The government’s position on the Rau case seems pretty clear. Ms Rau was an ‘illegal’, that is, a person found to be in Australia and unable to satisfy the authorities that she had a legitimate right to be here. As was established in apartheid South Africa, where the term originated, illegals have no human or civil rights. They can be locked up in atrocious conditions, denied contact with the outside world and so on. Now the authorities are satisfied about her status, and she has been duly released.
Many commentators, including bloggers, have insisted upon both the term ‘illegal’ and the fact that such people have no human rights. All that is new is the discovery that an ‘illegal’ is anyone the government chooses to detain.
John Quiggin 
My basic problem with the whole discussion of the governments allegedly illiberal civic policy of is that progressive-liberals (with the exception of Paul Norton) obsessively focus on the conservative-liberal govts draconian policy treatment (mandatory detention, border protection, mutual obligation etc) of the symptoms of cultural disorder (people smuggling, ethnic Balkanisation,) but remain stony silent in their own complicity in the political causes (ethnic lobbies, pee-cee, over-lawyering, indigenous seperatism etc) of this cultural disorder.
I get cross at progressive-liberals because they engage in orgies of moralistic vindictiveness yet purvey intellectually dishonest propositions in the service of ideologically pernicious policies.
It seems that conservative-liberals are obliged to face full disclosure on their acts of bastadry but progressive-liberals get a free pass even though iniquitous and inept policies have caused the whole mess to fester until the Hansonite eruption.
Brian apologies, I had Brian on the brain, I knew it was you – I looked back and was surprised I’d written Mark – my brain sometimes fails to coordinate. What can I say. Sorry.
No probs, saint. It’s just as well we are not checking names for missing persons. I can’t comment often at present, but I didn’t want my identity to be submerged! And saints don’t have to say sorry!
Oh yes they do, Brian, yes they do. It’s a prerequisite for the job 😉
Kyan, Katz, look at what really happened when dangers materialised. Look at the Cocos Island involvement with the Emden, for instance.
The keepers knew very well that holding on might gain time to prevent something important. When the Cocos Islanders hung on they were able to buy enough time to telegraph the Navy, which sorted out the Emden.
Anybody who thought the Queensland keeper came up with the wrong answer was right with hindsight. Anybody who considered him paranoid merely because the risk didn’t happen that time – well, that person simply had no notion of the difference between paranoia and well founded fear. If we are to take that attitude we might as well refuse entry to all asylum seekers regardless of their well founded fears, because a high percentage of them will not get hurt after all if we just send 100% of them back.