Athenæum

Previous entry | Next entry

11/21/2005: :: Nauru

Most Nauru Detainees Heading To Australia; Two To Remain
from BBC World News Asia-Pacific

After four years of being detained on Nauru, nearly all of those people who sought asylum in Australia will finally go there to have their claims processed. Most of the over 1200 asylum seekers detained on Nauru as part of the Australian government's "Pacific Solution" were from Afghanistan and Iraq. There are only a few there now, but two are to remain, as they are deemed by Canberra to be a security risk. Do you think it could be...? Nah.

The BBC has beefed up its Nauru coverage, updating their informative country profile and timeline of the world's smallest republic. The profile reminded me that Nauru is only 8 square miles- twice the size of Watertown. Keep that in mind as you try to imagine what this so- called "off-shore processing centre" looks like.