Australia pursues people smuggler

Frustrated refugees are easy prey for people smugglers

Australia says it has identified the man held responsible for the deaths of more than 350 asylum seekers, who drowned when their overloaded boat sank in Indonesian waters last week.

Australian immigration minister, Philip Ruddock, has asked Indonesia to extradite the man, who he described as of Egyptian origin.

We know who the person was who arranged this particular package of travellers

Philip Ruddock

He said the man had been behind other people-smuggling operations and that Australia had previously passed information on him to Indonesia on several occasions.

Only 44 people survived when the 19-metre boat sank en-route to Australia.

Mr Ruddock said: "We know who the person was who arranged this particular package of travellers. He put 400 people on a boat 19 metres long that could only take 150 people."

Mr Ruddock also announced that Australia would take 40 refugees awaiting resettlement, but he said these was unlikely to include survivors from the sinking.

International talks

Indonesia announced on Wednesday it will host international talks on people-smuggling.

Hussain Jawad lost 21 family members, including his parents

Foreign Minister Hasan Wirayuda said the issue was becoming urgent, with the expected arrival of more Afghan asylum-seekers because of the US airstrikes.

He said the talks would include countries used as transit routes by refugees from the Middle East and Afghanistan, and destination countries such as Australia.

Refugee frustration

An official with the United Nations' refugee agency, UNHCR, has said about 30 of those on board may have been recognised refugees, frustrated at inaction on resettlement.

Raymond Hall, the UNHCR regional representative said: "Governments are not lining up to offer resettlement places."

Speaking before Mr Ruddock's announcement, Mr Hall said: "Australia will take none of the recognised refugees [from Indonesia]. Other countries say...we are prepared to take some but why should we take the leading role."

Refugees, he said, did not trust legal resettlement process and were impatient to start new lives.

Hard line

Australia has taken a hard line against asylum seekers trying to enter the country by sea since late August, when it refused entry to a boatload of mainly Afghan refugees rescued at sea by a Norwegian freighter.

It has since turned away about 1,500 asylum seekers, sending the majority to other countries including Nauru, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea for processing.

An Indonesian foreign ministry spokesman said on Tuesday about 1,600 asylum seekers are registered in Indonesia but the actual figure could be higher.

People smugglers charge between $800 - $1,900 for the one-way run to the nearest Australian territorial waters, about 350 kilometres (220 miles) south of Java.