taking part in mass rallies and president hassan rouhani has been speaking in tehran freedom square the nine hundred seventy nine revolution saw the overthrow of the shah monarchy and the creation of the islamic republic north korea's olympic delegation has met the south korean prime minister lee knock young in seoul the group includes the sister of north korea's leader kim jong il on saturday she extended a rare in the tasting to south korean president mungy and to visit pyongyang. votes are being counted in sri lanka where a record number of women are vying for seats in three hundred forty local governments a new law requires females to fill a quarter of those positions the president and the prime minister rule nationally in a coalition but they have campaigned separately for their own party. and south africa's ruling party the african national congress is due to hold a special meeting on monday pressure is mounting on president jacob zuma to resign before his second term ends next year many are calling for a swift transition of power after he was replaced by soon as leader of the n.c.

those were the headlines the news continues on al-jazeera of the talked about as a statement that's a water bottle. this is really an attack on a food itself is a lot of a sudden the standing of what free speech is supposed to be about the context of hugely important setting the stage for a serious debate after front at this time on al-jazeera. and. you will be able. to see. the movie who are in a half years iranian refugee roosted charney has been living in limbo on a remote specific an oil and he was sent there by australia after he tried to reach its shores by boat. for art. it is a prison it was a prison. even worse than a prison because. the prisoners in or around the ward nobody porcher them

you really see it as torture yeah of course you know it is a systematic torture. was a journalist in iran publishing stories promoting the kurdish language and culture after colleagues were arrested and accused of undermining the iranian state who chani feared he'd be next he fled aiming for australia. tens of thousands of others have gone before him thanks smugglers to take them across the sea from in the knees yet to the australian territory of christmas island between two thousand and nine and twenty thirty more than fifty thousand people have made similar journeys most of them ultimately were allowed to settle as refugees in australia but in australia people were alarmed at the growing number of refugees coming by boat they watched horrified as some boat sank or were smashed against rocks on trying to land in the midst of an election campaign in july twenty thirty australia's government

announced a radical policy. people who come by boat now have no prospect of being resettled in australia the rules have changed if you come here by boat you'll be sent to papa new guinea australia's government had done a deal with papua new guinea once it's colony but now an independent country in exchange for billions of dollars p.m.g. would accommodate refugees who try to reach australia until at the very least their claims to be refugees were decided combined with australia's navy turning back boats at sea the deportation policy was about to terence if settlement in australia was denied to anyone arriving as australia's government saw it illegally by boat who in future would try the chinese boat was see when the new policy was announced it arrived on christmas island four days later on the chinese thirtieth birthday four weeks later he was deported to mount a silent in papua new guinea he's been there ever since for nearly five years and

it's from a man of silent that he talks to al-jazeera. for johnny thank you very much for talking to al-jazeera can we start with why you left iran back in twenty thirteen you know i fell in trouble with the government so. i hide myself or both more than amongst. friend. after that. i have a fifth some information that they are going to meet and they have some plans to do some action on me so i decided to leave iran so. i. came to a trachea. australia's government says its policy was and is necessary to deter what it's called illegal immigration it is question the motives of those arriving by boat asking why they didn't claim asylum in countries they travel through before

getting on boats to australia it is suggested that those who come by boat are economic migrants rather than refugees genuinely fleeing persecution that their refusal to accept a permanent life in papua new guinea or on the tiny island nation of nuru shows that their real aim is and always was life in a wealthy developed country not just a safe one it says the refugees life or exaggerate with stories of poor conditions in australian run the tension centers on malice and the root ultimately australia's government says tough policies against uncontrolled migration unnecessary to allow generosity towards refugees through a managed process bistro in support record numbers of people coming through the migration program and humanitarian program when governments have proper control of the process i don't want to give up their process and the right to decide who comes to our country to people smugglers so you left iran and you decided to go to

australia yeah i want to do that journey you know i float in the news your i phone the smuggler that he told me that i am going to send you why did you not stay in indonesia you were out of iran yeah you were not going to be perceived authorities there why not stay in indonesia at that point the first place you got to apply for asylum through the u.n.h.c.r. some of the refugees they were iris the police unit and they deported them and they didn't ask them questions. just. reported them because so many refugees on that. so the government wanted to. torture them went back to iran yeah and they send them back to iran so you decided it wasn't safe to be an intern yeah yeah well i really was not safe. i decided to.

talk about how much of the price of that journey i paid about five thousand dollars . on the first. forty eight hours. sunk and i found myself on the ocean. that was very ill. and they swam for a vote that. would that was on the ocean on the water. after that. ship came there. fishman took me from the water. after that i was on the ship for about two days and they called the police police came you know they put me in the. i was in the jail for the night after that. and they went to.

