war and civil unrest will require a return to regional processing, including ‘effective protections’ and a commitment to resettlement by participating host countries as indicated by UNHCR.67 Notwithstanding the well-documented harmful effects of offshore processing, Australia has now regressed to the principle of ‘out of sight, out of mind’ by the passage of legislation that once again invokes an offshore policy tougher and more sensational than ever before. This comes on the back of a March 2012 government report revealing that: ‘Evidence overwhelmingly indicates that prolonged detention exacts a heavy toll on people, most particularly on their mental health.’ 68 67. 68. 69. 22 The tragedy is that there is little evidence that the government heeds the facts in its own report, or that its remedy will ‘stop the boats’ or save people from drowning. Instead it persists with policies that are out of proportion to the so called ‘problem’. At the time of writing, with the first transfers of asylum seekers taking place under the reincarnated ‘Pacific Solution’, boats are still coming. 35 vessels carrying 2,295 asylum seekers have arrived in September — a number far outstripping the capacity of Nauru and Manus Island to accommodate them.69 Elibritt Karlson, Migration Legislation Amendment (Offshore Processing and Other Measures) Bill 2011, Laws and Digest Bills Section, Pages 14 & 15 Parliamentary Library, Commonwealth of Australia September 22, 2011. Joint Select Committee on Australia’s Immigration Detention Network March 30, 2012 Australian Parliament. Lainai Vasek, Record Month for Asylum Seekers, The Australian, October 1, 2012. Prison Service Journal Issue 205