Australia ends "Pacific Solution" for refugees

CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australia ended on Friday itscontroversial policy of sending asylum seekers intooften-lengthy detention on small Pacific island nations, withthe last refugees leaving Nauru to live in Australia.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, who won victory for centre-leftLabor in November, fought the election on a pledge to end theheavily-criticised "Pacific Solution", introduced by the formerconservative government in 2001 to turn back boatpeople afteralmost 5,000 arrived the year before.

"This is the end of a long and fairly painful chapter inAustralian asylum policy and practice," said Richard Towle, theregional head of the United Nations High Commissioner forRefugees (UNHCR).

Former Prime Minister John Howard introduced the policy inlate 2001, splitting the nation between critics and supporters,after a standoff involving 439 mostly-Afghan refugees blockedfrom landing in Australia by special forces soldiers.

The Afghans had been rescued at sea by a Norwegianfreighter, the MV Tampa, after their fishing vessel sank ininternational waters en route to Australia.

During the next six years, more than 1,300 asylum seekerswere processed on Nauru, while others were sent to Manus Islandin Papua New Guinea in return for millions of dollars in aidfrom Australia's government.

But the policy was criticised by the UNHCR and AmnestyInternational, who both accused Australia of breaching itsresponsibilities under international refugee conventions.

Rudd's Labor said the policy had wasted more than A$300million (138 million pounds) since its introduction and shutthe door on it with the departure of 21 Sri Lankan refugees forsettlement in Australia.

"We're delighted that Nauru finally will have no morerefugees on it from now on," the UN's Towle told local radio.

Canberra said it would retain a tough border policy througha purpose-built detention centre on remote Christmas Island, inthe Indian Ocean between Australia and Indonesia.

Nauru's cash-strapped government has asked Australia toincrease aid to make up for the blow to its economy caused bythe loss of income from the detention centre.

($1=A$1.12)

(Editing by Alex Richardson)

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