WELL done TA and Scott Morrision
Well worth watching the video as well here http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw/revealed-the-secret-mission-that-stopped-the-asylum-boats-...
Revealed: The secret mission that stopped the asylum boats from entering Australia
THE federal government has confirmed Navy and Customs vessels have secretly turned back at least 12 asylum-seeker boats at sea this year and stopped a further 45 bound for Australia from leaving port.
The Daily Telegraph can reveal details of the cloak-and-dagger maritime operations to stop dangerous boat journeys to Australia since the government imposed a blackout on details of Operation Sovereign Borders.
MORRISON: COST, CHAOS AND TRAGEDY UNDER CONTROL
EDITORIAL: A VICTORY OVER THE PEOPLE SMUGGLERS
The success of the operation, which began last December, has meant just one boat made it into Australian waters in the first eight months of this year, compared with the 268 boats to have arrived during the same period last year under the previous Labor government.
A separate operation involving Malaysian, Indonesian and Sri Lankan authorities working with Australian intelligence officials has also disrupted a further 45 boats trying to leave for Australia, carrying 1673 people, resulting in the arrest of 214 suspected people smugglers.
Immigration Minister Scott Morrison said the policy had a “devastating” effect on the people-smuggling trade.
He confirmed 12 boats had attempted to enter Australian waters between December 19 last year and May this year. Only one had been successful. Four turnbacks had involved the use of lifeboats.
Mr Morrison also confirmed that of those 12, six had involved Australian ships making accidental incursions into the territorial waters of other countries, namely Indonesia, for which it had been forced to apologise.
Mr Morrison said the reason he could now release some details was because operational sensitivity around the turnbacks had eased.
Between September 18 and December 19 last year there were 23 suspected illegal entry vessels (SIEVs) and 1265 illegal maritime arrivals (IMAs).
Since the turnbacks began in December, only one boat had made it into Australian waters and no asylum seekers had died at sea, compared with more than 1100 who died at sea between 2008 and 2013.
In the last year of the Labor government there was a total of 401 SIEVs and 26,543 IMAs.
The government has been criticised for the secrecy surrounding its maritime operations. However Mr Morrison maintained it had been necessary to deprive people smugglers of any intelligence about Australian operations.
“Turnbacks were a central feature of the package … and once turnbacks were in it was devastating in its impact,” he told The Daily Telegraph.
And if that continues the message will become clear for smugglers and seekers.
You need to go through the proper channels. Australia will no longer be an easy target.
