Inside Australia's Immigration Detention

One of my friends received a notice of intention to consider the refusal of a  bridging visa under s 501.  I cannot understand why he can hold such a strong belief that the Immigration will grant him a visa soon when the notice he received clearly states 'intention to consider refusal', not the intention to consider the grant of a visa.  Just in case he may listen to me, I explained the situation.   As anticipated, he told me that I was wrong.  He knew better.   Actually, most people in Villawood are like him.  My other friend did not believe me when I explained to him that 'setting aside the decision' and 'quashing the decision' are the same.  According to him, setting aside a decision is good for an applicant while quashing a decision is bad.  He knew it because he read it and I was wrong. I stopped trying to figure out long time ago why those people got such misunderstanding.  None of them are psychotic but they are...

Today, I went to the Visit to see a Sister of a church.  I thought that the centre had introduced a new policy on 2 January to undertake a pat search of a detainee when entering into and coming out of the Visits.   At least, when I went to see visitors last week, the reception was in chaos as a result.  Today, there was no search.  No havoc.  Did they abolish the new policy in less than ten days?  Well, if so, it's good since the search was plainly meaningless but creating huge havoc and chaos.  But couldn't they think what is going to happen if they introduce such a policy BEFORE actually introducing it??? Anyway, when I was talking with the sister, I saw a guard with whom I often had a chat passing by.  I said to him, 'Hi!' and he came to join us.  I told him about my current battle against the Acting Health Services Manager who is a registered nurse.  She refused to book an optometrist for me despite that she was directed to...

I heard that someone escaped from MITA (Melbourne Immigration Transit Accommodation) a few days ago.  As of today, Villawood started a pat search when a detainee goes to and comes back from the Visits. I guess the escape from MITA involved a visitor and the ABF went crazy.  Oh dear.  Villawood has always been worse than prison but it really is even now.  What's the point of searching a detainee when going from the compound to see a visitor?  There is nothing in the compound because the centre does not allow anything to get into the compound.  Can anybody tell the ABF to use their brain?  Oh, they don't have one?  That's a bit of a problem. Today, someone from my compound got a visa.  It is the first day of the year but someone in the Immigration started working and decided to grant a visa.  That's a good start, I think.

It's day 38.  Eleven days to the travel to Brisbane.  Well, I have not been told when and how to get there even though I asked it to the Immigration soon after the previous hearing.  So I don't know whether I can really go back to Brisbane for the hearing.  But they are not going to ignore the order of the judge who is about to hear their case, I assume???  Mmmm, who knows what the Immigration does. Since last night, I don't have an appetite.  I think my old body can't take any more food.  I am fed too much too frequently.  I didn't eat three big meals a day outside.  Since arriving here, I haven't skipped even one meal.  No, I could not eat a lunch on the day of the first case management hearing.  But except that, I have not missed any.  It's impossible to skip a meal since there is not much else to do.  If I get fat, I will seek the additional damages for the cost of bigger clothes, extra health care, shorter lifesp...