The Claim
“Refused to comment on 4 attempted suicides, hunger strikes and many self harm attempts happening simultaneously in detention centres.”
Original Sources Provided
✅ FACTUAL VERIFICATION
The claim is TRUE - Immigration Minister Scott Morrison did refuse to comment on the incidents described in the Sydney Morning Herald report from January 16, 2014. According to the SMH article, "Immigration Minister Scott Morrison has refused to confirm or comment on the hunger strikes or self-harm on the grounds that it could encourage such behaviour" [1].
The article reported on escalating protests across Christmas Island detention facilities, including:
- Four asylum seekers taken to the medical centre after attempting suicide on Sunday night (January 12, 2014)
- An Iranian man who sewed his lips together after being separated from his sister and family
- Hunger strikes that started in the North West Point detention centre (single male camp) and spread to the Lilac compound (families)
- Asylum seekers cutting themselves with glass and razor blades
- Approximately 350 people, including children, holding a sit-in at the Lilac compound [1]
The timing (January 2014) placed these incidents approximately three months after the Coalition government took office in September 2013.
Missing Context
The claim omits several critical pieces of context:
1. The Government's Stated Reason for Non-Comment
The SMH article explicitly states Morrison refused to comment because he believed doing so "could encourage such behaviour" [1]. This was a policy position regarding media communication about self-harm incidents, not merely stonewalling. Whether this justification was valid is debatable, but the claim presents the refusal to comment without the government's stated rationale.
2. Systemic Nature of Self-Harm in Detention
Self-harm, hunger strikes, and suicide attempts in Australian immigration detention were not unique to the Coalition government period. Medical research published in The Lancet Public Health documents that "Self-harm among asylum seekers in Australian immigration detention has attracted much attention over the past two decades" [2]. A national study found self-harm episode rates of 257 per 1,000 detained asylum seekers in onshore immigration detention between August 2014 and July 2015 [3].
3. The Broader Policy Context
The incidents occurred within the framework of offshore processing and mandatory detention—a policy architecture that predated the Coalition government. The same Lancet article notes: "In 2012, the Australian Government reinstated offshore processing for asylum seekers—a policy previously maintained from 2001 to 2008" [2]. This 2012 reinstatement was enacted by the Labor government, not the Coalition.
4. Historical Pattern Under Previous Government
The Commonwealth and Immigration Ombudsman published a report in December 2013 (one month before the incidents in this claim) examining suicide and self-harm in the Immigration Detention Network. The report found that "the unprecedented strain on the network arising from increased Irregular Maritime Arrivals and the subsequent unrest and increase in suicide and self-harm incidents in 2010 and 2011" occurred under Labor's watch [4]. The Ombudsman noted these incidents peaked during 2010-2011 due to increased boat arrivals.
5. The "Stop the Boats" Policy Context
The Coalition government had campaigned on and was implementing its "stop the boats" policy, which emphasized operational secrecy as a core strategy. Morrison's refusal to comment was consistent with this broader approach of limiting public information about detention centre conditions to avoid what the government saw as incentives for further arrivals.
Source Credibility Assessment
The original source is The Sydney Morning Herald (SMH), a major Australian mainstream newspaper owned by Nine Entertainment Co. (formerly Fairfax Media).
Credibility Assessment:
- SMH is a reputable mainstream media outlet with established editorial standards
- The article is bylined by David Wroe, who was a defence and national security correspondent for SMH and The Age [1]
- The reporting cites specific sources including refugee advocates (Refugee Action Coalition, Victoria Martin-Iverson) and asylum seeker accounts
- The article directly quotes the government's position regarding the refusal to comment
- Fairfax Media (now Nine) has no particular partisan alignment, though like all media outlets, individual journalists may have perspectives
The source appears to be factual reporting of events that occurred, with the journalist presenting both the incidents and the government's stated reason for not commenting.
Labor Comparison
Did Labor do something similar?
YES - Both the scale of the problem and the handling of similar incidents occurred under Labor governments.
1. Scale of Self-Harm Under Labor:
The Commonwealth Ombudsman's December 2013 report specifically examined suicide and self-harm incidents during 2010-2011, finding they were caused by "unprecedented strain on the network arising from increased Irregular Maritime Arrivals" [4]. This indicates that self-harm incidents were already at crisis levels before the Coalition took office.
