Fed: Australia Council ordered to explain Woomera game

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Fed: Australia Council ordered to explain Woomera game

By Sharon Mathieson

CANBERRA, April 30 AAP - Australia's arts council has been ordered to explain why itapproved funding for a computer game in which players try to illegally escape from theWoomera detention centre.

The game, titled Escape from Woomera, has been condemned by Immigration Minister PhilipRuddock and refugee groups for encouraging people to take part in illegal activities andtrivialising the plight of asylum seekers.

The game's creator received $25,000 in funding from the Australia Council last month,prompting the Mayor of Port Augusta Joy Baluch to accuse the council of acting like atraitor to its country.

But the chairman of the Australia Council's new media arts board Michael Snelling defendedthe grant, saying the project was worthy of development.

The federal government is prohibited from giving any direction to the Australia Councilregarding funding and Arts Minister Rod Kemp has no power to withdraw the money.

But he has demanded an explanation from the council as to why it granted money fora project which encourages illegal activity.

"Funding decisions by the Australia Council are made at arms length from governmentand the law prevents the government from giving direction to the council about individualgrant applications," Senator Kemp's spokesman said.

"The minister is greatly concerned if taxpayer dollars had been used to effectivelyadvocate activities which are clearly against the law and has asked for an urgent reportfrom the Australia Council."

Apart from making a mockery of Australia's mandatory detention policy for asylum seekers,Mr Ruddock said the game reflected badly on the Australia Council for promoting unlawfulactivity.

"It's not about government policy, lots and lots of agencies that are funded by thegovernment fund activities that are contrary to government policy," Mr Ruddock's spokeswomansaid.

"The Australia Council - what is its brief? To promote Australian culture.

"How does it do that with a computer game of this type?"

Ms Baluch, whose council's boundaries includes the Baxter detention centre, describedthe funding as appalling and called on Mr Ruddock to intervene.

"I would even venture to say that in doing so the arts council is acting like a traitorto this country," she told ABC radio.

Head of the Refugee Council of Australia Margaret Piper said the video game was oneissue upon which she agreed with Mr Ruddock.

"It is trivialising something that's very serious," she said.

Ms Piper said asylum seekers effectively lost any chance of being granted refugee statusif they broke out of detention centres and asylum seekers had lived through adversityand sometimes torture before arriving in Australia.

"To make a game out of this is something that I just feel deeply uncomfortable about," she said.

AAP sm/sb/mg/bwl

KEYWORD: GAME NIGHTLEAD