The federal government has agreed to speed up the return to Indonesia of underage “victims” of people-smuggling operations, which often lure minors to work on boats carrying asylum seekers to Australia.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard gave the undertaking to Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Tuesday during the second annual Indonesia-Australia Leaders’ Meeting in Darwin.
People smuggling was high on the agenda of the bilateral talks after Australia this week saw its 65th asylum-seeker boat arrival for 2012, with the leaders recognising successful work already done by Australian and Indonesia authorities on the issue.
Following their talks, Dr Yudhoyono and Ms Gillard released a joint communique promising to intensify efforts to fight people smuggling and trafficking through the Bali Process – a grouping of more than 50 countries aligned against the illegal trade.
“Indonesia is also a victim of acts of illegal people smuggling,” Dr Yudhoyono said through an interpreter at a press conference.
“We hope that we can prevent as far as possible acts of people smuggling in our region.”
He was happy about Australia’s recent decision to release from jail 15 Indonesian crew members from people-smuggling vessels who were believed to be children.
Dr Yudhoyono said Indonesian minors were “also victims of acts of people smuggling” and hoped another 54 being held in Australia would be freed.
“We hope that the repatriation of the remaining underage seafarers can be accelerated,” he said.
In the past, Australia had difficulty assessing the ages of the young male crew members and resorted to the controversial use of X-rays of wrist bones.
That test has now been abandoned and other methods such as dental X-rays are used.
“The two leaders reaffirmed the importance of ensuring the welfare and interest of detained Indonesian crew,” the six-page communique said.
Australia and Indonesia also agreed to conduct public information campaigns in Indonesia to stop young boys from taking relatively well paid jobs on people-smuggling boats.
The campaigns would help them to “understand the consequences” of their actions, the communique said.
“I welcome the co-operation we have with Indonesia on people smuggling, including Indonesia’s law enforcement efforts against people-smuggling syndicates,” Ms Gillard said.
Indonesia revealed on Monday that Haji Irfan, 19, an Afghan national with links to people-smuggling kingpin Sayed Abbas, was arrested last week and is in police custody in Jakarta.
Irfan is suspected of organising two boats which sank en route to Australia last month, killing at least 94 people, and faces a mandatory minimum jail term of five years if convicted.
Ms Gillard also said a delegation of Australian ministers and senior officials would visit Indonesia to discuss ways to strengthen maritime co-operation related to rescues.
“Australia will also work with Indonesia’s search and rescue agency to help strengthen its ability to communicate with merchant vessels during safety-of-life-at-sea incidents,” she said.
The two boats which sank in Indonesian waters last month had been intercepted by merchant vessels which help with the rescue efforts.
The countries will also explore an exchange program for search and rescue specialists.
Most asylum-seeker vessels travel from Indonesia to Australia’s north, and passengers are taken to detention centres on Christmas Island or in Darwin.
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