Man Sets Himself on Fire in Sydney, Protesting Immigration Policy

2017-07-29 5

Man Sets Himself on Fire in Sydney, Protesting Immigration Policy
By DAMIEN CAVE and ISABELLA KWAIJULY 28, 2017
SYDNEY, Australia — A man set himself on fire after a standoff with the police near the Sydney offices of the Department of Immigration
and Border Protection on Friday, the police said, unleashing screams and smoke and prompting a rapid rescue by firefighters and the police.
A man is loaded into an ambulance after reportedly setting himself on fire outside the Department of Immigration
in Sydney @2GBNews #MRNews pic.twitter.com/6VZxxKtW6C It is not yet clear what exactly the man was protesting.
" The police declined to identify the man or his nationality but said
that it was an act of protest and that the man was not seriously hurt. that Police were ready with a fire extinguisher and extinguished the man.
At the same time, however, Mr. Turnbull and his immigration minister, Peter Dutton, have actively promoted the country’s strict refusal to allow anyone to reach Australia by
boat — attracting harsh criticism from the United Nations for the treatment of refugees in offshore detention centers — and praise from immigration hard-liners worldwide.
s from mental illness." The police appear to have been well prepared in part because they said they had previous experience with the man
and because threats of self-immolation in protest against Australia’s immigration policies are somewhat common. that is a person who suffer
And last year, several refugees set themselves on fire on Nauru, one of two remote
islands where Australia has been holding asylum seekers caught at sea.