. Come on!" Abu Ali, father

Filmed over three years by award winning director Marcel Mettelsiefen, this family's story dramatically documents the price being paid by Syrians as the war continues.

"Daesh (ISIS), the ugliest word I have ever heard in my life. These people have stolen our entire lives." Hala

As ISIS enters the war, life becomes intolerable and their mother makes the tough decision to leave Syria, and join the millions of refugees fleeing the country.

"How do you spell Germany?" Farah

The film chronicles their journey to safety and their grief for what they've left behind.

"I took a piece of my heart and put it on the door of our house for him, for daddy." Sara
Children on the Frontline, a film by Marcel Mettelsiefen and presented by Sarah Ferguson, goes to air on Monday 22nd August at 8.30pm EDT. It is replayed on Tuesday 23rd August at 10.00am and Wednesday 24th at 11pm. It can also be seen on ABC News 24 on Saturday at 8.00pm AEST, ABC iview and at abc.net.au/4corners.
Transcript

SARAH FERGUSON: Welcome to Four Corners. That image of a 5 year old boy pulled from his bombed home in the besieged city of Aleppo says more than the overwhelming statistics ever could of the horror for children caught in the Syrian conflict. More than 4,000 children have been killed in Syria since the war began. 75,000 children are trapped in Aleppo as fighting rages around them.

Tonight we bring you an extraordinary film that captures the daily lives of children there... through the eyes of four siblings Sara, Helen, Farah and Hamoudi. They are brave funny children living on the frontline, their childish games mimic the conflict around them. Filmed over three years we follow their eventual escape from Syria to the tentative beginnings of a new life in Germany.

This film was made by Marcel Mettelsiefen.

(Program plays: "Children on the Frontline: Escape from Aleppo", by Marcel Mettelsiefen)

SARAH FERGUSON: The children's father Abu Ali is still missing, feared dead.

Next week, the new frontier of cyber warfare and how it makes you and your smart phone vulnerable.

END

Background Information
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Save the Children | Syria - Child-focused humanitarian organization. - https://www.savethechildren.org.au/donate/syrian-refugee-crisis

Mecins Sans Fronties | Syria - MSF provide support to medical facilities run by Syrian doctors and bring a minimum level of healthcare to people trapped by the conflict. - https://www.msf.org.au/syria

Red Cross' Syria Crisis Appeal - Donations used to provide food parcels, hygiene kits, blankets and clean water. - http://www.redcross.org.au/syriacrisis.aspx

UNHCR Syria Crisis Appeal - UNHCR is providing water, mosquito nets and health care for millions of Syrian refugees. - http://www.unrefugees.org.au/emergencies/current-emergencies/syria-crisis-urgent-appeal
ABOUT THE FILMMAKER
Interview with Children on the Frontline's Marcel Mettelsiefen | Channel 4 | 9 May 2016 - http://www.channel4.com/info/press/news/interview-with-marcel-mettelsiefen

"Syria Changed My Life:" An Interview with Marcel Mettelsiefen | Frontline | 19 April 2016 - http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/syria-changed-my-life-an-interview-with-marcel-mettelsiefen/
RELATED MEDIA
What Life is Like for the Children of War-Torn Aleppo | TIME | 20 Aug 2016 - http://time.com/4459354/omran-daqneesh-syria-aleppo-children/

Syria crisis: Turkey vows 'more active' role in coming months because 'the bloodshed needs to stop'| ABC News Online | 20 Aug 2016 - http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-08-20/turkey-vows-more-active-syria-role-in-coming-months/7769708

Video of bloodied five-year-old in Aleppo shows children continue to pay price of Syria conflict | ABC News Online | 19 Aug 2016 - http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-08-18/children-continue-to-pay-price-of-syria-conflict/7761322

Syrian refugees invent app for Germany's bureaucracy maze | news.com.au | 16 Aug 2016 - http://www.news.com.au/finance/small-business/syrian-refugees-invent-app-for-germanys-bureaucracy-maze/news-story/84f89697e7a3c52269620b3a03e766fe

Syrian war: Refugees reflect on five years of conflict that left 250,000 dead, millions displaced | ABC News Online | 15 Mar 2016 - http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-03-15/syrian-war-five-years-on-from-start-of-bloody-war/7246890

Exhibition: Syrian crisis in photos | ABC News Online | 15 Mar 2016 - http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-03-15/exhibition:-syrian-crisis-in-photos/7248210

