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HUMANITY OVER POLITICS 21<br />
OUTREACH<br />
Legal Service at Asylum<br />
Seekers Centre<br />
In May 2014, RACS commenced<br />
its partnership with the Asylum<br />
Seekers Centre (ASC) to establish<br />
a new legal service for ASC clients.<br />
The ASC Legal Service enhances<br />
access to justice by providing<br />
asylum seekers with access to free<br />
legal advice and assistance with<br />
their protection matters. The ASC<br />
Legal team consists of one fulltime<br />
RACS lawyer, legal interns<br />
and volunteer lawyers based at<br />
the ASC in Newtown. The expert<br />
legal support provided by RACS<br />
has allowed the ASC to augment<br />
the suite of services it provides<br />
to its clients, facilitates referral to<br />
RACS for further assistance and<br />
has helped to establish a Judicial<br />
Review clinic with RACS training<br />
pro bono lawyers from Gilbert and<br />
Tobin to assist in the clinic.<br />
Auburn Asylum Seeker and<br />
Refugee Legal Service<br />
In partnership with Dooleys and<br />
Auburn City Council, RACS has<br />
established an outreach advice<br />
service for the residents of the<br />
Auburn LGA. Large numbers of<br />
asylum seekers who arrived after 13<br />
August 2012 live in the Auburn LGA.<br />
These people are unable to apply<br />
for protection, are on Bridging Visa<br />
Es that require signing a code of<br />
behaviour and are barely subsisting<br />
on the small fortnightly allowance<br />
they receive from the government.<br />
Most of them have never received<br />
legal advice and are not aware of<br />
their human rights or their legal<br />
rights.<br />
The Auburn Asylum Seeker and<br />
Refugee Legal Service provides<br />
information and assistance to<br />
asylum seekers and refugees who<br />
are residents of the Auburn LGA in<br />
Auburn. They will not have to travel<br />
in to the city and spend $10 or more<br />
of their pitiful allowance. They will<br />
be able to receive help in a familiar<br />
place.<br />
The clinic is based in the Auburn<br />
Centre for Community and is part<br />
of a hub of services being provided<br />
to asylum seekers. We are working<br />
with the House of Welcome, SSI<br />
and Refugee Health Services at the<br />
centre.<br />
MOSAIC and RACS<br />
In the past 12 months, RACS has<br />
provided immigration advice to<br />
MOSAIC clients. Since July 2014,<br />
due to funding cuts, RACS has<br />
had to cease this service but has<br />
continued to provide information<br />
sheets and advice to MOSAIC<br />
lawyers on legal issues pertaining to<br />
their clients.<br />
Enhanced Screening<br />
Since October 2012, RACS has been<br />
assisting clients in danger of being<br />
removed from Australia before<br />
having their protection claims<br />
heard according to due process.<br />
Expedited removal processes have<br />
been taking place on Christmas<br />
Island, in Darwin and in Yongah Hill<br />
in Western Australia. This process<br />
is called “Enhanced Screening”<br />
and involves a short interview<br />
conducted by two Department<br />
officers, who determine on this<br />
basis alone whether the person has<br />
claims for protection.<br />
The interview takes place shortly<br />
after the person has arrived in<br />
Australia, is between 20 minutes<br />
to an hour in length, and there is<br />
no legal representative present.<br />
Once a decision is made to “screen<br />
someone out”, the person could be<br />
put on a plane “home” within one<br />
to two weeks. Our experience has<br />
been that the focus of this process<br />
appeared to target Sri Lankan<br />
asylum seekers but over the past 12
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