Boat people face deportation

SURABAYA: The Navy will escort a wooden boat carrying 57 passengers from Gongxi province in China back into international waters as soon as the vessel has been repaired, Antara reported on Friday.

"There is no reason to take them to court because they were not carrying anything illegal," Lt. Col. Ditya Sudarsono, spokesman for the East Armada Command, said.

Immigration authorities and the Chinese embassy in Jakarta had been consulted over the deportation procedure, he said.

The Navy discovered the Hwang Tong near Surabaya's Tanjung Perak port on Wednesday. The 57 passengers, including 12 women, left Gongxi on Dec. 13. During questioning they confessed that they had hoped to settle in Indonesia, Ditya said.

Repairs to the boat are expected to take some time due to a shortage of spare parts, Antara said.