Boat survivors taken to Christmas Island

ArticleData Array ( [Article] => Array ( [article_id] => 1124586 [headline] => Boat survivors taken to Christmas Island [abstract] => Twenty-seven suspected asylum seekers rescued from a sinking boat near the Cocos Islands are being taken to Christmas Island, as hopes fade of finding 11 others missing at sea for two days. [keywords] => Asylum seekers, Christmas Island, Cocos [content] =>

Twenty-seven suspected asylum seekers rescued from a sinking boat near the Cocos Islands are being taken to Christmas Island, as hopes fade of finding 11 others missing at sea for two days.
  
Two children are believed to be among the 11 suspected asylum seekers missing for more than two days after their boat went down northwest of the Cocos Islands.
   
Hopes of finding them alive have all but faded with at least one person confirmed dead.
   
The federal government says the boat was believed to have been carrying 39 suspected asylum seekers when it sank, they are believed to be from Sri Lanka.
   
Twenty-seven survivors have since been taken aboard the commercial ship the LNG Pioneer and will be taken to Christmas Island to be processed.


Search to be reviewed

Meanwhile the search for 11 suspected asylum seekers missing for almost 48 hours will be reviewed, the federal government says.

At least one person is dead and another 11 are missing, including two boys, aged 13 and 14, feared drowned in the Indian Ocean when their boat sank 350 nautical miles from the Cocos Islands on Sunday.
   
Two bodies sighted in the water on Tuesday have yet to be recovered.

Hopes of finding alive any more of the group, claiming to be from Sri Lanka, have all but faded, with a spokesman for Home Affairs Minister Brendan O'Connor confirming the search will be reviewed on Wednesday.
   
"The search is still under way and it will be reviewed mid-morning today," he told AAP.
   
An Australian Customs Service spokesman said the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) would make the call on whether to keep searching for survivors.
   
"The search basically continues until AMSA makes a decision as to whether there is any chance of survivability of people," he said.

"That decision will be made by AMSA at the appropriate time."

   
 

[start_date] => 04 November 2009 | 07:57:24 AM [comments_allowed] => 1 [source] => AAP [commentCount] => 0 [video] => [image] => Array ( [caption] => The boat sank near the Cocos Islands [useRegularImage] => 1 [media_library_id] => 130621 [site_id] => 1 [media_library_group_id] => 0 [media_usage_id] => 0 [filename] => site_1_rand_744000826_cocos_island_boat_091103_b_sbs.jpg [title] => cocos_island_boat_091103_B_sbs_744000826 [description] => file:site_1_rand_744000826_cocos_island_boat_091103_b_sbs.jpg [type] => [height] => 338 [width] => 450 [source] => [video_hi] => [video_lo] => [section] => [display_order] => 0 [create_date] => 2009-11-03 07:05:03 [active] => 1 [media_usage] => Article Large [usageWidth] => 300 [usageHeight] => 225 ) [imagePath] => http://media.sbs.com.au/news/upload_media/ [audio] => [reporter] => [relatedLinks] => Array ( [1] => Array ( [id] => 1124571 [label] => Search ends for boat survivors [display_order] => 0 [type] => Article ) [0] => Array ( [id] => 1124531 [label] => Refugee intake not being revised: Smith [display_order] => 0 [type] => Article ) ) [relatedArticles] => Array ( [0] => Array ( [article_id] => 1124531 [headline] => Refugee intake not being revised: Smith [abstract] => The stalemate aboard the Oceanic Viking has not prompted the government to consider upping its annual intake of refugees, Foreign Minister Stephen Smith says. [content] =>

The stalemate aboard the Oceanic Viking has not prompted the federal government to consider upping its annual intake of refugees, Foreign Minister Stephen Smith says.

A group of 78 asylum seekers is still refusing to disembark the Australian customs vessel, which has been moored off the Indonesian coast for more than two weeks.

As debate continues to rage over the issue, Mr Smith denied the plight of the Sri Lankans had forced the government to re-think its annual intake of asylum seekers.

"We already provide a generous number," he told ABC Television on Tuesday night.

"We are not going to be giving consideration to an expansion of that to deal with the Oceanic Viking matter."

But the government has conceded an expected surge in arrivals from Sri Lanka, where the group of 78 ethnic Tamils is from, has required more proactive measures.