Syria: The story of the conflict | BBC News | 11 Mar 2016 - http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-26116868

Migrant crisis: Migration to Europe explained in seven charts | BBC News | 4 Mar 2016 - http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-34131911

The intractable war: With so many opposing interests at play, can peace ever return to Syria? | ABC News Online | 19 Feb 2016 - http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-02-19/who-is-fighting-who-in-syria/7184460

Migrant crisis: Germany has a new plan for Syrian refugees - jobs | Sydney Morning Herald | 28 Jan 2016 - http://www.smh.com.au/world/migrant-crisis/migrant-crisis-germany-has-a-new-plan-for-syrian-refugees--jobs-20160127-gmfnty.html

Refugee crisis: Has Germany's compassion moment proved to be naive? | The Drum, ABC | 21 Jan 2016 - http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-01-21/dalsanto-germanys-compassion-moment-is-over/7103576

Germany on course to accept one million refugees in 2015 | The Guardian | 8 Dec 2015 - https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/dec/08/germany-on-course-to-accept-one-million-refugees-in-2015

The Confused Person's Guide to the Syrian Civil War | The Atlantic | 29 Oct 2015 - http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2015/10/syrian-civil-war-guide-isis/410746/

Tags: community-and-society, government-and-politics, human-interest, unrest-conflict-and-war, germany, syria, turkey

First posted August 22, 2016 11:42:00

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Children on the Frontline - Escape from Aleppo

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Updated August 23, 2016 13:47:00 Monday 22nd August 2016 Children on the Frontline: Escape from Aleppo Next on Four Corners, Children on the Frontline, one family's extraordinary story of life in the rubble of Syria and their escape to a new life, told through the eyes of four children.

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Asylum seekers already in Australia can have their visas cancelled or their meagre government payments reduced if they breach a new code of conduct prohibiting "antisocial behaviour" or "lying to a government official", or if they fail to attend an interview.

Many of the regulations in the code, which was quietly gazetted last week and came into force on Saturday, are requirements to obey existing laws, including: "You must not disobey any Australian laws including Australian road laws" and "You must not make sexual contact with another person without that person's consent, regardless of their age; you must never make sexual contact with someone under the age of consent."

Others are very broad, or impose extra obligations of the approximately 33,000 asylum seekers already in Australia, who live on 89% of the standard unemployment benefit rate for which they are now required to do community work, but are not allowed to do paid work.

These include "you must co-operate with all reasonable requests from the department or its agents in regard to the resolution of your status, including requests to attend interviews or to provide or obtain identity and/or travel documents" and "You must not harass, intimidate or bully any other person or group of people or engage in any antisocial or disruptive activities that are inconsiderate, disrespectful or threaten the peaceful enjoyment of other members of the community."

Asylum seekers will be asked to sign the code and are warned: "If you are found to have breached the code of behaviour, you could have your income support reduced, or your visa may be cancelled. If your visa is cancelled, you will be returned to immigration detention and may be transferred to an offshore processing centre."

In an explanatory memorandum for the regulation imposing the code, the government says it has "become increasingly concerned about non-citizens who engage in conduct that is not in line with the expectations of the Australian community. The objective of this proposal is to ensure the safety of the Australian community and to preserve those rights owed to Australian citizens."

It discusses at length the possible violation of Australia's human rights obligations by the code, but the immigration minister, Scott Morrison, concludes: "The legislative instrument is compatible with human rights because to the extent that it may limit human rights and the government considers those limitations are reasonable, necessary and proportionate."

Under the Abbott government asylum seekers already in Australia at the time the former Labor government introduced its so-called "Papua New Guinea solution" to send all asylum seekers arriving by boat offshore for processing and resettlement, will remain on a temporary bridging visa until the parliament allows the Coalition to reintroduce temporary protection visas.

The Greens have said they will seek to disallow the code of conduct when parliament resumes.

"This is a move straight from the Liberal party handbook on fearmongering and hysteria," said the Greens immigration spokeswoman, Senator Sarah Hanson-Young.

"We have behaviour protocols, they're called Australian law and they should apply to everyone equally. This is clear discrimination against a specific group of people and it needs to be called out for what it is."

But Labor, whose support would be necessary for any disallowance, has not yet formed a view about how to react to the move, according to immigration spokesman Richard Marles.

Morrison first called for such "behavioural protocols" in February after a Sri Lankan asylum seeker was charged with sexual assault.

