Transferring rescued asylum seekers from our navy ships strictly speaking is not turning back the boats as the Coalition described it.So much for the veil of media silence and secrecy so as not to affect operational matters!
Now starts the 'spin', the propaganda, the appeal to ethics and moralityto try to explain why this dumb policy didn't work.
A senior advisor to the Indonesian government says the country should not accept asylum seekers rescued by Australia as they would be a "social burden" and do not want to return there.
Any reasonable person would be utterly ashamed of defending Labor's record relative to the Coalition in this policy area as you have given the results of Labor's ideological folly and the resultant mess it has left the new Coalition government to clean up.What a joke Indos acting like the Coalition, there is am election looming, Morrison says we need to be discrete ............like he was in opposition?
+1. The absolute devastation and helplessness of the people affected by this typhoon is what we should be setting out to assist. They have no electricity, no food and no water. The initial high death toll will be but a fraction of what will result from hunger and disease. Aid agencies always do their best, but their efforts are puny in the face of the dreadful reality.An emergency evacuation from the Philippines would seem more important now than pandering to people who pay thousands to sneak in here.
+1. The absolute devastation and helplessness of the people affected by this typhoon is what we should be setting out to assist. They have no electricity, no food and no water. The initial high death toll will be but a fraction of what will result from hunger and disease. Aid agencies always do their best, but their efforts are puny in the face of the dreadful reality.
Any reasonable person would be utterly ashamed of defending Labor's record relative to the Coalition in this policy area as you have given the results of Labor's ideological folly and the resultant mess it has left the new Coalition government to clean up.
As the government continued to fend off criticism it had botched the relationship with Jakarta following a high-seas stand-off over the weekend, The Australian has been told tensions with Jakarta have not had any impact on co-operative law-enforcement measures between the countries.
It is understood that, since September, 1151 asylum-seekers have been prevented from leaving Indonesia, Malaysia or Sri Lanka on 27 boats - almost double the 600-odd to arrive since the government began Operation Sovereign Borders on September 18.
Interesting piece in today's Australian,
The number estimated from yesterday's arrivals at Xmas Island is about 40. With about 60 from the 'standoff group' that arrived over the weekend, that makes about 100 so far for this reporting period.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/nat...s-afp-stop-boats/story-fn9hm1gu-1226757726065
I'm hope Abbott does not entertaining the idea of doing a swap with Indonesia of people rescued in Indonesian waters by Australia for those refugees already residing in Indonesia. This would be too easy to abuse by Indonesia and would encourage them to facilitate asylum seekers (or even paid "volunteers") leaving in leaky boats, getting Australia to rescue them and then being able to send the equivalent amount of refugees from Indonesian camps in exchange for taking back those rescued at sea.
Wishful thinking on the part of Indonesia I suspect. I don't think they will.Doc, I hope to hell Abbott does not fall for this Indonesian people swap deal.
If he does the Indons will open the flood gates and we will be back to square one.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/nat...s-scott-morrison/story-fn9hm1gu-1226758090955
In response Immigration Minister Scott Morrison released a statement saying the Government "will continue to pursue all areas of possible cooperation" with Indonesia, but he stated clearly that "the Australian government is not engaged in people swaps".
When asked by The Australian yesterday if negotiations with Jakarta included the prospect of Australia taking back those in Indonesian detention centres, Dr Anwar, an adviser to Indonesian Vice President Boediono, confirmed the proposal had been faxed through from the Australian embassy.
"The Australian government has put this proposal to Indonesia," she said. "I think Australia probably could afford to be much more generous with asylum-seekers . . . Australia is a wealthy country.
"Djoko Suyanto, Indonesia's Co-ordinating Minister for Politics Security and Law, responsible for asylum-seeker issues, yesterday strongly denied his government was discussing an exchange arrangement with Australia.
But Ms Anwar said the proposal had come from the Australian embassy in Jakarta via a fax written in Bahasa, the Indonesian language.
''It was a proposal put to Indonesia by Australia and Indonesia hasn't deliberated on it … we still have to study this,'' she said.
It had been ''faxed to the Indonesia government'' by the embassy, she said, though she would not comment on whether it constituted a ''people swap'' deal.
The revelations came as Indonesian government adviser Dewi Fortuna Anwar said talks were being held with the Abbott government on a people-swap deal similar to the former Labor government's proposed Malaysia deal. Ms Anwar said under the deal, asylum-seekers intercepted by Australian authorities could be sent to Indonesia in exchange for genuine refugees.
"If Indonesia were to take them, the costs of the burdens (asylum-seekers) would be borne by Australia," she told the ABC."
At the same time, Australia will take the same number of people that are already sitting in detention centres in Indonesia."
The federal opposition will pressure Immigration Minister Scott Morrison to confirm whether or not an asylum seeker vessel has landed in Darwin undetected.
The government has so far remained tight-lipped on reports a boat carrying Somali refugees reached Australia's northern coastline on Monday.
Opposition immigration spokesman Richard Marles said Mr Morrison should rectify his "arrogant" treatment of the public by addressing the issue during question time in parliament on Wednesday.
"Information should be managed to the Australian people on a public interest basis. A needs-to-know basis for managing information is simply not good enough," he said.
Labor is calling on Morris to go public on the latest boat incident calling it "In the public's interest" but the Indo government has requested a cone of silence on the whole matter. Typical muck raking socialist card carrying communism Labor politics at it's best.
http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-new...morrison-at-question-time-20131113-2xf7x.html
Yup anything that doesn't support totalitarianism must have a socialist communist agenda
Labor is calling on Morris to go public on the latest boat incident calling it "In the public's interest" but the Indo government has requested a cone of silence on the whole matter. Typical muck raking socialist card carrying communism Labor politics at it's best.
http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-new...morrison-at-question-time-20131113-2xf7x.html
What is in Australia's national interest is knowing whether the governments policies (well Abbott & Morrison's anyway) are working and not opening up holes elsewhere while they are obsessed withon with some of their dumb tactics.
One of the consequences I warned off earlier was a change of strategy by the smugglers to get around the navy intercept and turn or tow back policy was for them to go smaller and sneakier and go straight for the Aus mainland like they did in the early days.
That's obviously a much bigger risk of bringing in exotic pests and diseases that would threaten our agricultural exports and overload our health system with unforseen outbreaks of disease... not to mention criminals and terrorists.
If boats have made it too the mainland, it's obviously a double whammy... found guilty of being obsessed with a dumb head on tactic that was never going to work and leaving the flank exposed in the meantime.
When you start looking at these issues from the national best interest test perspective rather than just a political party's best interest... you might see the relevance and significance.
There is no point in trying to argue secrecy to hinder the smugglers... they have radio and phone communication and knew before the Abbott and Morison did whether it was successful or not and leak the info to the Indo press to confirm and keep their business going.
Indonesia asked Australia to keep a low profile in the media on the asylum seekers
The Indonesians are all about respect and do not like being shown up, especially in the media
Labor and the media have a role to play here.
Is that like the roll the Coalition did in opposition................?
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-11-...ack-asylum-seekers-indonesian-advisor/5084294
Any reasonable person would be utterly ashamed of defending Labor's record relative to the Coalition in this policy area as you have given the results of Labor's ideological folly and the resultant mess it has left the new Coalition government to clean up.
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