Tamil family to reunite on mainland
A family of Tamil asylum seekers that have been detained on Christmas Island since 2019 will be allowed to live in Perth temporarily.
Immigration Minister Alex Hawke said that he used his powers under the Migration Act to allow the Murugappan family to live in Perth while four-year-old Tharnicaa Murugappan.
"The family will now reside in suburban Perth through a community detention placement, close to schools and support services, while the youngest child receives medical treatment from the nearby Perth Children's Hospital and as the family pursues ongoing legal matters," he said in a statement.
"Today's decision releases the family from held detention and facilitates ongoing treatment, while they pursue ongoing litigation before the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, Federal Court and High Court.
"Importantly, today's decision does not create a pathway to a visa."
The Murugappan family were removed from their home in Biloela in 2018 when their visas expired.
Angela Fredericks, a family friend and organiser of the group Home to Bilo, said that it was up to Mr Hawke and the Department of Home Affairs to determine the family's future in Australia.
"The Minister's power to grant visas is completely independent from the decisions of any court," Ms Fredericks said in a statement.
"We cannot say what — or who — is preventing Minister Hawke from bringing this family home to Bilo. But it is not this court matter."
Photo credits: ABC