At the time the idea was criticised by the Victorian Liberal backbencher Russell Broadbent, who said there should ''never be special categories of laws for different categories of people ... the rule of law should apply to all and we should not set some people apart''.

Pamela Curr, campaign co-ordinator at the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre, said implementation of the code was "singling out asylum seekers as a group in need of special rules, the inference being that they are a threat".

"Until now asylum seekers released into the community had requirements attached to their bridging visa; including not being allowed to commit a crime, notifying the department of their residence at all times, not moving or going interstate without notifying the department, and generally conforming to the community rules.

"This has has introduced a punishment without trial as the the minister can decide if a person should be punished, without consulting the police and the court."

Daniel Webb, director of legal advocacy at the Human Rights Law Centre, said the introduction of the code raised serious legal questions.

"People may be indefinitely locked up on the basis of untested allegations of traffic infringements or bullying," he said.

"The suggestion from the government that such an arbitrary and draconian deprivation of liberty is 'reasonable, necessary and proportionate' is dubious at best.

"Morrison says these reforms uphold fundamental Australian laws and values. Well, the right to liberty and the presumption of innocence are pretty fundamental. And these reforms trash them."

The code of behaviour - in full

The code reads as follows:

"This Code of Behaviour contains a list of expectations about how you will behave at all times while in Australia. It does not contain all your rights and duties under Australian law. If you are found to have breached the Code of Behaviour, you could have your income support reduced, or your visa may be cancelled. If your visa is cancelled, you will be returned to immigration detention and may be transferred to an offshore processing centre.

* You must not disobey any Australian laws including Australian road laws; you must cooperate with all lawful instructions given to you by police and other government officials;

* You must not make sexual contact with another person without that person's consent, regardless of their age; you must never make sexual contact with someone under the age of consent;

* You must not take part in, or get involved in any kind of criminal behaviour in Australia, including violence against any person, including your family or government officials; deliberately damage property; give false identity documents or lie to a government official;

* You must not harass, intimidate or bully any other person or group of people or engage in any antisocial or disruptive activities that are inconsiderate, disrespectful or threaten the peaceful enjoyment of other members of the community;

* You must not refuse to comply with any health undertaking provided by the Department of Immigration and Border Protection or direction issued by the Chief Medical Officer (Immigration) to undertake treatment for a health condition for public health purposes;

* You must co-operate with all reasonable requests from the department or its agents in regard to the resolution of your status, including requests to attend interviews or to provide or obtain identity and/or travel documents.

I, __________[name to be written]_______ ______________________________________ agree to abide by this Code of Behaviour while I am living in Australia on a Bridging E visa. I understand that if I do not abide by the Code of Behaviour my income support may be reduced or ceased, or my visa may be cancelled and I will be returned to immigration detention."

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Department of Immigration and Border Protection

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Asylum seekers living in Australia forced to sign code of conduct

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Asylum seekers already in Australia can have their visas cancelled or their meagre government payments reduced if they breach a new code of conduct prohibiting "antisocial behaviour" or "lying to a government official", or if they fail to attend an interview.

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Welcome to the Department of Home Affairs

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The Department of Home Affairs is a central policy agency, providing coordinated strategy and policy leadership for Australia?s national and transport security, federal law enforcement, criminal justice, cyber, border, immigration, multicultural affairs, emergency management and trade related functions.

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The Status Resolution Support Services (SRSS) programme provides services to certain non-citizens while they cooperate with us to resolve their immigration status.

SRSS programme services

Services delivered in the SRSS programme depend on the individual circumstances of the person and could include:

financial assistance

housing, including residential and out-of-home care for unaccompanied minors or accommodation assistance

access to health care

case worker support

case management support

access to 'English as a Second Language' lessons for all adults

access to schooling for school aged children.

People eligible for support under the SRSS programme will receive services under one of six SRSS bands, depending on:

the stage of visa processing

any barriers that could prevent status resolution

their personal circumstances and level of need or vulnerability.

We will refer recipients to a SRSS provider in their region that delivers services under the appropriate band. SRSS recipients can move between bands or service providers as their status resolution progresses or if their circumstances change.

To be eligible for continued services under the SRSS programme, recipients must cooperate with us to resolve their immigration status and follow our instructions. People must also abide by certain conditions attached to their residence determination (applies to bands 2 - 3) or the Code of Behaviour for bands 4 - 6 bridging visa holders (where applicable).

A person's immigration status can be resolved when one of the following apply:

they are granted a substantive visa

they depart Australia.

