A Melbourne school principal has spoken about his fears for asylum-seeker students at his high school.
Three students at Glenroy College are among 267 asylum seekers who came to Australia for medical treatment but face being sent back to a detention centre on Nauru.
"To rip them out of school and deport them back to Nauru where medical professionals clearly state they will be exposed to child abuse is morally wrong," principal Paul Dingle said in a statement on Wednesday.
Mr Dingle told SBS News the students were "not guilty of anything, they're just being teenagers and enjoying being at school".
"If I took you for a wander in the yard, you wouldn't know who the kids were, because they're just doing what all the other kids are doing and it's great to see," he said.
The asylum-seeker students are driven to school in the morning by guards from the Broadmeadows detention centre, and then return to spend the night behind the razor wire.
Mr Dingle says the school is a place where the children felt "safe and normal", and the school community has been honoured to have them.
"These kids are rebuilding their lives here in Australia, it has been a rewarding experience for them and the rest of the school community," he said.
"All we're asking is that Prime Minister Turnbull show these kids compassion and let them stay here in Australia."
Under the Border Force Act, any entrusted person who discloses information about detention centres may be subject to legal ramifications - so speaking out is a big risk.
Victorian Education Minister James Merlino said he was proud of the principal and the school.
"This principal is facing possible trouble for speaking out? Absolutely, and this is outrageous," Mr Merlino told reporters on Wednesday.
"I'm proud of this principal, of his comments, and the support he's providing for these kids."
Meredith Peace from the Australian Education Union said being sent back to Nauru would interrupt the students' education.
"They will have had either non-existent education or very disrupted education and our schools are providing them with a really high quality education in a very stable enviornment," she said.
Mr Dingle said he was inspired to speak out about his students after he saw the support the asylum seekers were receiving from state and territory leaders.
