SYDNEY, Australia – Australian officials were working Monday to contain a reported riot at a remote detention centre for asylum seekers in the Indian Ocean.
The immigration department confirmed there was a “disturbance” at the detention centre on the Australian territory of Christmas Island. The department said in a statement that there were reports of damage but no injuries.
Refugee advocates say riots broke out following the death of an asylum seeker who escaped from the facility on Saturday. The man’s body was found the following day at the bottom of cliffs on the island. The cause of his death is under investigation.
New Zealand lawmaker Kelvin Davis, who recently visited the island, said a New Zealander detained at the facility told him that asylum seekers had taken over the centre and guards have retreated.
“They have put holes in the walls, so even if they are rounded up and put back in the cells they actually can’t be locked up,” Davis told the Australian Broadcasting Corp.
Refugee Action Coalition spokesman Ian Rintoul said fires were started in some parts of the centre.
The immigration department said there were reports of damage inside the facility, but the perimeter was secure.
Australia has taken a tough stance in recent years on asylum seekers who try to reach its shores illegally. Asylum seekers who pay people smugglers to take them in rickety boats to Australia from Indonesia are detained on Christmas Island and on the impoverished Pacific island nations of Nauru and Papua New Guinea.
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