Bands within the SRSS programme

There are six bands within the SRSS programme that offer varying levels of assistance and support to eligible people.

The individual circumstances of the recipient will determine the type and level of assistance and support they are provided under the SRSS programme

SRSS band 1 - unaccompanied minors in alternative places of detention

SRSS band 1 recipients are unlawful non-citizen unaccompanied minors who are accommodated in alternative places of detention (low-security detention facilities for children and families). For the purpose of the SRSS programme, an unaccompanied minor (UAM) is a minor under the age of 18 years of age, who does not have a parent or adult relative who is at least 21 years old to provide a carer or supervisory role. Additional care and support services include carer support, independent observer services and transit support.

SRSS band 1 recipients access health services through International Health and Medical Services (IHMS) for general health needs. Their accommodation needs and day-to-day care requirements are provided for by our detention services provider.

SRSS bands 2 & 3 - community detention

SRSS band 2 and 3 recipients are unlawful non-citizens in immigration detention being accommodated under residence determination arrangements. This is known as 'community detention'. The Minister must make a residence determination under s197AB of the Migration Act 1958 (the Act), in order for a detainee to receive band 2 or band 3 services. The residence determination will specify the address at which the recipient must reside and the conditions of the accommodation arrangements.

SRSS band 2 and 3 recipients can move about freely in the community even though they are unlawful non-citizens. However, they have different rights and responsibilities to people living in the community on a visa. All band 2 and 3 recipients must abide by the conditions of their residence determination, as specified by the Minister, which include:

abiding by Australian laws and regulations

observing Australian community behavioural expectations as described in the conditions of community detention

regular reporting requirements

living at the specified residential address

not undertaking work which would normally receive an income or salary.

The Minister can choose to revoke or vary a residence determination, where it is in the public interest to do so or, if a recipient does not follow the conditions of their residence determination.

The health needs of SRSS band 2 and 3 recipients are managed by International Health and Medical Services (IHMS) through a network of community based providers. We are responsible for the costs of these services.

SRSS band 2 provides assistance for unaccompanied minors (UAMs). SRSS band 2 recipients receive a high level of support. They live with a full-time carer in a group house arrangement with other UAMs and receive a small weekly allowance for personal items. We are responsible for paying the rent, food and other household item costs.

SRSS band 3 provides assistance for families and adults with significant vulnerabilities including ongoing medical conditions requiring ongoing medical intervention. Adults and families receiving SRSS band 3 services live in provided accommodation and receive a small fortnightly allowance to cover the basic costs of living in the community.

SRSS band 4 - transitional support

SRSS band 4 services provide assistance to people who are released from immigration detention through the grant of a visa. Transitional support helps recipients transition into the community by linking them with appropriate community support services including Medicare and Centrelink. Transitional support is only available on a short term basis.

To be eligible for SRSS band 4 services, recipients must have been recently released from immigration detention through the grant of a visa, require support to transition to independent residence in the community and not have access to other welfare support.

For those SRSS band 4 recipients who are granted a bridging visa, SRSS providers administer a range of services that support recipients to resolve their immigration status by addressing their health and wellbeing, vulnerabilities and barriers. This support is usually provided for a period of up to six weeks, however illegal maritime arrival families with children aged 10 and under have access to additional support.

Health services provided under SRSS band 4 are similar to those available to Australian citizens through Medicare.

SRSS band 5 - community assistance support

SRSS band 5 provides assistance and support to lawful non-citizens living in the Australian community with complex barriers to resolving their immigration status. SRSS band 5 recipients are assigned a departmental case manager and a SRSS case worker to help them resolve their immigration status by addressing their health and wellbeing, vulnerabilities and other identified barriers.

Health services provided under SRSS band 5 are the same as those available to Australian citizens through Medicare.

SRSS band 6 - asylum seeker assistance scheme

SRSS band 6 provides financial assistance to those assessed as experiencing financial hardship and who are seeking to engage Australia's protection obligations through the grant of an appropriate protection or humanitarian visa.

Support, including casework assistance, is delivered by professionals employed by the SRSS service provider to help vulnerable asylum seekers live in the Australian community.

SRSS band 6 recipients may also be eligible for Medicare. Further information on eligibility for Medicare can be obtained from the Department of Human Services website.

See: Medicare services​

SRSS service providers

The following table lists the SRSS Service providers in each State and Territory.

