Minister for home affairs media release
Border Protection Command boards vessel - 16 May 2010
Border Protection Command provided assistance to a vessel yesterday afternoon approximately 45 nautical miles east-north-east of Scott Reef. Initial indications suggest 92 passengers were on board the vessel.
Royal Australian Navy patrol boat HMAS Ararat, operating under the control of Border Protection Command, approached the vessel in accordance with our Safety of Life at Sea obligations under international law. The passengers on the vessel indicated that they were in need of assistance.
The vessel was initially sighted by a Customs and Border Protection Dash 8, operating under the control of Border Protection Command. After boarding the vessel, it became apparent that the vessel was unseaworthy and appeared to be taking on significant amounts of water. ACV Hervey Bay and HMAS Launceston were also operating in the vicinity and provided support to HMAS Ararat.
Passengers were safely transferred to HMAS Ararat, HMAS Launceston and ACV Hervey Bay and they will be conveyed to Christmas Island where they will undergo identity, security and health checks and their reasons for travel will be established.
While their nationality is yet to be confirmed, if these asylum seekers are Sri Lankans or Afghans, the processing suspension introduced by the Government on 9 April 2010 will apply.
The suspension was introduced because of the evolving circumstances in these two countries. The Australian Government believes that asylum seekers should only granted the right to live in Australia if they are genuinely in need of protection.
According to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees 2009 report on Asylum Levels and Trends in Industrialised Countries, the number of arrivals to Australia remains very low by world standards. In 2009, some 377,200 asylum claims were recorded in 44 countries with Australia receiving 6,170 – less than 2 per cent of the total asylum applications.
Australia was not alone in experiencing an increase in asylum seeker applications in 2009. While Australia had a 29 per cent increase, Denmark experienced a 59 per cent increase, Hungary a 50 per cent increase, Finland a 47 per cent increase, Poland a 47 per cent increase, Belgium a 40 per cent increase, and New Zealand a 36 per cent increase.
The Australian Government has implemented a comprehensive people smuggling strategy to combat this issue. The Government has expanded its presence in the region with the Australian Federal Police, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Department of Immigration and Citizenship and the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service recently setting up or expanding liaison posts devoted to deterring irregular migration.
Media Contact: Belinda Cole 0438 595 567 or Customs and Border Protection media 02 6275 6793