after two weeks i started to come to a straight again so that was a very big. because the journey on the ocean is very danielle it sounds so many people today so i experienced it and i once experienced that daniel some of the refugees they don't know that one year but i once experienced so in second time when i started to come through the trail it's meaning that i didn't feel. safe in indonesia and i thought that i must go to a strange one i must you know leave this country because it was not safe for me and you landed on christmas island on the twenty third of july twenty third saying that was four days after australia's government changed their policy the rules have changed how did they tell you that news would be coming to us you know i didn't

know that was really a make believe i was on the ocean because i. our boat got lost for a week and we came to australia on sixteen july. and was supposed to arrive to christmas island after two days what our votes get lost and we were lost for a week and when we arrived to a train. was twenty three july exactly my best day. when we arrived there they put us in a place like a crazy place and they didn't allow us to call our family we were there for about twenty day. after twenty based on the porn they just told us that you must go to. uni so for twenty. five in

a straight. you know free country so i didn't know that after twenty business. we are going to examine your two months sign on and you must live there. or you go back to your country do you understand why australia's government felt they needed to introduce this tough policy my income under the sun nice you know i have been thinking the world least for more than forty years and they cannot understand is that why they are you know torturing people. but they say australia is government more than fifty thousand people came just before you more boats were coming all the time as you say and you will waste experienced more than a thousand people drowned at sea that had to stop and this policy has stopped it people no longer come by boat so while every sympathy for you in your situation can

you understand the need for the broader policy now i've come and understand because i think it's sending people to their i know it's not all our money. you know been prevalent the boat come through history but it remained mostly in their thoughts yeah them main reason was that they sent back the. boats to indonesia so they sniped in some at sea and they pushed them there so the people in indonesia are the refugees in your immediate needs or their countries they are not watching us that when we get freedom they come to australia the main reason is that they send the worlds. you know they sent the boat down the people. they the refugees they think if we go to australia we will lose our money and we will. have a very risky journey and maybe we arrive there. and they send us back so the

main reason is that the main reason is not them they send people to. amman and sign on do you understand why australia feels it needs to control its borders a former prime minister of australia famously said that we will decide who comes to our country and the manner in which they come that was john howard back in two thousand and one that is a very reasonable thing to say isn't it in order to be an open country in order to have high levels of immigration as australia does it needs to know that it is controlling its borders that's fair isn't it you know i am not in a position to make decision two or three in your home or give advice to them you know i am a refugee so i don't think about this that was three years trying to protect its borders the main important thing is i myself and these people

that we have been in prison camp in this island for more than forty years for their first three years on manis the refugees were kept in what australia's government called a processing center half an hour away from the island's main town with high fences and god's refugees weren't allowed out no visitors in those inside considered it a prison in twenty sixteen happy new guinea's opposition leader took a case to the country supremes court arguing that the refugees detention was illegal under the constitution the court agreed and to comply with the ruling the government made the center an open facility refugees still live there who could come and go freely in october twenty seventh seen the sense it was completely shut down guard medical and support staff left power and water supplies were disconnected but most refugees refused to leave for three weeks they lived in the

former prison surviving on rain water and food. smuggled in by sympathetic locals. no money for what. they are really the refugees the siege was a protest a chance to make a stand but in late november papua new guinea and police a victim by force some refugees were hit with sticks and dragged on to buses. that was your home for one hundred years interest has to know it is very a strange feeling when no. one he's very strongly as governor has always said it was never a person it was a regional processing center what was it to you for. it is a prison it was a prison you know their policy was to create a hate you know they were happy that people in man was free zone helped australia to forget us here so the established this policy and they were

running the prison camps like these your interest thinking i would like to say one . request and i asked them to give me. a map of strange young enough i want to put me in the war because of my work and they send no. you you can not have with radium i can't go to australia yeah that's the i don't want to go through you are just saying. they would let you. in the wrong what was life like in the three weeks off with when you were refusing to move really as a protest moment i think yes you know that was like one of their own and you know i myself experienced that because i was born in war. it was like a war zone but in some ways we were happy because we were out of. the systematic torture we were in the you know the officers

were not. you know there were there was a little taunt to me you were in charge of your own lives and yeah yeah we were trying our of our life during the siege and the of action he tweeted in fact ever since being sent to mount a speech on his campaign relentlessly against the policy that sent him there and has kept him there he's kept up his journalism using mobile phone credit paid for by sympathetic or strongly and he tweets prolifically he writes an online newspaper column in the guardian which in november one him an amnesty international media awards but johnny has even shot a film on his phone edited by a dutch director the resulting movie about life a man of silence has been shown at film festivals around the world he's now working on writing a play and a book he was very successful you have become prolific you have a column in the guardian newspaper your tweets are read by many thousands of people

viewed a regular internees in the australian and global media including many times on al-jazeera do you feel more a journalist or a refugee i don't think a more myself you know as a german news or refugee i feel that i am human i am human and them fighting for humanity i am. fighting for these people you know the people that i feel they've suffered and they know them for a long time i know them you know i am leaving with them a few days and they hear the stories i know they are stories so it is very important for me but on the first day i though that understood i am thinking that it is my duty as a journalist it is my mission it is my duty to work on this issue. it is my duty to tell through to people and

