Manus Island: What the future holds for refugees
A former asylum seeker, a former employee of a private security firm and an Australian who worked in a detention centre all face allegations of sexual misconduct in the case of a former inmate.
The ABC has been told the claims of sexual abuse are the strongest allegations against any refugee in the asylum seeker case.
One of the former employees is alleged to have made sexual advances to the woman, who is now an advocate for refugees.
Mr Morrison has said there is no evidence to support the allegations against the former employee, who was in the country for almost five years before the alleged misconduct occurred.
A former detainee was found to have committed an indecent act on a woman who was held on Manus in 2015.
In a statement, Mr Morrison said the former detainee has been released from detention.
“He was cleared for release by the Papua New Guinea Immigration Department on a humanitarian visa, but he has been cleared for indefinite detention by the PNG Government and will remain in PNG until his request for release is exhausted,” Mr Morrison’s statement said.
“The Department will continue to support those in detention and ensure they receive appropriate treatment.”
There are also a number of other matters that are still before the courts that are in the early stages.
“Mr Morrison said there were no changes to the current policy.
He said the new policy was based on the principles of compassion, compassion for refugees and respect for the rights of those in the community.”
It is about the people of PNG and our international obligations, we do not want to see people’s lives put at risk,” Mr Morrison said.
The case comes amid increasing public pressure for the PNG government to release the men from detention, and for the Australian government to pay $3.6 million to cover the costs of their asylum claims.
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