Episode description

Hundreds of men remain in the decommissioned detention centre – refusing to be relocated to camps which many (including the UN's refugee agency) have said are unfinished or unsafe. Papua New Guinean immigration officers have removed fences, shade and clotheslines from the camp. Rubbish bins storing rain and well water have been tipped out, and makeshift wells destroyed. In this update, comprised of Aziz's weary and infrequent messages, he describes the increasingly strained situation.

'They were trying to push people – and swearing, abusing.'

The men sit in protest beside the denuded fence posts of the (now former) Manus Island Regional Processing Centre — Photo: Manus Alert

• Abdul Aziz Muhamat

• Michael Green

Our theme music was composed by Raya Slavin.

• 'Horrific footage from within Manus Island Detention Centre shows squalid conditions', by Jennifer Sexton, Daily Telegraph, accessed 10 November 2017

• 'Smuggled footage shows horrific conditions in Manus detention centre – video', Guardian Australia, accessed 10 November 2017

• 'Photos cast doubt on new Manus housing', Australian, by Rory Callinan, Australian, accessed 8 November 2017

The Messenger is a co-production of Behind the Wire and the Wheeler Centre. It’s produced by Michael Green, André Dao, Hannah Reich and Bec Fary, with Jon Tjhia and Sophie Black at the Wheeler Centre.

This short update was edited and mixed by Jon Tjhia.

Dana Affleck, Angelica Neville and Sienna Merope. Also to Behind the Wire’s many participants and volunteers. Behind the Wire is supported by the Bertha Foundation.

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