The Experience of Stateless Palestinians in Australia

Huthayfa Abuseifein

Statelessness describes a situation where an individual is not a citizen of any country and is consequently denied the rights and benefits that commonly come with citizenship. Australia’s position on stateless people is problematic. Firstly, Australia has ratified both the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons and the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness, meaning it is bound to comply with these international law instruments. However, as Australia has not implemented these Conventions through domestic legislation, it is difficult to enforce these treaties in practice (McMullin 2022). Globally, there are an estimated five million Palestinians who are stateless due to the 1948 Nakbah and subsequent dispossessions from conflict-affected states such as Lebanon, Kuwait, Iraq and Syria. It is estimated that twenty thousand stateless Palestinians have sought refuge in Australia. Applying the theoretical lens of critical securitisation theory, particularly the securitisation of migration, this thesis argues that Australia has securitised stateless Palestinians as a possible threat. This securitisation has enabled these Palestinians to be subjected to extraordinary measures and practices of exceptionalism by the Australian state, which have effectively prevented them from accessing the protections afforded to them under international law. This has resulted in many stateless Palestinians in Australia being denied access to essential rights such as healthcare, education, and employment. In some cases, moreover, this has resulted in even more egregious human rights violations, including the death of Mohammed Alsaleh in mandatory immigration detention in 2001 and the inhumane treatment of Aladdin Sisalem at Manus Island Detention Centre. The treatment of stateless Palestinians by Australia is therefore an important case-study of the difficulties in reconciling the international commitments of states in a climate where stateless people are increasingly securitised, demonised and marginalised.

The Experience of Stateless Palestinians in Australia

Files and links (1)

Abstract

Details

Metrics