Australia struggles to maintain asylum policy

Australia has promised $10m aid to Nauru

Australia struggled on Tuesday to keep on track its policy of sending boatloads of asylum seekers to the tiny Pacific island of Nauru for processing.

We will only accept those who voluntarily get off on our island

Nauru Chief Secretary Matthew Batsiua

Australian officials said they had reached agreement to resume disembarking about 200 people from a troopship - Nauru had halted the arrangement after scuffles broke out on Monday when 12 asylum-seekers were forcibly marched off the ship.

Under the deal a delegation from Nauru will board the ship to ask each asylum-seeker if they are leaving the vessel voluntarily. More than 200 remain on the vessel.

Refugees are being housed in a makeshift camp in Nauru

But as Australia sent another boatload of 262 asylum seekers to Nauru, the United Nations said on Tuesday it would not process any further arrivals.

A spokeswoman for the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, said the agency was processing earlier applications because of exceptional circumstances.

Ellen Hansen said: "We don't think it is appropriate Australia intercepts asylum seekers and takes them elsewhere for processing."

Aid deal

Australia struck a deal last month with Nauru - the world's smallest republic - to take the refugees in return for about $10m aid.

Conditions are better for those who have been taken to New Zealand

Australia also agreed to pay the full costs of processing the asylum applications and housing the refugees in a hurriedly built detention camp.

But Nauru has repeatedly said it would only accept those who voluntarily arrive on the island.

Altogether about 900 asylum seekers are involved, in three separate groups.

• 433 mainly Afghan refugees picked up by a Norwegian vessel in late August and transferred to the Australian troopship HMAS Manoora. Most have landed on Nauru but 131 out of this group have been flown to New Zealand for processing.

• 217 mainly Palestinian and Iraqi refugees later picked up by the Manoora on its way to Nauru. Most of this group remain on board the Manoora, refusing to disembark at Nauru.

• 262 asylum seekers picked up late last month by navy vessel HMAS Tobruk. They are now heading for Nauru, a journey expected to take several more weeks.

Election due

Prime Minister John Howard's hardline stance towards asylum seekers has attracted strong support from the Australian public in the run up to a general election almost certain to be called for next month.

Before the issue hit the headlines in late August his government trailed the opposition Labor Party, but the latest opinion polls give the ruling Liberal Party a double-figure lead.

The prime minister hinted in an interview with a Sydney radio station on Tuesday that the election would be held on 10 November.