What’s the price to report on Nauru Island?

Media professionals will have to pay A$8,000, with no reimbursement if the application is rejected,  for a single entry visa to visit the tiny pacific island of Nauru, where hundreds of asylum seekers are detained by the Australian government. According to the Nauru government the decision to increase the visa price from A$200 to A$8,000 was only for “revenue purposes.” Many fear this could be a move from Tony Abbott’s government to stop journalists from reporting on the harsh condition at the detention centre.

Greens Senator, Sarah Hanson-Young said:

Nauru Island holds hundreds of asylum seekers wishing to travel to Australia. Image credit: TORSTEN BLACKWOOD/AFP/Getty Images

The Abbott government was elected in September last year after a national wide campaign to stop asylum seekers who travel by boat to come into Australia. However, there is no official confirmation the Australian government had any role in pushing for the visa fee increase. Last year, UN Refugee Agency said asylum seekers living at the Nauru detention centre were subjected to “harsh condition” that “do not meet international standards.” Human rights groups such as Amnesty International also believe access to adequate medical facilities and housing are cause for major concerns on the South pacific island.

Nauru’s detention centre was opened in 2001 and today holds more than 800 asylum seekers from countries such as Afghanistan, Darfur, Pakistan, Somalia and Syria. In July 2013 asylum seekers protested at Nauru’s detention centre causing A$60,000 damage after several buildings were destroyed by fire. The riot came after the government announced that people arriving by boat will no longer be resettled in Australia and will be sent to Papua New Guinea. Last week a controversial message was published in the Department of Immigration website, stating that people arriving by boat are not welcome anymore and should not bother making their way into the country. Journalists are afraid a increase in visa fees to report on Nauru island could affect the quantity and quality of information people get about the difficult conditions asylum seekers experience when they are turned away from the Australian coast.