A Well-Founded Fear
SBS, 8.30pm
IF EVER there was a program to make you feel ashamed to be Australian, this is it. And we should all be detained and forced to watch this incredibly powerful and moving documentary and learn from one of this country's most contemptible acts: deporting genuine asylum seekers to countries where their lives are again endangered. Phil Glendenning, director of social justice agency the Edmund Rice Centre, travels to Afghanistan and the Middle East to find out what happened to the refugees who spent months, if not years, in our detention centres, only to have their applications rejected because they could not prove they had a "well-founded fear" that warranted asylum. For those easily offended, be warned. This starts with John Howard's infamous line: "We will decide who comes to this country and the circumstances in which they come." Glendenning was so disturbed that the Australian government never followed up on the deported asylum seekers, he made it his mission to find out what happened to them - and if the government made the right decision. The myriad stories from those deported are all heartbreaking, with many people literally sent back to their deaths. Glendenning meets Mohammed Hussain, who says he is now grateful for the Taliban and loathes Howard: "We can't complain about the Taliban because they were illiterate and crazy. But this was a politician, a prime minister." Equally disturbing are claims that the government used false passports to deport people who arrived without paperwork, in some cases even sending them to countries other than their origin. Glendenning's compassion and concern are obviously not for the cameras. He is genuinely deeply moved by what he sees and the stories he hears, and angered by our government's actions. The Edmund Rice Centre has tracked down more than 250 returnees to 22 countries, and its findings will be presented to the Government and the United Nations. This documentary shows humanity in its best and worst light, and Glendenning is a shining light. Make him PM, or at least Australian of the Year.

Fakes
ABC2, 9.30pm
YOU thought those refugees had problems: here in the West there are people who have to wait six whole months for a limited-edition designer handbag costing a small nation's GDP, damn it, and are forced to buy cheap knock-offs to stay in fashion. Counterfeiting is an interesting topic, but this documentary is a cheap imitation of what could be a compelling program. Tonight's episode, the first in a two-parter, explores the problem of fake goods being manufactured in China, often using child labour. We're not just talking pseudo Nike trainers or Burberry scarves here. Plans were even hatched to fake nature by making man-made eggs, thereby possibly creating the definitive answer to the age-old question of which came first, the chicken or the egg. Obviously whoever said imitation is the highest form of flattery was mistaken.

Sleep Clinic
ABC2, 8pm
BEDROOM antics are often ratings winners, but those featured here are of the disturbing kind: sleep disorders. While dreams of ponies, butterflies and bunny rabbits sound perfectly lovely, Jodie also suffers night terrors and thrashes about in bed, fighting imagined attackers. Snoring David (unfairly referred to as a Shrek-like character) seeks help for sleep apnoea, which is ruining his marriage. Evidently the man just needed to wear a mask to be welcomed back to the marital bed, and the cameras are there for the reunion. A scene to give anyone nightmares.