Dear supporters,

Over the last six months alone we have read stories of potential corruption, senior bureaucrats embroiled in political point scoring and now, the High Court has told the government indefinite detention is not on. Like the kids say, when you're in a hole, stop digging. It is time to have a Royal Commission into immigration detention now.

Sign here: https://www.aph.gov.au/e-petitions/petition/EN5644

Between 2001 and the present day, tens of thousands of individuals seeking Australia’s protection have been held in immigration camps that are now privatised, offshore, and beyond the reach of Australia’s courts and much of the media. There have been at least 37 cases of suicide related to immigration detention, allegations of torture, and systemic abuse of women, men, and children – horrific consequences for people who wanted nothing than to find safety.

As a nation, we must now urgently come together to address Australia's last two decades of mistreatment and abuse inflicted on those seeking asylum, lest it continue to be perpetuated.

Today, we join Federal Member for North Sydney, Ms. Kylea Tink, in calling for a Royal Commission into Australia's Immigration Detention to put Australia's treatment of refugees and asylum seekers on record and shine a light into the darkness.

Sign here: https://www.aph.gov.au/e-petitions/petition/EN5644

Numerous investigations have revealed a system beyond the reach of national or human rights oversight.

This lack of transparency, the legal fiction of these camps being the responsibility of PNG and Nauru, and a lethal disinterest in the well-being of those held in detention have created untold suffering for those detained and those tasked with caring for them in detention. We believe we have a right to know what is done in our name.

Therefore, we join Ms. Tink in asking the House to accept the call for a Royal Commission into Australia's Immigration Detention, to shine a light on this darkened chapter of our national story. Apart from the vital job of truth-telling for workers, asylum seekers, and taxpayers, such a Commission would hear the evidence, reflect on the evidence, and produce a set of recommendations that would address issues of transparency, legality, and human rights compliance.

-- Dr Julie Macken and Luisa Low, Australian Women in Support of Women on Nauru