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Australia Tells Its Citizens in India Amid Covid Crisis: Don’t Come Home
Critics condemned the move to temporarily bar Australians, including children, as unnecessarily harsh, a violation of citizenship principles and a cultural double standard. Officials say the policy is necessary.
Damien Cave and
SYDNEY, Australia — Before the coronavirus pandemic surged, Drisya Dilin dropped her daughter off with her parents in India, expecting to bring her to Australia a month later. That was more than a year ago.
Now, any attempt to get the 5-year-old to Australia, where she is a permanent resident, brings a threat of jail time or large fines.
She’s one of about 8,000 Australians affected by an unprecedented travel ban that began on Monday, prompted by India’s record-breaking Covid outbreak. It is believed to be the first time that Australia has made it a criminal offense for its own citizens and permanent residents to enter the country.
“I never expected this to happen,” said Ms. Dilin, a hospital administrator who has tried several times to repatriate her daughter to Australia, including on a charter flight this month that was canceled.
“She is missing us badly,” she said of her daughter. “She’s still counting days, thinking she is coming.”
Much of the world has cut off travel to and from India as it grapples with an uncontrolled outbreak that is killing thousands of people every day. But Australia, a continent with a strong preference for hard borders, has pushed isolation to an extreme.
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