Despite what she claims, Rau was/is mentally ill. This should have be plainly obvious to any competent phychiatrist. I would assume that a phychiatric evaluation is performed on any detainee. If she had received appropriate treatment, her conditioned would most likely improved to the point where she would have correctly stated who she was.
I think that she is entitled to considerable compensation. $500,000 is probably an ambit claim put by her lawyers and she will get considerably less. The Filipino woman would probably be due at least $500,000 as she apparently always claimed that she was a naturalised Australian and used her real name.
The real issue here is not the amount of compensation but how and why the immigration officers made such blunders.
