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Argumentative Essay On Asylum Seekers

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Asylum seekers in Australia always been the focal point of negative political concern for a long time. To stop asylum seekers continue arriving in Australia by boat, Australia enforces the policy of obligatory detention of asylum seekers, unauthorised asylum seekers arriving by boat will be sent to Papua New Guinea camp where operated by the Australian government (‘Asylum seekers: Australia’s shame’ 2017). However, this policy was reported as disgraceful because of the deficient living condition, indefinite and arbitrary of detention and lack of health care (United Nations 2017). Cohen (2011 p. 242) stated that moral panic could be more likely to develop in anything associated with 'immigration, migrants, multicultural absorption, refugees, border controls and asylum seekers’. Is Australia's response to asylum seekers an example of moral panic? By analysing the five criteria from the moral panic theory by looking at the Australian public reaction to asylum seekers with references support, it could be found that the reaction to asylum seekers in Australia is an example of moral panic.

Disproportionality is defined as 'the public concern over the behaviour itself' (Goode & Ben-Yehuda 2009, p. 40). Australian public put too much concern on the asylum seekers which greater than the threat itself. According to Mcmaster (2001), there was nearly 51000 people illegal stay in Australia as the overdue visa which 11% were the British while those asylum seekers arrived by boat only

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