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An immigration detention centre controlled by the Australian Border Force (ABF) is holding detainees in a prohibited cell that lacks a toilet and running water, a watchdog has found.
Yongah Hill Immigration Detention Centre, about an hour northeast of Perth, also limits support services and family visits, impacting the mental health of some detainees, according to a facility review.
“We identified several areas that are not satisfactory,” Commonwealth National Preventive Mechanism Ombudsman Iain Anderson said on Monday.
The review in June found there was limited access for detainees held in the centre’s high-security area to lines of communication and timely information.
They also don’t have the same access to facilities, programs and activities available to the general population compounds.
“We also had concerns with the use of a soft room being used as part of the high care accommodation,” Anderson said.
“In our view, this soft room meets the definition of a dry cell, the use of which is prohibited in the Immigration Detention Network.”
A dry cell is a prison room that does not have plumbing facilities. The so-called soft room at Yongah Hill lacks the basic amenities required to hold an individual for any length of time, including a toilet, sink and running water.
The watchdog recommended the ABF stop using the room until appropriate safety guidelines, practices, and procedures are developed and implemented.
Improved access to lines of communication, information, programs and activities were also recommended.
About 160 people are detained at Yongah Hill Immigration Detention Centre, with 29 of these held at the facility for more than six years.
The centre is controlled by the ABF and detention and health services are contracted to Serco Asia Pacific Pty Ltd and International Health and Medical Services.
The Department of Home Affairs, the ABF and the Refugee Council of Australia have been contacted for comment.
