Aussies Stop 'Asylum Boat'

60 suspected asylum-seekers to be sent to Christmas Island detention center

By Rob Quinn, Newser Staff

Posted Sep 16, 2009 6:06 AM CDT

(Newser) – The Australian navy stopped a vessel carrying 58 suspected asylum-seekers off the country's northwest coast today, the BBC reports. It was the fourth such boat stopped in the area in under a week. The passengers will be sent to a detention center on Christmas Island, 1,600 miles west of Australia, while their cases are processed. The Australian government recently denied opposition accusations that its soft immigration policies were causing the country to be "swamped."

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A navy ship intercepted this boat carrying suspected asylum seekers 265 miles north of Broome, Australia yesterday. (AP Photo/Australian Customs and Border Protection)

Two launches iintercept a boat believed to be carrying 72 suspected asylum seekers off the coast of Australia's Northern Territory earlier this year. (AP Photo/Department of Home Affairs, HO)

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Situations around the world mean that large numbers of displaced persons are looking for settlement in wealthy, developed nations like Australia and can be targeted by, and fall prey to, people-smugglers. - Home Minister Brendan O'Connor

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Aussies Stop 'Asylum Boat'