The Australian Lawyers Alliance (ALA) welcomed the decision by the High Court today confirming that Aboriginal Australians cannot be deported under immigration law.
“This is the right decision – any other decision would have been a great injustice,” said Mr Andrew Christopoulos, ³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾ President, ALA.
“No Aboriginal person can sensibly be classed as an ‘alien’ in Australia. The move to deport the two Aboriginal people was a denial of their Aboriginality, given the fact that connection to country is an essential element of Aboriginal identity.
“This is an important ruling and the Commonwealth can now be held to account for the unlawful detention of Australians.”
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