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Tuesday, September 13, 2011 - 05.05 GMT |
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Australia welcomes interception of
people-smuggling boat |
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The Australian High Commissioner Kathy Klugman has welcomed the September 11 interception of a people-smuggling boat carrying 44 Sri Lankans bound for Australia in rough seas off eastern Sri Lanka.
Australia appreciates the good work undertaken by Sri Lanka’s Police and Navy to disrupt the dangerous and illegal people-smuggling trade. The effectiveness of Sri Lankan security forces’ coordinated work is demonstrated by the facts: no boat has reached Australia from Sri Lanka since November 2009.
The High Commissioner deplored the deception employed by people smugglers. “People smugglers are making their money by telling lies to passengers, convincing them that travelling to Australia by boat is viable. Instead, these people lose all their money”.
“People smugglers are only interested in profit. On several occasions, people have lost their lives trying to make the journey to Australia. The reality is that people putting themselves in the hands of people smugglers are taking a huge risk with both their lives and money,” the High Commissioner said
Australia and Sri Lanka work together closely to prevent people smuggling and to explain the dangers of people smuggling to vulnerable communities.
Meanwhile, the Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard said her government wants to revive an asylum-seeker swap deal with Malaysia.
She spoke after receiving the backing of her Labor Party caucus for proposed legislative changes to the Migration Act to allow such an arrangement.
Australia's High Court ruled this month that her plan to send 800 asylum-seekers to Malaysia in return for 4,000 processed refugees was unlawful.
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