Turning Back Boats: An Australian Example in EU Refugee Politics

Australia provides a singular example of refugee processing. To refugee NGOs, the approach has been seen as cruel and unproductive; according to the country's major political parties it has been deemed a necessary deterrent against people smuggling rackets (known as the 'business model') and preventing deaths at sea. Central to the policy is Operation Sovereign Borders, a military-grade approach deploying naval assets against undocumented boat arrivals. This involves both turning back unwanted arrivals and transferring arrivals to offshore processing centres on Papua New Guinea's Manus Island and the island state of Nauru. In the European Union context, parallels have emerged suggesting the persuasive strength of the Australian example. This chapter considers the influence of the Australian precedent and cognate approaches in the populist politics of the current European Union to irregular migrations. Growing reservations about the mobility principle and the breakdown of any unified front in dealing with refugee and asylum arrivals within the EU is considered. Recent examples of boat 'turn backs' in the Mediterranean are examined as showing examples reminiscent to Australia's own approaches.