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Australia stays silent on Nauru

Getty

Getty

The Nauruan government’s descent into alleged tyranny, repression and corruption has been met with silence from its key partner, Australia.

Opposition MPs on the island nation have been arrested or exiled, its chief justice expelled and its leaders face serious bribery allegations.

A former magistrate has branded the country a “dictatorship” and a “rogue state”.

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New Zealand prime minister John Key has called on Australia to act, after his parliament voted unanimously last week to express concern about the growing crisis.

“Certainly what we see taking place up there is worrying to us,” Mr Key told reporters this week.

“[A] response from both Australia and New Zealand will be beneficial.”

Australia funds a detention centre on the island.

The law societies of both Australia and New Zealand have expressed concerns that the legal system of the nation is in tatters.

“We regard it as quite serious,” NZ Law Society rule of law committee convenor Austin Forbes told the ABC last week.

In recent months, the Nauru government has reportedly banned local media; increased the cost of visas for foreign journalists from $200 to $8,000; and blocked access to Facebook.

Nauru president Baron Waqa and one of his key allies have been accused of accepting million-dollar bribes from a mining company.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott has not addressed the situation publicly.

His foreign minister, Julie Bishop, said the Australian government wants assurances that Nauru is following the rule of law. No further statements have been made.

Australian Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young has called on the Abbott government to do more.

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