Two men, who were part of a group of seven told they would be released after Asio reversed its negative security assessment, are still in detention

The head of the New South Wales Council of Civil Liberties, Stephen Blanks, said Australia had made security determinations about Tamil asylum seekers based on its close relationship with the Sri Lankan government.

Sri Lanka’s outgoing president Mahinda Rajapaksa, whose government was unexpectedly defeated in last week’s election, has been accused of committing war crimes against the Tamil minority in the dying days of the civil war.

“Given the election result in Sri Lanka, it is time for Asio to reassess whether assessments made of Tamils are still relevant,” Blanks told Guardian Australia.

He said he hoped Dutton would take a “fresh look” at the refugees who were still in limbo following adverse security assessments.

“It was never appropriate to lock these people up,” he said.

Blanks said the fact that the refugees had been released quietly over the past few years meant it was likely they were never a real threat to in the first place, but he said the secrecy around the issue meant the public would never know for sure.

Article: Refugees kept in detention despite being told they had security clearance

Source: The Guardian, 12/1/2015