AUSTRALIA IMMIGRATION POLICY

Australia has promoted a non-discriminatory immigration policy to attract highly skilled applicants to robust Australia’s economy. Any person from any country no matter what their sex, color, ethnic origin or religion can apply for migration provided they meet the visa criteria. Australia’s growing diversity has challenged the former consensus about the appeal of immigration.
Some ecologists have argued that migration must be halted because Australia’s fragile physical environment cannot sustain a larger population. Government’s attempt to devise migration programs to encourage migrants to settle in rural areas, have met with little success.

The current government’s policy of “deterrence”, that is, discouraging would-be asylum seekers from setting out for Australia, by taking hard line on illegal arrivals, has secured considerable public support. Also there has been a concern over the policy of mandatory detention, often in isolated locations with limited services, for all unauthorized immigrants. The government finds itself to defend its decisions concerning the treatment of asylum seekers and those, especially children, held in detention centres.Since the government has begun to revisit some of its policies on asylum seekers, it has announced that the 9,500 holders of temporary protection visas would be eligible to apply for permanent resident status under the family reunification and skilled programs.

The 1970s saw several major shifts in the immigration policy. First, Australia began to experience substantial levels of unemployment, with change in the economy, and the movement of manufacturing jobs away from Australia. Immigration policy shifted from an emphasis on the recruitment of semi-skilled and skilled foreign workers for manufacturing to a more complex program:

- Economic migration--   Attracting people with skills in demand in Australia.
- Family migration-- Relatives of Australian resident.
- Refugee and Humanitarian migration.
- Special categories.

The government introduced a points system to assess applicants for economic migration, whereby each year the government sets the numbers of immigrants to be allowed into the country. The second major policy change in the 1970s was the removal of the “White Australian Policy” which was one of the first initiatives of the Australian government. With its removal Asians began to compete equally for places in the immigration program. Australian policies towards settlement of immigrants have also undergone change since World War II. A new policy of multiculturism emerged. This policy encouraged immigrants to retain their distinctive cultures while becoming part of Australian society.