..from deep down in kangaland.

KEVIN Rudd is facing growing criticism from church groups over his toughened asylum stance, but other critics of past Australian refugee policy are holding their fire.

With the opposition accusing the government of misleading the public over the reasons for the freeze on Sri Lankan and Afghan asylum claims, Uniting Church president Alistair Macrae attacked Labor for reneging on a commitment to treat refugees more humanely.

Yesterday, Mr Macrae said there was little difference between the Howard government's treatment of asylum-seekers and Mr Rudd's.

"They've quite clearly lapsed on previous commitments," Mr Macrae said.

"They've certainly contravened international agreements that we've signed up to as a nation."

The comments followed the decision on Friday to suspend new Sri Lankan asylum claims for three months and Afghan claims for six months. Australian Catholic Bishops Conference general secretary Brian Lucas said as a matter of principle, asylum-seekers should be dealt with in a just and humane way. "Making a unilateral decision that defers even the consideration of a claim seems to have no other value than to provide some form of deterrent," Father Lucas said.

One of the louder critics of the previous government, moderate Liberal MP Petro Georgiou, said Friday's announcement was "very disturbing".

"I do not think we should regress in our treatment of asylum-seekers and this is a regressive move," Mr Georgiou said.

But other critics have proved more guarded. Maverick Labor MP Julia Irwin, who, in the wake of the Oceanic Viking incident, declared she was "ashamed" of her own government, said of Friday's announcement that "something had to be done".