Australian senator says 'criminalising' citizens returning from India is 'a step too far'

Australian Liberal Senator James Paterson has said that move of "criminalising" Australian citizens returning to ir own country "is a step too far". While speaking to Sky News host Sharri Markson on May 9, Paterson said that he is worried about precedent that move would set and what it says about value of Australian citizenship and Australian passports. Paterson also warned that Australian government has crossed an "enormous threshold" by decision to penalise its own citizens. 

Australian government h announced on April 27 that it was suspending all travel from India until May 15  in wake of a spike in infection rate in Australia's hotel quarantine system due to escalating COVID-19 crisis in India. In a press release, Australian health minister Greg Hunt informed that ban was enforceable with fines of up to $66,600 and five years in jail — penalties legislated in 2015 when Biosecurity Act passed parliament. Chief medical officer Paul Kelly also supported travel ban. 

Australians stranded in India

India is in grip of a devastating second wave of COVID-19 that has hospitals struggling to secure oxygen supplies and or medical facilities. India witnessed a single-day rise of 3,66,161 COVID-19 cases on May 10, which pushed its tally to 2,26,62,575, according to health ministry. death toll due to viral disease climbed to 2,46,116 with 3,754 more people succumbing to dely virus. As per a report by Guardian, re are 9,500 Australians stranded in India due to ban. report also ded that number of vulnerable Australians has risen to 950. Since ban was enacted, at least one man has died. 

After ban, some critics have accused Australian government was of racism because such drastic travel restrictions were not introduced when infection rates were rapidly increasing in United States and Europe. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said he was not concerned that travel disruption might damage relations with India, which he described as "a great friend of Australia". Critics of travel ban include former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, human rights lawyer Geoffrey Robertson as well as several Australian lawmakers and Indian community leers.

"This pause is enabling us to get on right footing to be able to restore those repatriation flights and we’re making good progress to do that," Morrison said. "H we not done pause, we would have been eroding our capability to do that over medium-to-longer term," he ded.

Court challenge over travel ban

Recently, Australian government faced a court challenge by a 73-year-old citizen stranded in city of Bengaluru over Indian travel ban. Lawyers for Gary Newman, one of Australians prevented from returning home, me an urgent application to Federal Court in Sydney for a judge to review travel ban imposed under Biosecurity Act by Health Minister Greg Hunt. Lawyer Christopher Ward told court one of grounds was related to questions of proportionality and reasonableness. 

IMAGE: AP/@SenPaterson/Twitter