The Australian government has agreed to pay the small Pacific island nation of Nauru some $1.6bn over three decades to resettle former detainees who have “no legal right to remain in Australia”, in the latest iteration of Australia’s controversial offshore detention policies.
Both governments signed a secretive deal last week under which Nauru will resettle up to 354 people who have no legal right to stay in Australia in exchange for an initial 408 million Australian dollar payment ($267m) and about 70 million Australian dollars ($46m) each year thereafter.
