Australia to return illegal immigrants to RI<\/p>\n
Reuters, Canberra<\/p>\n
A group of 15 illegal Indonesian immigrants discovered on a
\nremote Australian island last Thursday will be returned home, the
\nAustralian government said on Monday.<\/p>\n
Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said the six men and nine
\nwomen told authorities they paid a people smuggler up to A$1,000
\n(US$760) each to bring them to Australia but were left stranded
\non Ashmore Reef, 840 km west of the country's northern tip.<\/p>\n
This is the third group of would-be refugees to reach
\nAustralian territory since the conservative government cracked
\ndown hard on boatpeople in 2001, deploying the navy to intercept
\nand divert boats to nearby Pacific islands.<\/p>\n
"The people in this group were clearly the victims of an
\nunscrupulous people smuggler who promised to take them to
\nAustralia where they could get work apparently picking fruit in
\norchards," Downer told parliament.<\/p>\n
"Those people are now being transported to Christmas Island
\nand they will, from there, be returned to Indonesia, either by
\nsea or by air."<\/p>\n
Australia, as part of its drive to deter people smugglers, has
\nexcluded Ashmore Reef from its migration zone so any asylum
\nseekers arriving there have no access to its legal system.<\/p>\n
Australia has taken a hard line against people smuggling since
\norganized gangs began using neighboring Indonesia as a stepping
\nstone for Middle Eastern and Afghan asylum seekers trying to
\nreach the continent.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/australia-to-return-illegal-immigrants-to-ri-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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