INDONESIA: Asylum seekers boat sinks off West Java Province water, at least three dead

Record ID: 861341

  • Title: INDONESIA: Asylum seekers boat sinks off West Java Province water, at least three dead
  • Date: 9th December 2013
  • Summary: CIAWI BEACH, WEST JAVA PROVINCE, INDONESIA (DECEMBER 9, 2013) (REUTERS) FISHERMEN PULLING FISHING BOAT THAT SANK ONTO BEACH BOAT ON BEACH
  • Embargoed: 24th December 2013 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Indonesia
  • City:
  • Country: Indonesia
  • Topics: International Relations,Disasters,Politics,Transport
  • Reuters ID: LVA6SAM4FS8DTOY8P6SGEKS4HS8W
  • Aspect Ratio:
  • Story Text: A fishing boat carrying 30 asylum seekers sank off the West Java Province on Monday (December 9) after its engine failed, killing at least three people, including a two-year-old child.
    The passengers, mostly Iranian and ethnic Rohingya, said they were stranded at sea for nearly three hours before being saved by local authorities and fishermen.
    One of survivors, Jamil, said that the group was making its way to Australia.
    "We all will be heading to Australia," Jamil told reporters in broken Bahasa Indonesia.
    He said they bought the boat from locals.
    "They give us a boat and they give us a bad engine and the engine failed. They are not sorry for us," he said.
    About 400 boats carrying asylum seekers have made their way to Australia over the past year and about 45,000 asylum seekers have arrived since late 2007, when the former Labour government relaxed border policies, eventually tightening them again in the face of a voter backlash.
    Australia's Indian Ocean territory of Christmas Island is a frequent destination for asylum seekers, who travel by often crowded boats from Indonesia, with the help of people-smugglers.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2013. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
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