Refugee vessel spotted off Australian coast

Prime Minister Tony Abbott, whose hardline policies have stemmed the flow of asylum-seekers making the risky journey to Australia on boats – including by turning them around – refused to discuss the vessel.

Water police were called in to help locate the boat and it was understood that an Australian Navy vessel followed later.

“There was quite a large number of people on board, we’re not sure how many, the people seem to be in good health and high spirits and there was a lot of waving going on but there was no direct communications between the crew and the actual boat itself”, he added.

“Can I repeat what has been the standard rule of this government – we do not comment on operational matters on the water”, Mr Abbott said.

Last month, migrants headed to Australia told the United Nations the crew on their boat was paid by the Australian navy to turn back to Indonesia.

The Australian government on Tuesday threw a veil of secrecy over a wooden boat believed to be carrying refugees from Vietnam spotted 70km off the north-western coast, a media report said. “We do not discuss things in ways which would give aid and comfort to the people smugglers”.

Police who returned to the Dampier port overnight would not comment on the operation to intercept the vessel, other than to say the boat was unlikely to dock at the port and that police would have no further involvement.

“I do know from speaking to the people who came to Australia in February that they had trouble with law enforcement”.

Victoria Martin-Iverson, from the Refugee Rights Action Network, said the Australian government should be open about what would happen to the passengers on the boat.

A “take back” of 46 Vietnamese asylum seekers occurred in April.

Refugee Action Coalition co-ordinator Ian Rintoul told the Sydney Morning Herald the people on board should be brought ashore and allowed to apply for asylum. It also sends asylum seekers to Papua New Guinea for long-term detention.

If confirmed, it would be the first approach by an asylum-seekers boat to Australia’s west coast in nearly two years.