He would say anything to be elected, now he has to make a choice.
16 Indonesians rescued from a sinking boat in Australian waters have spent the night on Christmas Island.
The press roundly criticized Mr Howard for making the wise decision to detain and process illegal immigrants so as to not encourage people smugglers. The problem being that people smugglers put people in desperate circumstances, some dying, as with Sieve X.
Latham promised to cut Australian Navy and create a coast guard (or was that Beazley?) and let em in.
Decisions, decisions. What is the bet these people are detained as per Mr Howard's policy .. and the press don't complain about 'heartless' Rudd.
Rescued 16 arrive on Christmas Island
ReplyDeletefrom SMH
Sixteen Indonesians rescued from a leaking fishing boat in the Timor Sea have spent their first night in detention on Christmas Island.
Immigration officials say the three men, three women and 10 children were dramatically rescued by Australian navy ships last Tuesday.
The group spent the night at a community housing facility near the old detention centre on Christmas Island after being interviewed and assessed by immigration authorities yesterday.
The families, from the Indonesian island of Roti, say they have been suffering economic losses from Australia's crackdown on illegal fishing in the region and had no choice but to flee their homeland.
A new detention centre, built at a cost of hundreds of millions of dollars, is not expected to open until early next year.