The PNG High Court has done the Greens and people smugglers a huge favor by deciding that it does not want to house refugees on Manus.
The irony in th
is decision will be lost, however, as it means that at a time when Australia is facing a double dissatisfaction election, the policies that encourage or discourage illegal migration are now going to be a hot topic.
It is highly probable right now that people are packing their bags and flying from the Middle East to Kuala Lumpur, doing some shopping, then busing down and taking passenger ferries to Indonesia, where they will meander down to the coastline near Christmas Island. They will no doubt be taking the obligatory unaccompanied children, and upon arrival at the defacto Australian illegal immigration office run by the people smugglers, they will cough up cash and throw away their identity documents. Green and No borders activists will likely be there briefing them on techniques such as self harm, tailoring of your history to increase asylum chances, and how to agitate in front of the conveniently present media.
Meanwhile, the people smugglers will be preparing their boats, discarding fishing gear, drilling holes in the hull, inserting faulty flotation devices and in general making sure the boat is deemed unsafe enough to ensure the Australian authorities must scupper it and take on board the cargo of people fleeing whatever it is they claim to be fleeing – which is anything but Islamic governance despite all evidence to the contrary.
The media are ready as are the Greens and lefties.
It has that feel good vibe of the first ball of an Ashes Test in summer. It is quintessential Australiana.
The first boat will arrive as an expectant hush roars, the government caught in the corridor of uncertainty as it’s a very green pitch. Will the match be fixed by the nefarious UNHCR?
As it plays out in the coming months, lives will be lost at sea drawn by the lure of illegal migration. The major political parties will be held responsible for hard line migration policies that prevent the absurdities of uncontrolled illegal migration at the expense of political capital, and rewarded for wild policy choices like the Turnbull switch hit which can provide instant reward but is not conducive to a long innings.
In the upcoming political Test series, we may well see a T20 approach to a serious Test.
The twitterati will be beside themselves, and Sarah Sea Patrol will be thinking it is that time of year which used to be called Christmas but is now the festive season.
When the deaths start, be sure to thank the Greens and let them know what delusional idiots they are.