Ruhani v Director of Police (Aka Nauru Appeal)

The High Court of Australia considered an appeal from the Supreme Court of Nauru in *Ruhani v Director of Police (Aka Nauru Appeal)*. The dispute concerned the detention of a group of asylum seekers who had arrived in Nauru. The Director of Police had ordered their detention, and the asylum seekers sought a declaration that their detention was unlawful.

The central legal issue before the High Court was whether the detention of the asylum seekers was authorised by Nauruan law, specifically the *Constitution of Nauru* and the *Immigration Act 1999* (Nauru). The Court was required to determine if the executive power of Nauru, as exercised by the Director of Police, extended to the indefinite detention of individuals who had arrived in Nauru seeking asylum, without specific legislative authorisation for such detention.

The High Court held that the detention was unlawful. The Court reasoned that while the *Immigration Act* provided for the detention of non-citizens, it did not authorise indefinite detention without a clear legal basis. The Chief Justice and Justices McHugh, Gummow, Hayne, Callinan and Heydon found that the executive power of Nauru did not extend to authorising detention beyond what was permitted by statute or common law principles. Justice Kirby, while agreeing with the outcome, also highlighted the importance of international human rights standards in interpreting domestic law. The Court concluded that the detention, lacking specific statutory authority, infringed upon the liberty of the individuals concerned.

The High Court ordered that the asylum seekers be released from detention.