Two little girls taken from their home in outback Queensland and put into immigration detention along with their Tamil parents are suffering behavioural issues, the Tamil Refugee Council says.
Nades and Priya came to Australia separately by boat in 2012 and 2013 following Sri Lanka's civil war and settled in the town of Biloela on a temporary bridging visa, which ran out in March.
The council says it has obtained a medical report for the family which it claims shows their Australian-born daughters, aged three and one, have developed behavioural changes since being detained.
A billboard located near Peter Dutton's electoral office in Brisbane. Source: AAP
"The family have been very isolated in detention, and the conditions described are not appropriate for young children, particularly the lack of contact with other children, and restrictions on their freedom of movement," it says.
"No playgroup or early childhood learning in place."
The council is calling on the federal government to release the family and allow them to return to Biloela.
Nades was getting ready to leave for work at the local meatworks on March 5 when Australian Border Force officials raided their house before dawn.
Residents of the small town have been fighting for their release since, saying they fear what may happen to the family if they are deported.
