High Court of Australia declares indefinite detention in Australia illegal

Australia's highest court has declared that the government's authority to indefinitely detain individuals in immigration facilities is illegal. This ruling marks a significant departure from a 20-year-old precedent that had formed the foundation of Australia's immigration policies. The landmark decision may result in the release of numerous people held in immigration detention who are unable to return to their home countries, according to the Human Rights Law Centre. Additionally, the solicitor general has warned that the ruling could lead to various compensation claims. The case presented before the High Court of Australia involved a stateless Rohingya man who faced lifelong detention due to a criminal conviction and the lack of any country willing to accept him. Despite the government's argument that his detention was legitimate because they planned to deport him, the court found this reasoning to be flawed. This verdict overrules a prior case known as Al-Kateb v Godwin, which had deemed indefinite detention permissible even when deportation was not feasible.