Former high commissioner John McCarthy will be sent to Sri Lanka in the near future for high-level discussions with the government on how to deal with the impending influx, Mr Smith said.

Mr Smith said there were many issues to be canvassed by the special envoy, including how Australia could assist, as well as the state of refugee camps, from which many asylum seekers are allegedly fleeing.

He left open the possibility of Mr McCarthy inspecting the camps.

"I would not put that out of contemplation myself.

"It is very important that the relevant international agencies have access."

Meanwhile, the government said it wanted a "dignified" resolution to the stalemate aboard the Oceanic Viking.

Home Affairs Minister Brendan O'Connor said Australian and Indonesian authorities were having "productive discussions" about the situation.

"We want to ensure that we realise the

agreement reached between the two countries and we want to do it in a way that is patient, dignified and orderly," he told ABC Radio on Wednesday.

"There are issues and sticking points on the vessel itself... and we want to deal with this in a way that will result in the peaceful transfer of these passengers onto Indonesian soil."

Mr O'Connor admitted the situation was "getting difficult" for those on board the boat, but said they were being treated well.

"There has been a change of crew, all passengers on board are being well fed, well looked after and there's plenty of amenities for them," he said.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd meantime has defended the way his government has handled the recent rescues of suspected asylum seekers, saying it has been consistent with Australia's international obligations.

Mr Rudd said Australia had acted consistently "with international obligations and practice".

The Cocos Islands group had been rescued in the Australian search and rescue zone and was being taken to the nearest Australian port.

The other group had been rescued in the Indonesian search and rescue zone.

"That is why these circumstances are different," Mr Rudd told ABC Radio on Wednesday.

Mr Rudd again defended his government's his "tough but humane" approach to asylum seekers, despite an apparent voter backlash in the latest Newspoll.

"It follows that there are going to be reactions against those decisions from people to the right of Australian politics, people to the left of Australian politics," he said.

The Newspoll, published in The Australian newspaper on Tuesday, found Labor fell seven percentage points to 52 per cent on a two-party preferred basis compared to a fortnight ago.

Meanwhile, the coalition clawed back the same margin to 48 per cent.

[content_type_id] => 3 [site_name] => World News Australia [articledate] => 4 November 2009 [articletime] => 4 November 2009 [display_order] => 0 ) [1] => Array ( [article_id] => 1124571 [headline] => Search ends for boat survivors [abstract] => Authorities have given up hope of finding any more survivors from the boat of suspected asylum seekers which sank off the Cocos Islands several days ago. [content] =>

Authorities have given up hope of finding any more survivors from the boat which sank off the Cocos Islands.

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) suspended the search for 11 missing people at 10.30am on Wednesday.

The boat, which was carrying 39 suspected asylum seekers towards Australia, sank at 11.15pm on Sunday, 350 nautical miles northwest of the Cocos Islands.

Two boys aged 13 and 14 are among the victims.

A group of 27 survivors and the body of one of the deceased are aboard the LNG Pioneer. The commercial vessel is expected to arrive at Christmas Island on Friday morning, where the group will be processed.

Two bodies were spotted in the water on Tuesday but could not be recovered.

Home Affairs Minister Brendan O'Connor said there was no hope of any more survivors.

"Medical advice received indicates that there is no further chance of survivability," he said in a statement.

"This is a tragic incident."

A spokesman for the LNG Pioneer said on Wednesday the survivors were generally all in good health, although one man had recovered from a high temperature.

He also understood the boat, and its 39 male passengers, had left Sri Lanka in early October.

"So I'd think they'd be pretty happy to have their feet on solid ground," the spokesman told AAP.

The LNG Pioneer, a private gas carrier, was one of the first to respond to the distress call.

The spokesman said the 20-plus crew was coping well and had enough food and supplies without the need to request assistance from the Australian authorities.

The ship's master and crew thanked the Australian Maritime Safety Authority on Wednesday for its help during the rescue.

"We thank the Australian Maritime Safety Authority and the team at its rescue coordination centre for their assistance and support," LNG Pioneer's parent company MO LNG Transport said.

"We are sad for the families of those who tragically lost their lives and look forward to disembarking the survivors for medical attention."

All survivors, including a 15-year-old boy, had been provided with food, clothing and medical help, where required, the company spokesman said.

It's expected the Sri Lankans will undergo medical and identity checks when they arrive at Christmas Island on Friday.

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