IF Labor politicians ever wanted to remind us of how terrible the Liberal and National parties’ policies on ref-ugees and asylum seekers were, not so many years ago, they would use words like “Tampa”, “Pacific Solution” and “mandatory detention”.
That may not work for them for too much longer if the Federal Government’s latest announcement on asylum seeker applications is any indication.
It’s a move that takes the Government closer to those days that many believed to be so shameful.
The Government would have us believe that asylum-seeker policies under Prime Minister John Howard were just that – shameful, but just as shameful is having the Government and Opposition playing politics with the lives of people seeking asylum.
As voters, the best we can do is to let our politicians know that we favour compassion and justice.
PETER BUGDEN
Editor
