Australia’s unethical deportation practice discriminates against New Zealanders with mental illness: ‘Everybody needs good neighbours!’

In this article, we explore Australia’s deportation of people with mental illness from an ethical and human rights perspective. We outline the legislative framework regulating migration policy in Australia, focussing on Section 501 (s.501) of the Migration Act 1958 (which makes provision for deportation of non-residents on character grounds) and on the recently issued Direction 99 (which provides guidance on visa refusal and cancellation under s.501). We find the definition of a failed character test embedded within the legislative framework to be discriminatory, in that it conflates mental illness with character attributes. We present recent data on s.501 deportees sourced from the New Zealand Police and Manatū Hauora (the New Zealand Ministry of Health). Drawing on our clinical experiences working in forensic psychiatry and rehabilitation services, we describe some of our patients’ experiences and the detrimental effects of deportation on their health and well-being. We argue that deportation of people with mental illness contravenes principles of psychosocial rehabilitation and recovery, is discriminatory and constitutes a moral wrong. Furthermore, while we recognise that recent policy changes reflect a tempering of the previous hard-line policy stance, it remains to be seen what effects they will have in practice. We question whether the new guidance will be enough to improve the treatment of and outcomes for those with mental illness, or whether the changes represent a case of too little, too late.