80 Asylum Seekers Released From Immigration Detention Into Australian Community

Coalition Shadow Home Affairs Minister Senator James Paterson raised concerns: ‘We don’t know who they are.’

Activists in support of the refugees gather outside Park Hotel in Melbourne, Australia on Jan. 6, 2022. Diego Fedele/Getty Images

Eighty people with potential criminal convictions have been released immediately from immigration detention following a recent High Court ruling.

Coalition Senator James Paterson has raised concerns, highlighting that “we don’t know who they are,” after Immigration Minister Andrew Giles confirmed the release of the asylum seekers.