Australia had so far not sought Sri Lanka’s advice with regard to the bilateral agreement signed between Australia and Indonesia to confine the Sri Lankan Tamil asylum seekers in Indonesia at Australia’s expense. The fate of the detained group was decided even without consulting Sri Lanka, well informed sources told The Island.

Australia's Liberal Party MP Tony Abbott early this week urged the Australian government to initiate a dialogue with Sri Lanka regarding Sri Lankan Tamils now held in Indonesia while trying to reach Australia.

The Opposition frontliner told Australia's SBS Television’s Dateline programme on Tuesday (Oct 27) that Australia should discuss this issue with Sri Lanka instead of dealing with Indonesia, reported The Island.

Over the past two weeks, Indonesia has taken 334 Sri Lankans into custody and Australia has detained 32.

Sources told The Island, that Sri Lanka had not been given access to Sri Lankans being held in Indonesia, Australia and Canada though there was very clear evidence that the LTTE and its front men were involved in the organised human smuggling operation.

The ‘Ocean Lady’, the ship smuggling migrants intercepted off the West Coast of Canada by Canadian officials, had been one of the few ships used to move arms, ammunition and equipment to floating warehouses operated by the LTTE on the high seas sources said. Had Sri Lanka been given access to the crew, more information regarding the LTTE arms procurement ring could have been elicited, they stressed.

Appreciating Maldives' moves, sources said it set a sterling example by promptly giving access to Sri Lanka to interrogate a group of LTTE terrorists captured by the Maldivian Coast Guard, thereby facilitating SLN operations against LTTE floating warehouses, and stressed that it was unfortunate that some countries were reluctant to share information regarding human smuggling operations though they publicly called for joint action to fight terrorism, narcotics and clandestine ship movements, reported The Island.