It's a trust issue
by Nicholas Procter
On July 14 the Australian government announced that 9,500 temporary protection visa (TPV) holders would have the opportunity to apply for mainstream migration visas to stay in Australia permanently, without needing to leave the country to lodge their applications.
Minister for Immigration, Amanda Vanstone, announced the initiative, along with a new return-pending visa, which would allow people not in need of further protection 18 months in which to make arrangements to return to their home country, or elsewhere. What caught my eye in the Minister’s statement were these words:
This decision in relation to the opportunity for those on TPVs to apply to stay in Australia permanently recognises the fact that many TPV holders are making a significant contribution to the Australian community, particularly in regional areas. If it is the case that TPV holders can apply to remain in Australia permanently and there are no hidden extras then it may be that compassion has finally prevailed for many refugees who are suffering depression and anxiety and have seen suicide as a very real alternative to returning to their homeland.
It is true that “many TPV holders are making a significant contribution to the Australian community, particularly in regional areas” but that is also true for TPV holders in city areas. That contribution can only be strengthened if there is certainty about their fate.
As a mental health professional what I am most concerned about is the devil in the detail. What TPV holders and in fact most refugees and asylum seekers need is clarity. More than anything they need to know where they stand – they need a starting point in a life that has lost its place.
The TPV system has done much to exacerbate mental anguish in a population that is already highly traumatised by their experiences in their homeland and the whole process of flight and dislocation from their country of origin. If there has been a real change of heart on the TPV policy, then this will indeed be a fresh start for many traumatised people. But there must be something real and genuine in the government’s efforts to make the transition from temporary to permanent status possible.
It will be important that this process includes strong consultation with TPV holders in a psychological atmosphere that is not adversarial. It is vital that in the massive job of coordinating this transition, communication and trust underpin the application process.
Reflecting on the past five or six years, one can’t overestimate the benefit of the work being done by volunteer and non-government organisations to support asylum seekers.
Organisations and community groups such as the Circles of Friends, The Australian Refugee Association, Rural Australians for Refugees, and many other individual ordinary Australians have developed close and trusting relationships with asylum seekers – relationships which have been nothing short of lifesaving.
These people have earned the trust of asylum seekers and delivered on that trust. In particular, non-government and community health organisations have performed a key role in providing support services for those asylum seekers with mental health problems and mental illness, in advocating for services to be more sympathetic and responsive, and in providing important trust networks to overcome specific access challenges due to cultural, linguistic and geographical barriers.
The government is in the box seat to support and encourage these established trust networks. It can do so by calling upon immigration officials to formally draw upon the proximity, skill and trust developed by community people – many of whom are volunteers – to help formulate a clear process for TPV holders to move from temporary to permanent status.
Mental health literature for traumatised people the world over, emphasises coordination of services, safe and predictable environments and the stability of client-provider relationships over time. Unlike a legal or political bureaucracy where relationships can be impersonal, in cases where individuals have suffered trauma and dislocation, personal trusting relationships become hugely significant to successful settlement in the community.
The importance of this relationship/trust-based approach must be valued in what to date, has been a dehumanising legal process.
We must also acknowledge that even if there is a policy change of heart, the impact of TPV status has left us with many depressed and suicidal asylum seekers.
We can only rebuild lives and build resilience and functional capacity by developing an integrated consultative community health response which includes appropriate specialist mental health support, and strong links between community, non-government organisations and volunteer groups. And this will cost time and money.
It will require more psychosocial support and an effort to reduce, or remove the need for drug therapy, particularly in children. And for those who continue to require drug therapy, support and encouragement, specialist mental health services and general practitioners will need to initiate and participate in education and guidance about the therapy.
It will also require strong collaboration between government, non-health services and volunteer groups who provide support and friendship networks to asylum seekers.
The road to recovery for TPV holders will start in earnest with the government telling asylum seekers what this new announcement actually means and how they can activate whatever benefits are possible.
There needs to be clarification – urgently – on what is being offered here, how it can be actioned, and by whom.
Long after the eye-catching headlines fade, we will need a dedicated team of immigration officials who are clear about what applies and who can communicate that information to refugees with clarity and certainty.
If TPV holders already disoriented by trauma, sometimes years of detention and then the relentless insecurity of temporary status in Australia, find that once again they are facing mixed messages, it will be disastrous.
Trust is a fundamental requirement for mental stability – now more than ever TPV holders will need a trust guarantee, so that they can set about living useful, fruitful and hopefully happy lives in their new homeland.
Associate Professor Nicholas Procter teaches mental health in the School of Nursing and Midwifery. He is a former postdoctoral fellow with UniSA’s Hawke Institute.