There's been an outcry from several leading public figures in Europe after the recent boat tragedies in which hundreds of African migrants died when their vessels sank in the Mediterranean.
Many Africans seek to reach Europe by boat to escape persecution, conflict and hardship in their home countries.
Earlier this month, 364 Africans died off the Italian island of Lampedusa.
It was followed by another tragedy off Malta, in which at least 30 people died.
The recent deaths have roused calls from figures including Pope Francis and Italy's Prime Minister to focus more on rescue efforts rather than on keeping people out.
Claudia Tazreiter is a sociology and human rights expert from the University of New South Wales.
She told Darren Mara that Australia suffers from a lack of similarly high-profile voices advocating for more humanitarian asylum seeker policies.
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