Australia firm on illegal immigration

JAKARTA (JP): Australian Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs Philip Ruddock called on the Indonesian government to tighten its borders to help stem illegal immigration into Australia.

The visiting minister stressed that as one of Australia's closest neighbors, Indonesia was an important element in helping curb the number of illegal aliens.

"Indonesia is a part of the solution to stop this problem. I am here to work with your government to spread the message that Indonesians need to be suspicious of offers of money to take people to Australia for there are risks and losses," he told journalists.

According to Ruddock, Jakarta and Canberra will combine efforts to exchange information to enhance the capacity to detect and deter these activities.

Ruddock explained that his government has adopted new measures to stop this problem, including tough new immigration laws, as the number of illegal immigrants has multiplied in the last three years from 2,000 to 4,000. Most illegal immigrants were from Iraq and Afghanistan.

"The smugglers will be detained and prosecuted under the Australian Migration Act, where they may be jailed up to 20 years or fined up to A$220,000 (approximately US$143,000)," he said.

He claimed that investigations show that Indonesia was a common route for those seeking illegal access to Australia.

Ruddock said eight Indonesian fishermen were recently sentenced up to two years, while 70 others are detained and now awaiting trial or sentencing for the smuggling activities.

He also said that he has visited several Middle Eastern countries last month to request similar cooperation.

Ruddock believes Australia has been a popular destination partly because of misinformation that all arrivals will automatically be given permanent residence status.

"These are lies, because there is no place for people coming illegally to Australia," he said. (01)