Officials Push Cambodia On Refugees, But None İnterested

The Australian government is continuing its hard sell of Cambodia, just weeks after four refugees arrived in the country after months of detention on the South Pacific island of Nauru, it was reported Monday.



The Cambodia Daily "ed Refugee Action Coalition spokesman Ian Rintoul as saying that there was "considerable renewed activity on Nauru to try and get people to agree to go to Cambodia."



People who seek Australia's protection by attempting to arrive by boat are refused entry and detained instead on Nauru, where rights groups have said serious human rights abuses are committed.



Last year, Australia and Cambodia signed a $40 million deal to have refugees there resettled in Cambodia. Another $15.5 million was tacked on as the resettlement inched closer.



The four refugees who finally conceded are from Iran and Myanmar. They were taken immediately to a secure villa in the southern part of Phnom Penh after their arrival in June.



According to Rintoul, "[t]he last two weeks or so, Immigration and Connect have been cold-calling refugees and also using any scheduled interviews to push Cambodia again," referring to the immigration department and a service provider on the island.



Cambodia's refugee office chief Kerm Sarin could not be reached Monday, but had told the Daily that there had been no further interest from refugees on Nauru and that the government has no plans to send any more delegations to meet with possible volunteers.



In April, Australian officials began circulating a document to refugees and even asylum seekers on Nauru, despite the deal saying that only genuine refugees -- not asylum seekers -- would be eligible to take part.



The document sold Cambodia as a safe haven where they would be free from persecution, but failed to mention the country's poor corruption and human rights record. - Phnum Penh