Scores of Lebanese from the north of the country have been travelling to Indonesia, boarding fishing boats that carry asylum-seekers into Australian waters. But under the new law signed on July 19, unauthorized arrivals will be sent instead to Papua New Guinea for assessment and if found to be refugees, will be settled there, and if not, they will be sent back home.
The demonstrations have raised awareness about the issue of smuggling Lebanese into Australia, which NOW learned has been occurring for months. “Leaving Lebanon is the hardest decisions I was forced to make,” said Fathi Bashir, who contacted NOW from the Christmas Island where he now awaits deportation. “But I could no longer endure the continuous fighting [in northern Lebanon], the sectarian rhetoric, and the mushrooming militias who seize control over every aspect of one’s daily life.”
Ahmad, whose name was changed due to security concerns, is a Lebanese-Australian smuggler. He helps refugees enter Australia illegally via air and boat. While his clientele traditionally varied between Syrian, Palestinian, and Iraqi nationals, many Lebanese have been coming more recently.
