Tensions ahead of Australia camp closure on PNG

SYDNEY AFP Oct29, 2017 - Tensions were high on a Papua New Guinea island Sunday as authorities prepared to close an Australian refugee camp, with local police calling for calm as some detainees refused to move.   

The Manus Island detention centre, to close Tuesday, is one of two Pacific camps where asylum-seekers who try to enter Australia by boat are sent for processing under Canberra’s harsh immigration policy.   

Refugees had been given the option of moving to the other centre on the island of Nauru but most detainees have shunned the offer, expressing fears that relocation could further prolong their agony.   Some have also refused to relocate on Manus, citing safety fears amid reports they would not be welcomed in local neighbourhoods.   

 “The guys (refugees) have said they will stay, they don’t intend to move,” Refugee Action Coalition spokesman Ian Rintoul told AFP Sunday.