Refugee activists occupy Preston hotel housing medevac detainees
Activists barricaded themselves in rooms at the Mantra hotel in Preston for about seven hours on Tuesday, in solidarity with asylum seekers detained there after being medically evacuated from Manus Island and Nauru.
Healthcare workers have previously described the makeshift detention centre housing more than 60 men as a "very high-risk environment" for transmitting the coronavirus.
Eight activists checked into three rooms at the Bell Street hotel on Monday, and barricaded themselves into at least one of the rooms from 7.30am Tuesday.
The protesters have also occupied the roof of the hotel and locked themselves on as part of the demonstration. Banners have been draped from the roof saying: "let them out" and "seven years lock-down freedom now".
Footage from the scene shows police escorting all eight activists off the property mid-afternoon.
A statement from the Whistleblowers, Activists and Communities Alliance (WACA) said the demonstration aimed to draw attention to the need for detainees to be provided with the medical care they were brought to Australia for under the now-repealed "medevac laws".
Banners are on the roof of the hotel, saying, "let them out".Credit:WACA
"Over the last two months of this pandemic the federal and state government message has been 'we are all in this together'. Clearly some of us of are more in this together than others. We are not truly together until all, including detained asylum seekers and refugees, have their freedom," spokesperson Gaye Demanuele said.
Last month, more than 1180 healthcare professionals signed a joint letter to the government calling for the men to be released.
"Failure to take action to release people seeking asylum and refugees from detention will not only put them at greater risk of infection (and possibly death), it also risks placing a greater burden on wider Australian society and the health care system," said the letter, drafted by infectious diseases expert Professor David Isaacs.
More than 60 men are confined to a secure floor of the motel, which is off limits to other guests and staffed by armed guards. While Australian Border Force, which operates the motel's secure wing, has cancelled all outside visits, guards come and go throughout the day.
No detainee in immigration has tested positive to COVID-19, and a spokesperson said the Australian Border Force was focussed on health and safety during the pandemic.
The protesters began the demonstration about 7.30am on Tuesday.Credit:WACA
"A range of measures have been introduced to actively manage health, hygiene and cleaning requirements in all detention facilities. These measures are continually reviewed in line with the current health advice," the spokesperson said.
"All detainees continue to have ongoing access to the medical professionals located within facilities, including after hours."
Refugee activists on the roof of the Mantra hotel in Preston on Tuesday.Credit:WACA
Any detainee with flu-like symptoms are tested and quarantined, according to Border Force.
Kurdish man Farhad Bandesh was medically evacuated from Manus Island and then moved from the Mantra to the Melbourne Immigration and Transit Accommodation centre (MITA).
A refugee activist barricaded in a Mantra hotel room on Tuesday.Credit:WACA
"My friends [at Mantra] are really sick, mentally and physically, and the situation there is really stressful," Mr Bandesh said.
"At the moment I think they've got good energy because of the people that are supporting them, and we are still asking for our rights after so many years."
He thanked the protesters, "they show we are not alone".
"All the detention centres are all the same, everyone is panicking and they are scared. They don't want to catch the COVID-19."
The roof of the Mantra in Preston.Credit:WACA
Activists have bypassed lockdown restrictions during the pandemic by walking past Mantra and the MITA centre in protest of detention.
Walking is considered exercise and is allowable under Victoria's lockdown rules though protests themselves are a breach of the restrictions.
Last month, 30 people were also fined for protesting in support of refugees and asylum seekers outside the Preston hotel.
Mantra declined to comment.