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person within these detention facilities is safe, that every child in these
detention facilities is safe and to ensure that we do not see sexual assault
occurring within this detention facility. And I would make this point what
the Moss Review makes clear is that the fact people are living in tents,
almost 18 months after this government took office because of a decision,
a punitive decision, that the former Minister for Immigration took in
respect to this facility goes to the heart of the question of security of
people within the facility. Now I want to hear what the Government
intends to do in respect of that.
JOURNALIST: Labor of course, reopened the camps in Nauru in 2012, how
much responsibility do you think the Party bears for the failings identified
in this report?
MARLES: Let me be perfectly clear, this report is difficult reading for any
party which has been involved in the establishment of the facility on
Nauru, Im perfectly happy to say that. But Labor is not standing here
saying that there is nothing to see here, which is effectively the stance of
this Government. We see that people are living in tents almost 18 months
after this Government came to power. It was absolutely the intention of
Labor that those facilities which were in tents would be hard walled
standard so that security could be put in place. It was this Government
which put the brakes on that in a punitive decision to try and create an act
of deterrence and that was an appalling decision to take. But what we
actually need to see now from this Government is them taking
responsibility for what is occurring on Nauru and to do something about it,
rather than to point the finger and to blame everyone else.
JOURNALIST: Would Labor give more access to the centres to media and
independent monitoring, it previously didnt give access to media?
MARLES: We would be doing everything we could within our power to
make these facilities and their operation as transparent as possible to the
Australian public and obviously the media is completely involved in that.
JOURNALIST: Given the cost of responding to these 19 recommendations
is it time to close Nauru do you think?
MARLES: Nauru and Manus offshore processing has played a critical role
in saving lives at sea, thats why we support it. But the real issue here is
about ensuring that these facilities are facilities which are affording those
people within them safe, dignified and humane refuge. What we need to
see from this Government is steps that they intend to take which can give
every Australian a sense of confidence that that is the way in which these
facilities are operating.
JOURNALIST: What should be immediately done? Whats the first point?
MARLES: Well I think we all want to know that everybody in those
facilities are safe. It is really for the Government now who I might say
have had this report on their desk for the better part of a month to come
out and detail how they intend to give the Australian people a sense of
confidence that people within those facilities are safe.
JOURNALIST: Do you think the Government of Nauru has the capacity to
properly investigate the allegations of sexual assault and child abuse?
MARLES: The report details a number of ways in which there can be
better coordination between the authorities within the detention facility
and the authorities, including the police of the Government of Nauru. I
think better coordination between those authorities and the Government
of Nauru will help enhance the capacity of the Nauruan Police to
investigate allegations of this kind and indeed that is a finding of the Moss
Review.
JOURNALIST: The Government have said that the AFP and the
Department will work with Nauru to build capacity. Isnt that good
enough?
MARLES: The Government should absolutely be working with the AFP and
the Government of Nauru, the Nauruan Police Force to make sure the
coordination is as best as it can possibly be, and to help build the capacity
of the Nauruan Police Force. They need to do that. But right now, we need
to have a sense of confidence that this Government is going to take steps
to ensure that everyone in that facility is safe and Ive got to say
attempting to bury this report as the Government did yesterday afternoon
does not inspire that confidence at all.
JOURNALIST: Have you read Mark Cormacks comments to New Matilda?
MARLES: Im aware of the comments that hes made?
JOURNALIST: What do you make of them?
MARLES: I think the comments he has made to New Matilda raise very
serious questions. There are questions now about why those comments
arent contained within the Moss Review. This is a government which has a
track record of shooting the messenger, of not taking responsibility itself
and blaming everybody else that it can absolutely find. Lets be clear, if
were talking about what occurred on Manus Island just over a year ago
with the death of Reza Barati, the key finding of the Cornall Report was
that it was a failure of timely processing which built up a sense of
disconsternation amongst the detainees on Manus. Now that was all about
this Governments failure to engage with the Government of Papua New
Guinea around the question of resettlement. It was the Governments
actions, not those of service providers specifically, but the Governments
actions which were at the heart of what happened in respect of Manus
Island. And if we go to the question of Nauru what the Moss Review shows
is the fact that people are still living in tents 18 months after is a real
issue. Thats a decision of this Government. Its their actions, not those,
particularly of people from Save The Children, and I think the comments
that you refer to bear out the fact that this is a government which is
looking everywhere else other than itself to resolve its problems and we
need to hear from the Minister now about his response to the report and
to the comments that youve just referred.
JOURNALIST: Yesterday the Prime Minister was asked on 2GB about the
Moss Review and said occasionally things happen. What do you make of
that?
MARLES: This Prime Minister needs to think before he speaks. To dismiss
what has occurred here as being the proverbial happening as he has done
in the past is to utterly miss the point. Rather than to seek to blame
everyone else, rather than to say there is nothing to see here, the Prime
Minister and his government need to take responsibility for what is going
on, to listen to these allegations and then to act. I think thats what the
Australian people would want to hear this Prime Minister display rather
than making the ridiculous comments which he did yesterday.
Thank you.
ENDS