Activists say suicide attempts are on the rise and more than a dozen asylum seekers have sewn their lips shut on Nauru since the Abbott Government announced changed visa arrangements last week. Under the changes boat arrivals on Christmas Island and the mainland could access temporary protection visas or newly-created Safe Haven Enterprise visas, but detainees on Nauru or Manus Island won't be eligible. Activists say this has sparked frequent protests on Nauru, and what one person has described as an "epidemic of self-harm". Our presenter Maheswaran Prabaharan reports in Tamil a feature prepared by Thea Cowie for SBS News.
Activists say suicide attempts are on the rise and more than a dozen asylum seekers have sewn their lips shut on Nauru since the Abbott Government announced changed visa arrangements last week. Under the changes boat arrivals on Christmas Island and the mainland could access temporary protection visas or newly-created Safe Haven Enterprise visas, but detainees on Nauru or Manus Island won't be eligible. Activists say this has sparked frequent protests on Nauru, and what one person has described as an "epidemic of self-harm". Our presenter Maheswaran Prabaharan reports in Tamil a feature prepared by Thea Cowie for SBS News.
