Tony Abbott Says Nauru Is “A Very Pleasant Island” Where Asylum Seeker Kids Are Treated Well
"#KidsOffNauru is a great slogan, but it's a dreadful guide for policy."
Former Prime Minister and present scumbag Tony Abbott is continuing to argue that kids should remain on Nauru, saying today that Nauru is a “very, very pleasant island” where kids are treated well.
He made these comments on 2GB radio this morning, the day after new polling suggested that 79 per cent of Australians actually want kids to be evacuated from Nauru. It also goes without saying that he made these comments knowing full well that a colossal number of medical experts have now made it very clear that keeping kids on Nauru is not okay. But he made the comments anyway because he’s Tony Abbott.
“Of course, ‘Kids Off Nauru’ is a great slogan, but it’s a dreadful guide for policy,” he told 2GB. “Because if we aren’t allowed to have kids on Nauru, just bring some kids with you and you automatically get to Australia.”
He then added that kids are “being very well looked after on Nauru” (they’re not), and that “Nauru is no hellhole, by any means”.
“If you like living in the tropics, it’s a very, very pleasant island,” was his review.
If Tony Abbott thinks Nauru is so “pleasant” perhaps he could swap places with the children locked up there in detention. Solve two problems at once! Good deal 👍
— Sarah Hanson-Young💚 (@sarahinthesen8) October 29, 2018
As Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young put it on Twitter, maybe “if Tony Abbott thinks Nauru is so ‘pleasant’ perhaps he could swap places with the children locked up there in detention”.
Anyway, this is your daily reminder that our government is still twiddling its thumbs about the crisis on Nauru, and that Tony Abbott remains a member of that government. Keep that in mind, when the next election comes.