Seventy three boat people sent back to Sri Lanka
– FILE PHOTO –
Three boat arrivals were reported from October 11 to 18, Operation Sovereign Borders Commander Australia, Maj. Gen. Angus Campbell said.
Last Friday, a boat carrying 79 people arrived at the Cocos (Keeling) Islands from Sri Lanka.
The Australian Associated Press said the Immigration Department determined none had presented reasons for coming to Australia which “required further consideration”.
Some 73 had been returned to Sri Lanka and the remaining six would be returned as soon as they were deemed fit to fly.
Another 53 people from a second boat were moved to Christmas Island on Saturday, along with a further 41 from a third vessel that arrived on Thursday.
During the week, three crewmen were also transferred to Christmas Island.
Campbell said 53 were transferred to Australia’s offshore processing centres — 25 to Manus Island in Papua New Guinea and 28 to Nauru.
In the month since Operation Sovereign Borders began, 143 people had been transferred to Nauru and 312 to Manus.
As of Friday, there were 1,061 detainees on Manus, 827 on Nauru and 2,211 on Christmas Island. “We continue to have sufficient offshore processing capacity to meet current and potential future requirements,” Campbell said. – BERNAMA
(Courtesy: Daily News)
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i dont know much about Nauru, but i spent a week there. Manus is one of the few islands that lie on the equator, and can be considered idyllic with a pretty bay where the local fishing vessels that dock in and out. There are no hotels except for a small clean guest house. There were few military (hangars) installations and it is likely that the pilgrims might be housed there.
The only communication with the outside world is through steam ships that ply between the islands littered around Papua New Guinea that bring in corned beef and rice and maybe few garments and the limited mail.
There is not much to administer for there are no crimes for there is nothing to rob. The villagers live in communal housing men and women live separate, the babies raised in the commune. There is no marriage as we know and for conjugation men and women pair off.
The only industry in manus is gardening where they grow taro sweet potato and vegetables and maybe keep a few fowls and pigs and maybe the pilgrims could farm for their subsistence.
The only problem is malaria which is endemic and most papuans live with it perhaps that is one reason that the life expectancy in PNG is around 50, the age at which our pilgrims begin life