Boost to maritime co-operation with Indonesia

5 Sep 2012, 6:05 am   -   Source: AAP
Share This
0 
+ Comment
3
The boost to search and rescue co-operation follows a spate of incidents, including a vessel carrying 150 people sank off the Javanese coast last week. (AAP)

The boost to search and rescue co-operation follows a spate of incidents, including a vessel carrying 150 people sank off the Javanese coast last week. (AAP)

Australian aircraft could be given 'rapid clearance' to enter Indonesian airspace to help in search and rescue operations involving asylum seekers.

RELATED

Australian aircraft could be given "rapid clearance" to enter Indonesian airspace under a plan being considered after a spate of incidents involving asylum seeker boats en route to Christmas Island.

Under a suite of measures announced in Jakarta on Tuesday, the Australian government will provide Indonesia with improved satellite communication to improve its search and rescue capabilities.

The Indonesian search and rescue agency, BASARNAS, will also be given access to ship tracking technology to enable it to enlist help of merchant ships.

There will also be an exchange of personnel between BASARNAS and the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA), and regular search and rescue forums.

The boost to search and rescue co-operation follows a spate of incidents, including a vessel carrying 150 people sank off the Javanese coast last week.

Up to 100 people are believed to have drowned in the disaster in the Sunda Strait between Indonesia and Christmas Island.

Just 50 people were pulled from the water, with questions raised about the initial response to the incident on the part of the Indonesian authorities.

BASARNAS did not begin an aerial search until more than six hours after the boat made a distress call.

It was almost 24 hours before the first survivors were pulled from the water.

The talks in Jakarta on Tuesday have also paved the way for Australian aircraft to be given rapid clearance to operate in Indonesian airspace, boosting the ability of search and rescue agencies to find boats in distress more quickly.

While a final agreement on that element has not yet been reached, both countries agreed to explore a system of "rapid clearance of Australian aircraft to operate in Indonesian territorial airspace and to land and refuel at suitable airfields when engaged in search and rescue activities".

Australian Transport Minister Anthony Albanese said the new measures would enhance the capacity of Indonesian authorities to respond to incidents involving safety of lives at sea.

"This is a comprehensive package that we've come up with here today ... a real example of the co-operation that's there between Indonesia and Australia," Mr Albanese told reporters.

  • Follow us: 
  • Follow us on Facebook
  • Follow us on Twitter
  • Follow us on Youtube

Your Comments

Mr

Ross Jenkins - from Gold Coast, QLD, 9 months ago

What is going on here !! The next thing we will be told is that we will be airlifting these people directly from their homeland as it will save them the expense and time of trying to get to Australia. Stuart Bird from Coober Pedy is absolutely right this so called policy will only add encourage....the stupidest thing I have heard yet.

Permission to enter Indonesian waters

Stan - from Hervey Bay, 9 months ago

Gig deal. All this does is transfer the rescue responsibilities from Indonesia to Australia. They should look after their territorial waters instead of us doing it for them. If Indonesia took on its responsibilities in thwarting asylum seekers leaving their shores as does Sri Lanka, then we would not have the influx of refugees we currently experience.

Mr

Stuart Bird - from Coober Pedy, SA, 9 months ago

All this will do is to encourage more boat people as again the Australians are looking out for them, this labour government is a joke and has cost us billions and a lot of people in this country that we do not need. Jobs are going, public housing is hard to get and most of these people are unemployable anyway so who is going to look after them, the government is and they know this country is a soft touch and they will get looked after for life.

Join the Discussion

Name
City / Suburb E.g. Artarmon, Sydney
Title
Comment
You have characters remaining.
Validation
What's this?
This is a captcha-picture. It is used to prevent mass-access by robots.
All submitted comments become the property of SBS. They are moderated, so we reserve the right to edit comments and remove HTML tags. Not all submitted comments will be published. Publication does not mean we endorse the opinions expressed. Please read our terms and conditions for more information.