State/Territory

SRSS Service Provider

Victoria

Adult Multicultural Education Services
Australian Red Cross
Life Without Barriers, trading as National Immigration Support Services

New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory

Australian Red Cross
Life Without Barriers, trading as National Immigration Support Services
Marist Youth Care
Settlement Services International

Queensland

Access Community Services Ltd
Australian Red Cross
Multicultural Development Association

South Australia

Australian Red Cross
Life Without Barriers, trading as National Immigration Support Services

Northern Territory

Australian Red Cross
Life Without Barriers, trading as National Immigration Support Services

Western Australia

Australian Red Cross
MercyCare

Tasmania

Australian Red Cross
Centacare Tasmania

Christmas Island

Serco Australia Pty Ltd
Life Without Barriers, trading as National Immigration Support Services (contingency provider)

Statistics

Statistics are available for:

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

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International Health and Medical Services

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Red Cross Centacare Tasmania Christmas Island Serco Australia Pty Ltd

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SRSS Service Provider Victoria Adult Multicultural Education Services Australian Red Cross Life Without Barriers

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National Immigration Support Services Marist Youth Care Settlement Services International Queensland Access Community Services Ltd Australian Red Cross Multicultural Development Association South Australia Australian Red Cross Life Without Barriers

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National Immigration Support Services New South Wales/Australian Capital Territory Australian Red Cross Life Without Barriers

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National Immigration Support Services Northern Territory Australian Red Cross Life Without Barriers

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National Immigration Support Services Western Australia Australian Red Cross

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The Status Resolution Support Services (SRSS) programme provides services to certain non-citizens while they cooperate with us to resolve their immigration status.

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At Bedford Street in Newtown, the air is frigid, the sky clear and still. Beside the train track is a towering fig tree, where shrieks from myna birds are drowned out by the roar of trains. On the corner opposite, close to the road, is the Asylum Seekers Centre, a rambling terrace house illuminated by a multicoloured mural.

When she meets me inside, Frances Rush smiles. Her hand is warm. She wears brilliant lipstick and a bright scarf, but everything else about her is gentle: eyes, manner, the delicate mother-of-pearl studs at her ears. She's worked with homeless people, priests and nuns, sex workers, camels, kids in youth detention; on national boards, on the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse; in Aboriginal communities, cities, the bush, the desert. The exposure of her family to social justice has been a strong driver for her own career, she says. "As one of five children growing up in the '70s, my family pooled with others and supported Vietnamese families. It was community coming together."

Here, at the Asylum Seekers Centre, Rush has been involved since the very beginning, when the centre was in Surry Hills. Four years ago, with financial support from major foundations, individuals and community groups, the centre expanded, moving to Newtown. Last year, Rush became chief executive officer.

At any one time, there are 17,000 people living in New South Wales who are seeking asylum. The centre, she tells me, is almost at capacity. "We are downstream of government policy and we feel the impact. There are people who will tip into destitution. It is both political and real."

The centre operates with more than 300 volunteers: lawyers, doctors, cooks, teachers, employment service workers, and more. In terms of compassion and generosity, Rush says, it is the opposite of what is happening at government level. "Even when we first moved in, local people turned up with canned goods on day one. We get five to 10 calls a day saying, 'What can I do?' One of our challenges is: how do we harness that goodwill?"

Rush takes me on a tour. Inside, the house is a tight warren of rooms and hallways. Every space is filled. Against a wall in the common area, a table is laid out with free things to take: cans of baked beans, cooking implements, new coathangers covered in maroon satin or yellow crochet. In the corner is a playpen with toys and books, and a multistorey doll's house complete with furnishings. Rush stops at the children's artwork that decorates the walls: carefully coloured pictures of monkeys and dinosaurs, butterflies in pinks and blues, a house with a pointed roof and green garden. "We have an extraordinary number of children here at the moment," she says. "One little girl is nervous her school friends will find out she's an asylum seeker, and won't be her friends anymore." English classes are not provided by the government for asylum seekers, and school preparation, "takes an enormous amount of work".

Walking around the centre, Rush greets people by name, fetches paper for someone, confirms meeting times with someone else. We stop at the basic kitchen, where Miles, a volunteer cook for the past 12 years, is frying pakoras. Volunteer kitchen staff provide a hot meal every day. "Not everyone has access to hot food," Rush says. "For a lot of people, they are not living in a place they can cook."

Guitars hang on the wall of the music room; below them, bongo drums and electric keyboards sit among sheets of music. "People wait years - what do they do in that time? We run education classes: gardening and music and art. We look at social activities, what's free in the city."

