An unauthorised boat carrying 15 individuals, suspected to be from China, has arrived on Australian shores illegally.
The individuals have been transported straight to Nauru in a plane from the Curtin RAAF base with a brief stop in Queensland on the way.
Amid the news, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has warned that unauthorised boat arrivals will not be settled in Australia.
The alleged illegal boat arrival is the third on Australian shores in less than six months, sparking concerns about people smugglers.
One Went Missing
WA police and border force had to go searching for one of the boat arrivals who went missing on Friday shortly after arriving on Australian shores.
“During a preliminary ground appreciation, WA police officers located the man standing on a track not far from the Truscott Air Base. It has been confirmed the man was part of a group that arrived to Australia via an unknown vessel.”
Police said it was unknown why the man separated from the group, but his health was relatively good when he was found.
Albanese Issues Warning to People Smugglers
Mr. Albanese was questioned on whether he is concerned about the rise in boat arrivals in Australia during a press conference on April 7.Mr. Albanese made it clear that illegal boat arrivals will not be welcome in Australia, in a message to people smugglers.
“We have a very large coastline. What is clear though is that people who are unauthorised arrivals won’t be settled in Australia. Operation Sovereign Border principles will apply as they have been in this case.”
The prime minister said people smugglers would “always try to change their methods” but there was no change to Operation Sovereign Borders.
“It’s important that that message be sent. And once again, through the response of the Australian Government, that message will be sent very clearly again to the region,” he said.
However, Liberal Senator Anne Ruston took aim at the government for a weak border policy when asked about the 15 boat arrivals on April 7.
Escaping From Communist Rule
Shadow Home Affairs Minister James Paterson said the boat arrival was the 13th attempt at an “illegal people smuggling venture” since the election and the reason was “no surprise.”He claimed aerial surveillance hours under the Albanese government’s watch dropped 20 percent, while maritime patrol days slipped 12 percent.
Mr. Paterson said the result of that was “people getting through by getting onshore” and undermined border protection.
He said it was certainly unusual, if true, that Chinese nationals were on a people smuggling venture, given there had not been any for a decade.
“That is unusual. But it’s true that people from all nations attempt to come to Australia. We are an attractive destination,” he said.
Mr. Paterson said he could not comment on whether he believed the individuals would be granted asylum but he could understand why someone would not want to live under Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping.
“There are some people who would be of genuine fear of persecution, who couldn’t be sent back and shouldn’t be sent back, and there would be others who might be migrating, for example, for more economic reasons,” Mr. Paterson said.
“Without knowing the individual circumstances of these people, I can’t comment on that. All I would say is, it appears they are being moved to Nauru.
“At Nauru, consistent with our policies which we put in place, their claims will be assessed if they are found to be refugees then they'll be offered third country resettlement options, as they should.”
Mr. Albanese said the government will continue to deal with any illegal arrivals consistent with Operation Sovereign Borders.
“We'll use all avenues at our disposal to make sure that the borders are protected and make sure we respond in accordance with the principles of Operation Sovereign Borders. And that’s what we have, again, done on this occasion,” he said.
