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Australia Intercepts More Asylum Seekers
SYDNEY, Sept 9 (News Agencies) - Australian warships intercepted another 237 boat people at the weekend as the government strove to avoid antagonizing Indonesia - a major embarkation point for asylum seekers.
Two Australian warships intercepted an Indonesian-registered vessel, the Aceng, late Friday in international waters off Australia's far northwest coastline.
By Sunday, the Aceng's human cargo, most of whom said they were Iraqi, had joined more than 430 other asylum seekers also refused entry to Australia aboard HMAS Manoora as the warship steamed towards Papua New Guinea.
A defense ministry statement said the crew of the Balinese-registered Aceng ignored numerous warnings to turn away from Australian territorial waters and their likely destination of Ashmore Island.
Prime Minister John Howard said before departing for Washington that Jakarta had rejected Canberra's requests to board what the military described as a "people trafficking" vessel before it left Indonesian territorial waters.
The rejection of Australia's request followed the dispatch of three senior ministers to Jakarta last week to discuss ways of curbing the lucrative people smuggling industry.
Defense Minister Peter Reith, Foreign Minister Alexander Downer and Immigration Minister Philip Ruddock were locked in talks with Indonesian officials as the latest twist in Australia's asylum seeker drama unfolded.
Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri declined to meet the Australian delegation.
Megawati also refused to accept Howard's phone calls at the height of what is known here as the "Tampa affair", during which more than 430 asylum seekers were stranded at sea for more than a week.
Speaking in Jakarta overnight, Ruddock pointedly refused to criticize Indonesian authorities for delaying the boarding of the Aceng until the vessel had entered international waters, Australian Associated Press reported.
"I am not prepared to put myself in a situation in which the cooperation which is forthcoming is jeopardized by drawing observations about levels of cooperation," Australia's immigration minister said.
"I can say that there is still a way to go and we are about getting those objectives met.
"It's not a question of whether I am happy or not."
Downer told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation he expected syndicates profiting from the cross-border trade in humans to "try it on a bit more yet."
"I think we have the potential here to build a very good relationship with the new Indonesian government on this issue," Downer added.
Australia's conservative coalition government became the focus of sustained international criticism after more than 430 mainly Afghan asylum seekers were rescued off Australia's remote northwest coast on August 26th.
The boat people spent more than a week on the deck of a Norwegian freighter, the Tampa, while it lay off Christmas Island, a remote Australian possession in the Indian Ocean.
Australia, Norway and Indonesia all refused to allow them to land, with a tense diplomatic dispute defused only by offers from New Zealand and Nauru to accept the refugees via Papua New Guinea.
It remained unclear Sunday how the deals struck with the three South Pacific countries would be affected by the addition of 237 more boat people to the Manoora's passenger load.
Downer said Australia was involved in "some discussions at the moment" but did not elaborate.
Howard said Saturday that, "at no stage did this ... vessel reach Australian territorial waters. As a result, the questions of application for asylum status do not arise."
He also foreshadowed an even tougher legislative stance against so-called boat people.
"The effect of that will be that any arrivals at Christmas Island or Ashmore Island ... will not be sufficient grounds for application for status under the Migration Act," Howard said.
"It has implications for the ease of people seeking asylum, it will mean in practice ... they will need to touch the Australian mainland."
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