Refugees on Manus Island gathered at the closing Foxtrot compound on the weekend of August 5-6, chanting “ABF (Australian Border Force) shame on you” and “we want freedom”, in an attempt to persuade authorities to reconsider moving arrangements.
Tensions were expected to heighten after an asylum seeker was found dead on the island the morning of Monday, August 7, according to the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre and two detainees on the island. Australian authorities had yet to confirm the man’s death, but Fairfax journalist Michael Koziol tweeted that local police commander David Yapu said it was a “death by hanging.”
Those living on the island have protested the impending closure of the compound. Authorities cut water and power on Foxtrot on August 1, causing unrest.
PNG officials had earlier announced that the Foxtrot compound would be demolished and refugees needed to move to Mike, Oscar, Delta blocks or to new accommodation at East Lorengau. Refugees have expressed concerns their safety is at risk from Papuan locals, who they say attacked three men on July 29. Credit: Anonymous via Storyful
