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Australian church accuses refugee service of negligence


A new report, issued by the Australian Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace, has warned the government that it could be sued for negligence for failing to protect young asylum seekers in detention camps. Documenting 264 incidents in an eight month period last year, the report says hundreds of detainees, many of them children, have deliberately injured or starved themselves in the camps, because they are so desperate. It said: 'any responsible organisation would not keep children in such dangerous conditions.' The Australian government responded by saying that 'only a small proportion' of more than 9,000 people held in camps for illegal immigrants during that period had harmed themselves. About 1,200 asylum seekers are currently in detention awaiting deportation or an appeal for a failed refugee claim.

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