A security guard on Nauru allegedly grabbed a child by the throat and twice banged his head against the ground, the Nauru files show.
Other leaked documents reveal reports of misconduct by numerous security guards on the island and alleged attempts to deter asylum seekers from complaining to police.
Wilson Security, the company the Australian government has tasked with protecting asylum seekers at the centre, has faced criticism about its performance and a number of claims of misconduct have emerged during the past three years.
In a statement a spokeswoman for the company said all serious allegations were reported and, where appropriate, referred to authorities for investigation.
The Nauru files published by the Guardian, written by caseworkers, guards, teachers and child protection workers stationed on the island, reveal several new claims of misconduct.
According to one report marked as “critical” from September 2015, a boy told a Save the Children caseworker that a Nauruan security guard employed by Wilson Security had grabbed him by the throat and thrown a chair at him.
“[REDACTED] then reported that the security guard grabbed him around the throat and hit his head against the ground twice,” the report said. [REDACTED] also said that the security guard threw a chair on him and showed [REDACTED] a red raised mark on his arm.”
Although the caseworker did not see the alleged assault, the worker witnessed an exchange between the children and the local guard who was identified. The child had asked the guard why he hit him, the report said. The guard had “moved towards” the boy “and in a raised voice responded ‘why did you come in here, you are not allowed in here, get out of here’.”
The files reveal that reports of misconduct by guards continued to occur during – and after – an Australian parliamentary inquiry into allegations of abuse on Nauru, where Wilson Security faced scrutiny over a number of claims, including that its guards spied on the Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young.
In a report in June 2015, as the Senate inquiry was still under way, an asylum seeker alleged that while he was in Brisbane he was visited by a former Wilson Security guard who worked on Nauru. The asylum seeker told a welfare worker “that this former security guard stated that another former Wilson’s security guard (POI) had stated that he was planning on sexually assaulting [the asylum seeker’s] sister”.
The report said the asylum seeker claimed the guard had been “re-employed” back on Nauru and that he was Australian. He initially said he couldn’t identify the man but a day later provided his full name to a welfare officer. No other witnesses to the allegations were listed in the files.
Justice for those who have allegedly been abused is not easy to achieve. In one particularly serious case a family of asylum seekers was pressured by a Nauruan woman not to press charges against a Nauruan guard for assaulting their son.
“The Nauruan woman informed her that her family will be in danger during open centre visits should there be a police investigation,” the caseworker wrote.
The report set out how in a police interview with a Nauruan officer, the family then said they did not wish to press charges. The reason they gave was because they did not want to deprive the guard of his job.
“Constable [REDACTED] accepted this decision and responded that the case will remain open should the parents change their mind,” the report concluded.
Other incidents disclosed in the files raise concerns about the quality of Wilson’s evidence to the Senate. In one case in March 2015, the company said there had been an allegation of excessive force against a minor. There had been an investigation, it said, but there had been “insufficient evidence” and the matter was closed.
The logs show a different story. One reported that an expatriate Wilson Security guard, witnessed by two other children, had hit a child on the nose. The children all pointed out a female guard to a Save the Children worker and the caseworker identified the officer in the report by her full name.
They also reveal repeated concerns about guards employed by Wilson Security. In October 2014 an asylum seeker alleged that a female guard had touched her inappropriately several weeks earlier.
A Save the Children caseworker wrote: “[REDACTED] reported that approximately five weeks ago she was in medical following a self-harm incident in which she ingested washing powder. [REDACTED] reported that Wilson security staff member [REDACTED] (female) attended her bedside at which time another security officer left the room, leaving them alone.
“[The asylum seeker] reports that [the guard] began stroking her leg and her face.”
After a further encounter with the officer, the asylum seeker said she reported the behaviour to a Wilson Security guard supervisor. He “laughed at her”, according to the report.
In an August 2014 report an asylum seeker told a Save the Children caseworker that a Nauruan guard had bent his fingers backwards to stop him typing on his computer after he was asked to log off Facebook.
“The local CSO [client services officer] allegedly pulled [the asylum seeker’s] fingers backwards in an attempt to prevent him from touching computer. The local CSO then began yelling in [the asylum seeker’s] face,” the caseworker wrote. An Australian guard then approached and also began yelling at the asylum seeker, and pushed him back in his chair when he tried to stand up.
In another log two guards told a child protection worker they had witnessed two cases of physical assault of a minor by an adult in the past half hour. The worker levelled criticism at them for failing to file a report. “The security guards were unable to identify the people involved and stated they had not submitted an IR or informed anyone else of the incidents,” the report said.
In March 2014 three Wilson Security guards were observed blocking the path of an asylum seeker and being verbally abusive. An incident report said: “The client was not presenting as physically aggressive from what the CW [caseworker] observed and a female Wilson officer [REDACTED] began to raise her voice at the client telling him to sit down. She argued with him and mimicked his behaviour. She swore at the client saying ‘you fucking touched me’ and ‘you’re a dick’.”
The caseworker said the guard’s behaviour had “caused the situation to escalate”. The incident was reported as: “Poor behaviour of a Wilson’s guard towards a male client.”
Another report accused Wilson Security staff of seeking to change the timing of a log filed by a Save the Children caseworker.
The child protection worker wrote: “The manager advised that the start time for the incident would be 4.00pm, instead of when it was originally provided to the team. I accepted, however then overheard a telephone conversation from an involved Wilson’s staff member who stated the report had just been received from SCA [Save the Children Australia] …
“I hold concerns that perhaps it will be alleged that the report was not provided by SCA within the correct timeframe which I wholeheartedly dispute.”
The latest files published by the Guardian, which date to October 2015, show the misconduct continuing. In that month alone a local guard allegedly threw rocks at a child, another guard was observed by a caseworker to “simulate headbutting” a child as he walked past , while a third reportedly told a child to “come outside and I’ll fix you up” after he was sprayed with water.
In one report from September, a guard entered a tent with a wooden broom, complaining that a group of teenage asylum seekers had been teasing him all day.
“They should go back to their country and get out of Nauru,” the guard reportedly said as he left the tent.
The Guardian put individual allegations contained in the Nauru files to Wilson Security and a series of questions about its responses. A spokeswoman for the company said in a statement: “The reports published today refer to a range of service providers and operations across the full scope of services on Nauru. Wilson Security takes the welfare and safety of the asylum seekers at the Regional Processing Centres seriously.
“All allegations of inappropriate behaviour on Nauru by asylum seekers or staff are reported through a comprehensive information and incident reporting system, referred to the relevant stakeholders for action, and where appropriate referred to the relevant authorities.”
Wilson Security reported to the Australian parliament a number of cases that led to it dismissing staff for misconduct. In November 2014 a subcontracted employee was fired for inappropriate behaviour at the local airport and in April 2015 two others were sacked for breaching Wilson’s code of conduct, its offshore code of conduct and its information security policy.
