Lifeboat reportedly used by Australia to return asylum seekers found in Java

"Tony Abbott refuses to confirm the vessel discovered by Indonesian authorities was one of 11 bought by his government"

Australian Associated Press
theguardian.com, Saturday 1 February 2014 05.45 GMT
A lifeboat reportedly being used by Australian authorities to send asylum seekers back to Indonesia has washed up on the coast of Java.

The sophisticated orange vessel was discovered by Indonesian authorities on the west coast of Java and was believed to be carrying about 60 asylum seekers, according to a report from News Limited.

The report said the asylum seekers dispersed into the Indonesian jungle when the vessel came ashore.

The "unsinkable" boat is reportedly one of 11 purchased by the federal government in a bid to stop asylum seekers from reaching Australia.

Prime minister Tony Abbott has described pictures of a lifeboat aground in Indonesia as "rather arresting" but wouldn't say if the vessel was used by Australian authorities to send back asylum seekers.

When asked about the report, Abbott said the government's border protection policies were helping stop the flow of asylum seeker boats.

He made reference to a prospective asylum seeker quoted in the report as saying the passage to Australia was now closed.

"Well, thank you sir, the way is closed ... and as far as this government is concerned never, ever will it be reopened," he told reporters in Brisbane on Saturday.

The fully enclosed vessel discovered by Indonesian authorities was one of 11 bought by the Abbott government in a bid to stop asylum seekers from reaching Australia, the report said.

The boats can carry up to 90 passengers and are air-conditioned, fitted with safety and navigational equipment and stocked with food and water.
A spokesman for the immigration minister, Scott Morrison, refused to comment about the lifeboats, saying the government would not provide details about operational matters related to border security.

Morrison has previously refused to confirm reports the government was planning to buy hard-hulled lifeboats to combat the practice of asylum seekers sabotaging old fishing boats at sea.

But in mid-January, Operation Sovereign Borders commander Angus Campbell did confirm the purchase of the lifeboats, while declining to say how they would be used.

The development alarmed Indonesian foreign minister Marty Natalegawa, who expressed concern that Australia could be going further than turning boats back by potentially facilitating the movement of asylum seekers.