all saw important thing is that i am working to record history of this policy record the history of this prison camp for history for the next generation the deals australia reached with papua new guinea and the room where the refugees would stay in those countries permanently after the stories of persecution were confirmed australia's government says if refugees were genuine they'd happily accept life in any country why not take the option on the table which is resettlement in part when you get you know first is that we didn't come to peace and secondly is that. doesn't. fit to protect the refugees and accept the refugees and the refugees. and they are sure that if they accept to leave. they will lose everything they want to have any clear future in that millions of papua new guinea and have clear

futures they live here yes country is not at war why not stay here you're not going to be persecuted here in our. country. tribal culture. we. poor economy and also is not safe for the refugees so they're refugees cannot accept to live in our saw they are saying if you accept to live in peace after eight years we will give you a passport so how can we accept that some people may have families but people wanting this will think this is a man who was fleeing for his life yet if fled to iran because his life was in danger your life is not in imminent danger here why not accept that and stay a lot of people. were attacked by the. people

why because you know the. people are very kind people but they cannot accept they cannot accept that they are living in poor condition. government accept some people on try to protect them they cannot accept that. believe in me that the refugees cannot live in peace pinti you know some of the refugees. are really try to live in pain here but they couldn't so because of you know cultural reasons because of economy creedence because of you know so many reasons because it is not safe country for the refugees because the government cannot protect them they cannot start. simple life in peace and it is under you know of that but you haven't tried have you you haven't tried

it you saying you could you say you couldn't get out early in time when you can if you haven't tried you know you are asking a question from me that. if you ask the. government they answer you you know in my way they are i agree that. they cannot accept the refugees and they are not saying that they will want to accept refugees neither papua new guinea's prime minister nor is immigration minister responded to requests for an interview but another government minister speaking in a personal capacity did talk he says life in p. and g. is possible for refugees who try to make it work but if they want it's not for his country to force them what they do want is resettlement in a country that they feel that they will have a proper chance of integrating into and i don't believe that's possible that's for

a stranger to sort out that's that's a strange problem the stray needs to resolve that quickly it's sort of happening problem astray has created the issue to solve it do you want them not really we really don't need them. it's important for man asylum to most locals think it's time the refugees moved on woods he now is for an obvious almost five years. i would have thought of those little one by now so that's there's there's my view i question is there he made hang loose you know if they make fried boy on the suicide bombing and so like that is where they had industry they may do something west like we used to hear t.v. and radio suicide bombing if it was a bomb so that they considered terrorists. much attention to. the issue over there but that's what is seeing on the street. and then make this ng be careful just be

careful that. australia has done deals with other countries to take refugees during his final days in office president obama agreed to settle as many as twelve hundred fifty of australia's refugees in the united states president trump has called that a done deal but has said reluctantly honor it but an offer from new zealand to resettle others has been rejected by australia's government which says as new zealanders have the right to settle in australia refugees would use new zealand as a back door into australia going back to the broader policy australia's government says rightly that there are millions of refugees around the world needing resettlement a year when the other men here any more deserving than any of them of resettlement in a rich country like australia what makes you any more deserving than someone stuck in a refugee camp in lebanon for example. i know that we. cry in the war but

when we are right poor training was not made when we arrived with training there was not i think when we arrived to a change. you know that there were still many millions of refugees if not even that yeah you know it's not mean that. you know the australian government has this right to torture us you know you tell just people by very strong words you feel tortured yet if the porch or you know we have been on the porch everything they are torturing us you know we have been on the porch and we have been under a systematic torture he's been fed he's been housed how is that you know six people are really night six people are with this policy in this prison camp six people six young people one of them killed by. staff for up them they because of medical next leg left to kill themselves

that was. tortured them for a long time. after that they left them in their island without protection. you know we put protection on the our store you know. such species when so we still we don't know that they kill them or they kill their search but. you know. the those guys you know they were. in this for a long time and his phone call with the american president australia's prime minister malcolm turnbull described most of the refugees here as economic migrants you obviously now know them all quite well is he right or you and some of the others economic migrants rather than genuinely genuinely fleeing persecution you know. there was

a strain on government and you go on in the process people are under you know by international law. and. more than ninety person after the people. recorded as a refugee but you had money all of you paid five thousand dollars to get on a boat to christmas island refugees not mean that all the more as to the poor all the while you there are some desperate yeah you snug and then you are a poor you know through the poor what are your hopes for your future you know i hope. you know there are so many printing australia are fighting for our son will stop or think. and. i hold that within and all among. make solutions and real solutions and let the past go the response johnny thank you very much thank you for talking to

others through. i'm. young so molly refugee thrilled to gain us residency in twenty sixteen. and i was

lucky too good to hear i was a really really good downside my grad but with anti immigrant sentiment under the trump presidency al-jazeera world asks ali was whether his american dream is still alive and so mali in america at this time on al-jazeera. israel launches its biggest attacks on syria and decades after one of its fighter jets was shot down. below and down jordan this is al jazeera live from doha also coming up thousands turned out at a rally in tehran.