Woomera locked down
By MICHAEL MADIGAN
22jan02
Herald Sun
WOOMERA Detention Centre was locked down yesterday as authorities braced for violent protests at two other centres in Western Australia.
Port Headland detainees are rallying in support of Woomera's protesters, several of whom have sewn their lips together as part of hunger strike.
Further trouble has erupted at the Curtin detention centre in Western Australia after three Sri Lankan detainees allegedly sexually molested children.
Part of the centre was damaged by fire as inmates rioted and demanded all Sri Lankans be removed.
Immigration Minister Philip Ruddock was yesterday refusing to negotiate with the Woomera protesters who include several teenagers.
Children were being bussed out early yesterday after concerns they were being forced to sew their lips together to join hunger strikers.
Marion Le, of the Independent Council for Refugee Advocacy, said a reliable source told her the lips of a baby had been sewn, but the report remains unconfirmed.
Mr Ruddock said several hundred detainees claimed to be on a hunger strike, but many were coming on and off the strike.
Some of those who have sewn their mouths had only sewn one corner, he said.
Mr Ruddock confirmed people had swallowed detergent, but said there had not been an attempted mass suicide. "We will continue to monitor and ensure nobody puts their life in danger," he said.
Two inmates inside the centre, Hossein Rezayat and Hassan Varsy, say inmates are being bashed while attempted suicides are common.
Both men, Afghans in their late 20s, say aggressive guards, who they call "monsters", practise martial arts in front of them and swear at and intimidate inmates.
"We cannot see television or get letters or hear the radio," they said.
The inmates say the protest is not merely against long processing times but against forced detention.
Mr Ruddock said the detainees' actions were a form of blackmail.
"People are endeavouring to put us under duress, to coerce us to give them outcomes to which they are not entitled," he said.
The Curtin protest was prompted by an Iraqi woman's claims that the Sri Lankan men had sexually abused children at the West Australian facility.
Mr Ruddock said parts of the centre were set alight yesterday as detainees demanded all Sri Lankans be removed.
"They (the Sri Lankan men) are now being separately detained while those inquiries are being pursued," Mr Ruddock said.
"And if the offences can be proven charges will be brought."
As of January 18 there were 834 people in Woomera.