Australia refuses to comment on asylum seeker lifeboat policy report
A newspaper report saying Australia is purchasing lifeboats in which asylum seekers could be returned to Indonesia has drawn cries of 'no comment' from the authorities in Canberra
The government in Canberra refused to comment on a newspaper report on Wednesday that Australia is buying lifeboats to carry asylum seekers back to Indonesian islands.
Australia was buying 16 engine-powered and enclosed lifeboats – similar to those carried by cruise ships and oil tankers – for border protection boats to carry as an alternative to rescuing asylum seekers found in unseaworthy vessels, a Fairfax Media group newspaper reported.
Crews on boats smuggling people have resorted to sabotaging engines or sinking their vessels to avoid their ships being turned back to Indonesia by Australian border protection crews.
By putting asylum seekers into safe lifeboats and sending them back to Indonesian islands, Australia is likely to risk further angering Indonesia, which opposes the Canberra government’s policy of turning back boats full of asylum seekers.
Australia’s Immigration Minister Scott Morrison refused to comment, saying his government does not confirm or comment on such reports.
“The government’s policy of no public comment on operational matters is based on the advice of [the] border protection agency and operational leaders to protect the security of our operations and to ensure that they can be conducted with maximum safety and effectiveness for all involved,” Morrison said in a statement.