2. Reinstating Offshore Processing:
The policy framework that placed asylum seekers in offshore detention facilities where these incidents occurred was reinstated by the Labor government in 2012 [2]. The Coalition inherited this system, including the Christmas Island and Nauru facilities where the reported incidents took place.
3. Historical Pattern:
Medical research documents that self-harm in Australian immigration detention has been documented "over the past two decades" affecting both major parties' governance periods [2]. Amnesty International's 2011 annual report, covering Labor's period in office, noted: "Mandatory, indefinite detention, coupled with poor conditions in some detention facilities, put a large number of detained asylum-seekers at risk of self-harm and mental illness" [5].
4. Media Management:
While specific "refusal to comment" instances under Labor are harder to document, the Ombudsman's 2013 report criticized the Department of Immigration for being insufficiently responsive to concerns about self-harm risks during 2010-2011, suggesting communication issues were not unique to the Coalition period [4].
Balanced Perspective
The Full Story:
The claim presents a factual event—Scott Morrison's refusal to comment on specific incidents in January 2014—but frames it without essential context.
What the claim gets right:
- The incidents did occur (suicide attempts, self-harm, hunger strikes)
- Morrison did refuse to comment on them
- The refusal was reported in mainstream media
What the claim omits or misrepresents:
- The government provided a specific rationale (preventing copycat behavior)
- Self-harm in detention was a systemic, long-standing issue under both parties
- The offshore processing policy framework was reinstated by Labor in 2012
- The incidents occurred within a broader crisis that peaked under Labor in 2010-2011
- The Coalition's secrecy was part of their "stop the boats" operational strategy
The Comparative Context:
This incident cannot be fairly assessed without acknowledging that:
- Self-harm rates in immigration detention have been documented at levels "more than 200 times the Australian community hospital-treated rates" across both government periods [6]
- The policy architecture causing these conditions was built and reinstated by Labor before the Coalition took office
- Both governments have faced criticism for conditions in detention facilities
- The January 2014 incidents occurred three months into the Coalition's first term, inheriting a system already under severe strain
Is this unique to the Coalition?
No. The conditions leading to self-harm, and the challenges of managing media communication about them, have affected both major parties. The Coalition's specific approach of refusing to comment citing operational concerns was consistent with their broader border protection strategy, but the underlying issues predate their government.
TRUE
6.0
out of 10
The factual claim is accurate: Scott Morrison did refuse to comment on the reported suicide attempts and self-harm incidents in January 2014. However, the claim presents this as if it were unique to the Coalition government or occurred without justification, when in fact:
- The government provided a specific policy rationale for the refusal
- Self-harm in detention was a systemic crisis that peaked under the previous Labor government in 2010-2011 [4]
- The offshore processing policy that created these conditions was reinstated by Labor in 2012 [2]
- Both parties have governed over detention systems with documented epidemic levels of self-harm
The claim is technically true but presented without the comparative and historical context necessary to fairly assess whether this was a Coalition-specific failing or a manifestation of a long-standing, bipartisan policy challenge.
Final Score
6.0
OUT OF 10
TRUE
The factual claim is accurate: Scott Morrison did refuse to comment on the reported suicide attempts and self-harm incidents in January 2014. However, the claim presents this as if it were unique to the Coalition government or occurred without justification, when in fact:
- The government provided a specific policy rationale for the refusal
- Self-harm in detention was a systemic crisis that peaked under the previous Labor government in 2010-2011 [4]
- The offshore processing policy that created these conditions was reinstated by Labor in 2012 [2]
- Both parties have governed over detention systems with documented epidemic levels of self-harm
The claim is technically true but presented without the comparative and historical context necessary to fairly assess whether this was a Coalition-specific failing or a manifestation of a long-standing, bipartisan policy challenge.
Rating Scale Methodology
1-3: FALSE
Factually incorrect or malicious fabrication.
4-6: PARTIAL
Some truth but context is missing or skewed.
7-9: MOSTLY TRUE
Minor technicalities or phrasing issues.
10: ACCURATE
Perfectly verified and contextually fair.
Methodology: Ratings are determined through cross-referencing official government records, independent fact-checking organizations, and primary source documents.