Australian High Court Unanimously Upholds Deportation of Convicted Murderer to Nauru

Seven High Court judges unanimously dismissed an appeal by an Iranian man identified only as TCXM against a deportation order to Nauru issued last year. The federal court had earlier rejected his challenge, and the decision was upheld on Wednesday by the highest court. TCXM was allowed to stay in Australia while he fought his legal challenge.

The Independent reported that TCXM, convicted of murdering his wife, will reside in Nauru under a 30-year visa. He is one of the first three noncitizens chosen to be sent to Nauru under the new bilateral deal between Australia and the Pacific island nation. It is not clear when he will be deported.

Immigration Minister Tony Burke stated: "I welcome the decision of the court. " Burke had contested the man's appeal. Australia agreed to pay Nauru 408 million Australian dollars, equal to £212 million, for the resettlement of unwanted non-citizens over a period of up to 30 years.

Nauru is set to receive an annual payment of AU$70 million from Australia, equal to £36 million. So far, eight men have been resettled in Nauru under the arrangement. Nauru has a population of approximately 12,000 people.

The deal addressed a problem created by a 2023 High Court decision that found stateless people or people who could not be returned to their homelands could no longer be held indefinitely in Australian detention. More than 350 people were released in Australia on temporary visas following the 2023 High Court ruling. Many of the more than 350 people released are convicted criminals including TCXM.

The test case was brought by a convicted child molester identified as NZYQ, a refugee and member of Myanmar’s persecuted Rohingya Muslim minority. TCXM came to Australia from Iran in 1990. He was given a protection visa in 1995 and sentenced to 22 years in prison in 1999 for murdering his wife.

His visa was canceled after the conviction. TCXM was transferred in 2015 from prison to immigration detention, where he remained for eight years. He is now in his early 60s. Iran does not accept the forced repatriation of its citizens by other governments, while Australia has a policy of not returning refugees to countries where they risk persecution.

TCXM's grounds for appeal included that Nauru’s medical services were inadequate to treat his severe asthma. He also argued Australia’s agreement with Nauru was unlawful and his deportation was punitive and therefore unconstitutional. Australia’s constitution says punishment must be dealt by courts and never by governments.

Australian governments previously paid Nauru and Papua New Guinea to house asylum seekers in squalid detention camps. The policy of refusing to allow boat arrivals to settle has largely ended people smuggling from Southeast Asian ports in rickety fishing boats.