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Morrison slams 'sledging' of Australian Navy

Asylum seekers who say they were burned by Australian naval officers are just "sledging" and the alleged incident doesn't require an investigation, Immigration Minister Scott Morison says.

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Immigration Minister Scott Morrison. (AAP)

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Source: AAP


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Immigration Minister Scott Morrison says he accepts navy assurances that an incident in which asylum seekers were allegedly burned did not happen.

On Tuesday, video footage emerged of asylum seekers receiving medical treatment in Indonesia for burns they allege were inflicted during a recent Australian navy tow back operation.

Mr Morrison told reporters in Sydney he accepted the assurances of the navy and border protection officials the incident didn't happen.

"The Australian government is not going to put up with people sledging the Australian navy with unsubstantiated claims when they have high levels of motivation for spinning stories in order to undermine this governments highly successful border protection policies," he said on Tuesday.

"I have been given assurances about (the navy's) conduct and I believe those assurances.

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"I'm disappointed such spurious allegations have been sledged against our navy."

When asked by a reporter if an independent investigation was needed, Mr Morrison said he had made his position on the matter clear.

He would not confirm if the navy operation was filmed.

He said Indonesian police had simply repeated the claims and conducted no investigation.

"Those are on water matters which, as you know, I won't get into the details of," he said.

"We have a good understanding of the motives of people smugglers."

The ABC reported that Indonesian police had to seek medical treatment for seven people with burns on their hands after the navy allegedly forced them to hold on to hot pipes on the boat's engine.

Earlier this month, a group of asylum seekers trying to reach Australia claimed they had been subjected to mistreatment as they were taken back to Rote Island, in Indonesia's east.

The federal government had already strenuously denied the allegations, but the video released showed Indonesian doctors assessing the burns on the hands of asylum seekers.

Mr Morrison was at a Customs and border protection facility to announce $88 million in extra funding for inspection of mail and cargo.


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