SYDNEY, March 3, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – Visitors who have been convicted of
violence against women and children will be kicked out or barred from
entering Australia, Immigration Minister David Coleman said Sunday, as
Canberra steps up its crackdown on foreign criminals.
The new laws, which came into force Thursday, build on existing
legislation requiring visitor visas to be cancelled if the holder has been
sentenced to 12 months or more in jail.
“Australia has no tolerance for domestic violence perpetrators,” Coleman
said in a statement, adding that no minimum sentence threshold was required.
“If you’ve been convicted of a violent crime against women or children,
you are not welcome in this country.”
Canberra has in the past denied visas to American R&B singer Chris Brown
and boxing star Floyd Mayweather following their domestic violence
convictions.
New Zealand has previously expressed frustration with Canberra’s law on
deporting convicts, which has seen Kiwi-born criminals sent back home after
serving their jail terms even though some have spent most of their lives in
Australia.