Along the hallway, the employment team sits in a narrow office, overlooking the front street. Free to employers, the centre's employment service matches people with jobs, confirms work rights and skill levels, and offers ongoing support. Last year the service helped 222 asylum seekers find jobs. "Employment transforms lives," Rush says. "If you want a really good employee, you'd employ someone who sought safety here. They want that job, they want to make it work. There is no sense of wanting to come here and linger."

We visit the health clinic, one small room, where equipment has been donated by local hospitals. One of Rush's biggest challenges, she admits, is funding. Four years ago the centre supported 400 people; now, that number is above 1600. Relying on grants makes you vulnerable, she says. "Ordinary people making small, regular donations is vital. That untied money keeps the place going. It enables us to be flexible. And it gives us the certainty of going forward."

The Australian public who are supportive of people seeking asylum, Rush tells me, understand it, that real sense of courage. "It's the courage that comes hand in hand with grief really. People who flee their country are losing. They're leaving family and culture. And they don't know where they are going. That resilience and courage is a powerful combination. It's a strength you want to build on."

Downstairs, behind the food bank, the storage room is heaving. Non-perishable food and blankets line the walls and floor. Rush laughs. She says she has been stalking the generous priest on the corner of the street. "I am always on the lookout for more room."

Of her role, Rush is cautiously optimistic. "It's a huge responsibility on every level; I certainly feel that." Her outlet, she says, is walking: bush treks in Tasmania, the Camino in Spain and France, the Oxfam trail walk. "It's about getting into that rhythm, that different way of thinking."

She smiles. "But this doesn't really need to be about me, does it?" Again, Rush is talking about the centre and its people. Our work here, she says, is about empowering people, helping them to thrive, getting them back on their feet. "When a person from the employment team says someone has got a job - we all rejoice in that. And when you hear someone has got protection, you think: they can live, they can breathe again."

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At Bedford Street in Newtown, the air is frigid, the sky clear and still. Beside the train track is a towering fig tree, where shrieks from myna birds are drowned out by the roar of trains. On the corner opposite, close to the road, is the Asylum Seekers Centre, a rambling terrace house illuminated by a multicoloured mural.

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August 10 2016. The Guardian's release today of over 2000 incident reports from refugees and asylum seekers sent to Nauru by Australia clarify the systematic neglect and abuse that has been left to continue in Australia's offshore immigration detention system.

"This clear evidence of abuse included in these thousands of pages of documents compiled by Australia's offshore immigration detention contractors is devastating proof of the systematic abuse that continues within the Australian initiated and funded offshore immigration detention program" said Tim O'Connor, Refugee Council of Australia Acting CEO.

"Reading the extent and detail of the suffering is sickening: the child abuse, sexual abuse, threats, self-harm and psychological damage Australia's offshore detention system is having on a daily basis. It is not clear that any of these reports have been investigated and there must be justice for those that have raised these extremely troubling claims."

Despite the lack of transparency and access to Nauru's refugees and people seeking asylum that have been sent to Nauru by Australia, the dire situation of vulnerable people held there has been consistently raised to the Government. Independent reports from the Australian Human Rights Commission, a recent report by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, a Senate Inquiry, even the Government's own Moss Report, have raised serious questions that have yet to be answered.

"The veil of secrecy is gone and now the Australian public can know in sickening detail of the abuse that is being perpetrated in their name on Nauru. We must act immediately to secure the safety of these vulnerable people in our care" said Mr O'Connor.

The Refugee Council of Australia is calling for all those sent to Nauru, including children and women to be brought to immediate safety in Australia and an independent investigation into all the claims made in the Nauru Files.

"As the Government has done in the Northern Territory when serious abuse has been brought to its attention, there needs to be an independent investigation into all the claims in the Narau files.

"With the success of the Government in stopping the arrival of people seeking asylum by boat, there can be no further excuse not to bring these people to immediate safety. When John Howard was Prime Minister he established a humane precedent of bringing those to Australia here and we implore the Government to act quickly to follow this precedent and ensure the safety and protection of those we have so badly failed." concluded Mr O'Connor.
For more information, call Refugee Council of Australia 02 9211 9333 or 0431 147 366

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Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch

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Nauru Files: Final devastating proof we need a new way on asylum

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August 10 2016 . The Guardian's release today of over 2000 incident reports from refugees and asylum seekers sent to Nauru by Australia clarify the systematic neglect and abuse that has been left to continue in Australia's offshore immigration detention system.