A Group Of Danish Politicians Have Been Barred From Visiting Detention Centres On Nauru
The politicians were critical of Australia's refugee policy.
A group of Danish politicians planning a study tour of Nauru have cancelled their trip after two of the MPs were denied access to the small island nation. The politicians were planning on inspecting Australia’s offshore detention centres.
One of the politicians, Johanne Schmidt-Nielsen, posted on Facebook this evening that she, along with two other Danish MPs, had been denied entry by the Nauruan government.
“On Monday the government of the Pacific island of Nauru announced that Jacob Mark of the Socialist People’s Party, Naser Khader of the Conservative People’s Party and I were no longer welcome at the 48-hour visit to Nauru of the Danish Parliament’s Immigration Committee that has been planned for some time,” Schmidt-Nielsen said.
“Jacob Mark and I have criticised the ‘Australian model’ in the media. The Australian asylum policy forces thousands of asylum seekers who are on their way to Australia to live in camps on Pacific islands such as Nauru. The reason why a Danish politician with the name Naser Khader is excluded – without having criticised Nauru or Australia – is anybody’s guess,” she said.
According to Schmidt-Nielsen the other politicians on the trip were still given permission to travel to Nauru. Despite intervention from the Danish foreign ministry and the fact that the trip had been planned in conjunction the Danish, Australian and Nauruan governments, the politicians were still denied access.
In response the entire delegation cancelled its visit. Jacob Mark, another of the politicians denied entry, declared the decision “Seriously undemocratic” and criticised Australia for apparently accepting the Nauran government’s decision.
“I am amazed that I can not get access to Nauru because I have criticised the terrible conditions that refugees live in,” Mark said.
Danish MP Jacob Mark on Nauru refusal: “seriously undemocratic and I cannot understand how Australia can accept it”. https://t.co/c0kwge6Zzv
— Nick Ford (@nickford) August 30, 2016
Schmidt-Nielsen pointed out that the Australian media has only been granted access to Nauru twice in recent years. Last week Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young was denied access to visit Nauru.
Earlier this month The Guardian published the Nauru Files, a release of thousands of leaked documents detailing the abuse suffered by refugees on Nauru.