Foreign media banned from reporting on Australia’s refugee processing centres

Reporters Without Borders condemned Papua New Guinea’s decision to temporarily ban foreign journalists who wanted to cover Australia’s plans to reopen the old detention centre on Manus Island, an island off Papua New Guinea’s northern coast, and use it to process asylum seekers. “Journalists must be able to report on developments like this, especially when it touches on sensitive topics such as refugees,” said Reporters Without Borders. “We urge the Papua New Guinea government to immediately lift this ban so journalists can cover the reopening of the centre.” Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced on 13 August that her government would begin sending asylum seekers to Christmas Island, an Australian territory, for processing by the end of September, and to Manus Island at a later date. Australia’s announcement to use Papua New Guinea’s territory to detain asylum seekers remains highly controversial in Papua New Guinea. “There is no law in Papua New Guinea that allows people to be detained without charge,” said Powes Parkop, the governor of the National Capital District and a former member of the ruling coalition. The Sydney-based Fairfax Media The report said two of the newspaper’s journalists submitted a visa application to Manus Island on August 15. Their application was approved by the Papua New Guinea Prime Minister’s Office within 24 hours, but was subsequently rejected by the Immigration and Citizenship Services Department. A spokesperson for the Immigration and Citizenship Services Department later told Fairfax The foreign minister has banned the issuance of visas to foreign media personnel “until further notice”. Fairfax has appealed. Foreign Minister Rimbink Pato cited national security concerns in defending the temporary ban in an interview on August 24, saying it would prevent erroneous reporting that could be “misinterpreted”. He said there was “no need for visits” at the moment, adding that eventually “everyone will be invited to see what we have achieved.” Papua New Guinea ranked 35th out of 179 countries Reporters Without Borders Press Freedom Index 2011/2012.
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