Australia’s Extraterritorial Border Control Policies
59
Since 2006, Australia has also developed an extensive database of biometric data
for all non-citizens.24 In 2004, the Australian Parliament passed the Migration
Legislation Amendment (Identification and Authentication) Act 2004 (Cth). This
Act allows for the collection of personal identifiers from non-citizens, including
fingerprints and handprints, photographs or other images of the face and shoulders,
weight and height measurements, audio or video recordings, signatures and iris
scans, and other items.25 This data is shared with other partner nations and crossreferenced to identify any undesirable people. As the Department explains:
Under the Five Country Conference (FCC) biometric data matching programme,
the Department is developing capability to automate the exchange of non-FCC
citizens’ biometric data with other FCC partners. Automation of biometric data
exchange has begun between Australia and the USA, and between Australia and the
UK. Full automation of biometric data exchange, and the subsequent legal requirements to carry out this sharing, will be progressively rolled out to all FCC partners
over the coming years.26
This data matching has led to the denial of visas to potential refugees. For example,
the Australian government has published the following case study:
An individual applied for a visitor visa at an overseas post on 24 February 2015. The
individual’s biometrics were captured and referred for FCC checking. One partner
country returned an FCC match in March 2015 and advised that on 19 December
2008 the individual had been apprehended by immigration and customs officials
and charged with being an undocumented arrival. The individual left the partner
country on 27 March 2009 . . .. A second FCC country also returned a fingerprint
match and revealed that the individual had applied for refugee protection there.
In March 2005 the individual was reported inadmissible for being a member of
an organised crime group that specialised in the theft of money and jewellery. It was
also reported that the individual had been convicted on 10 August 2005 of
an offence punishable by a maximum term of imprisonment of at least 10 years,
or for which a term of imprisonment of more than six months was imposed . . ..
The individual’s application for an Australian visitor visa was refused at post on
8 April 2015.27
In this example, the potential refugee was not given a chance to present his case, had
no rights to appeal, and no access to justice. It should be remembered that under
24
Ibid., p. 51.
Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia, House of Representatives, Explanatory
Memorandum, Migration Legislation Amendment (Identification and Authentication) Bill
2004 (2003), } 7, http://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/download/legislation/ems/r1750_ems_
ad508d33–2128-4588-9020-c8660227ece0/upload_pdf/57737.pdf;fileType=application%2Fpdf.
26
Department of Immigration and Border Protection, 2014–2015 Annual Report, p. 50.
27
Ibid., p. 51.
25
https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108914994 Published online by Cambridge University Press
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