Woomera, South Australia and Woomera was chosen as a site for such a facility. The establishment of the Woomera Immigration Detention Centre in 1999, through the refurbishment of the original Woomera Village construction camp at 'Woomera West', eventually brought in new permanent staff (as the Nurrungar people were leaving) to settle and maintain the village population at around 1,200. The immigration detention centre, however, proved to be a highly controversial facility and it closed in early 2003 after only about 36 months of operation, at which point the land and buildings were handed back to the Defence Department. Following the closure of the
Refugees and asylum in Russia notable concerns: Observers have found it to be an extreme measure that an asylum seeker’s application can be summarily denied if the applicant fails to apply within 24 hours of entering the country. The 24 hour deadline is arguably too difficult to meet in practice, given that many asylum seekers are being detained at the borders for three days upon arrival – with no knowledge of the requirement and no access to legal representation. Human rights organizations are concerned with the conditions at the various detention centers – where the unregistered and denied asylum seekers are placed. According to one