Turnbull silent on the fate of Manus asylum seekers

Malcolm Turnbull has backed Papua New Guinea’s plan to shut the Manus Island refugee centre, but offered no solution on where the residents would go.

US president Donald Trump has reluctantly agreed to honour a promise made by his predecessor Barack Obama to accept as many as 1,250 asylum seekers currently housed at Manus Island and at another facility on Nauru, but the residents must first pass an in-depth vetting procedure.

PNG prime minister Peter O’Neill has also said some refugees could be resettled in his country, but hasn’t put a figure on how many will be permitted to do so or how many have chosen that option so far.

Speaking with O’Neill at Port Moresby on Saturday afternoon, Turnbull said he supported PNG’s decision to close the asylum centre by the end of the year, as dictated by a PNG Supreme Court decision that the centre was unconstitutional.

“We will continue to work together to close the Regional Processing Centre by the end of the year and I want to thank you Prime Minister for Papua New Guinea’s significant progress on the resettlement of refugees from Manus,” Turnbull said at the joint press conference,.

But neither leader revealed any plan to find another resettlement option for the asylum seekers to don’t pass the US vetting procedure or resettle in PNG.

Asked by a reporter whether it was true that only about 15 men from Manus has so far resettled in PNG, O’Neill said only that “some refugees” had already been resettled.

“Many of our local businesses have already put up their hands to try and take on as many professionals who are able to work in PNG but as you know many of the refugees are not willing to settle in PNG.  We cannot force people in a resettlement exercise when they are not able to accept our offer,” the PNG PM said.

Turnbull, meanwhile, refused to be drawn on whether refugees that didn’t stay on PNG or go to the US would be sent to Nauru. He said that Australia was “working with third countries, most notably of course the United States to that regard.  We’ll take this process one step at a time”.

Should the asylum seekers not accepted by the US be resettled in Australia?