SYDNEY (AUSTRALIA) – Local media reported on Thursday that
Australian taxpayers are funding a multi-million dollar television drama for broadcast overseas to deter asylum seekers,
The government has already commissioned the film, which will cost 4.1 million Australian dollars, approximately 3.1 million U.S. dollars.
Reports indicate that the film would concentrate on the issues related to illegal migration to Australia by sea.
The reports indicated that the film is due to be broadcast later in 2015 in countries such as Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, where conflicts have led to an exodus of people.
A spokeswoman for the production company Put It Out There Pictures said the film could “save people from detention, disappointment and even death.”
But the head of the Refugee Council of Australia, Phil Glendenning, expressed doubt it would deter asylum seekers.
“I don’t think the government understands why people are on the move if they think a TV drama will be a deterrent,” Glendenning was quoted as saying.
The Australian government is under constant criticism at home and abroad over its approach to undocumented migrants and asylum seekers who try to reach Australia, especially by sea.
Conservative Liberal Party leader, Tony Abbott, won office as prime minister in September 2013 after he promised voters he would “stop the boats.”
[pro_ad_display_adzone id=”10″]
Maritime arrivals from countries such as China, India, Pakistan and some Middle East countries make up less than half the number of people who seek refuge in Australia. (dpa/NAN)
you may also like: