Australia Ends Standoff With Asylum Seekers Off Indonesia
CANBERRA -(Dow Jones)- A month-long standoff between a group of Sri Lankan
asylum seekers and Australian and Indonesian authorities ended late Wednesday,
with the last 56 refugees agreeing to leave an Australian customs ship moored
off Indonesia to have their asylum claims processed there.
The group were among 78 boat people rescued by the Australian navy in
Indonesian waters Oct. 18. They were taken by Australian customs officials to
Indonesia's Riau islands, but had been refusing to disembark to draw attention
to their right to asylum in a developed country.
"The Australian government welcomes the realization of the agreement between
the Prime Minister and the Indonesian President that all those people rescued
will disembark in Indonesia," Australian Home Affairs Minister Brendan O'Connor
said.
Resolving the standoff relieves some of the political pressure on Australian
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, who has suffered a fall in voter support as he faces
growing criticism for his handling of asylum seekers.
But the issues raised by a recent surge in asylum seekers to Australia are far
from settled. Australian customs officials have intercepted three boats in as
many days this week in waters offshore Western Australia. Around 80 new asylum
seekers have been sent to an Australian refugee detention center on Christmas
Island, near Indonesia, for processing.
The impasse ended after the refugees were reportedly promised resettlement,
possibly in Australia or elsewhere, in as little as four weeks if their asylum
claims are valid. That drew fresh criticism from Australian opposition lawmakers
that the refugees had been singled out by Australia's center-left Labor
government for special, fast-tracked treatment--a move they argue could
encourage more refugees to attempt to reach Australia by boat. Rudd denies the
claims.
Twenty-two of the original 78 boat people aboard the Australian customs ship
Oceanic Viking already went ashore earlier this week, where their asylum claims
are being considered at a refugee detention center in Tanjung Pinang, the
capital of the Riau islands.
More than 40 boats, carrying over 2,000 refugees have sought asylum in
Australia so far this year, compared with just seven boats carrying a total of
161 people in 2008.
Some other countries also have seen an increase in political refugees this
year, especially in Europe, as residents from Iraq and parts of Africa flee
long-simmering conflicts.
But for Asia, Australia is a destination of choice at a time when several
Asian nations -- including Afghanistan and Sri Lanka -- have been experiencing
turmoil.
Rudd is attempting to balance a tough stance against people smuggling with a
humane approach to refugees, relaxing some rules on asylum applications.
Critics argue that approach has created a perception among refugees that it is
easier to relocate to Australia than elsewhere. At the same time human-rights
groups say Rudd's attempt to persuade neighboring governments, chiefly
Indonesia, to work harder to cut off boat people before they reach Australian
waters, is inhumane.
-By Rachel Pannett, Dow Jones Newswires; 61-2-6208-0901; rachel.pannett@
dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
11-18-091803ET
Copyright (c) 2009 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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