Come on James, real people don't read Crikey.

One thing: was/were one or both ships on the high seas ?

If so, yes, there may be a case of piracy to answer.

If not, Julian Burnside knows better.

Joe

Joe, as far as we know both ships were in international waters. The Solicitor General admitted as much in respect of the second ship in the course of submissions in the High Court. It is less clear about the smaller ship that has been returned to the Sri Lankans because Morrison in his usual arrogant way refuses to release the details. All the available evidence points to that ship also being in international waters.

@ Hasbeen. Why don't you read the article and consider the merits of the argument or are facts inconvenient to your predetermined position?

How does it go again?
He talks the talk but he doesn't walk the walk.

This is James to Hasbeen <<Why don't you read the article and consider the merits of the argument or are facts inconvenient to your predetermined position?>>

And, this James to the inconvenient facts --which destroy his preferred narrative -- presented by SPQR:
<<An entirely predictable response from the usual suspects>>
Not the slightest attempt to answer them ...but, then, are we surpised-NO!

It's interesting that these illegal immigrants say that they are coming to Australia for work when a quick check on the internet would show them that even if successful they will not be allowed to work here.
Asylum seekers use the internet, they use e-mail and mobile phones, they check Australian news services and communicate with their friends and the people smugglers of the Refugee Action Coalition and subversive Christian groups.
It makes no sense for Tamils or Sinhalese already living in the community to advise their friends and family to come here illegally rather than try to sponsor them, so either their contacts on this end are simply looking to financially exploit the new arrivals, the arrivals are fully expecting to go be employed illegally or the people arriving are illiterate and don't know how to use the internet.

What a pathetic craven people we have become.
I arrived as a 4 year old to this country back in the late 1960s. Australia was desperate for workers and had effectively bribed my family to come here with a free airfare.

In those days, there was no political correctness and us migrants routinely copped what would now be considered racial abuse. Truth is Australia was then a confident country and the racial ribbing was just that ribbing - people getting to know each other.

Now, we are a weak insipid country. We don't racially abuse others. We keep our thoughts and opinions to and from ourselves. But our actions reveal the truth, we are now worse than racists.

There is just as much need for workers in this country as there has ever been. But we have become so small minded, so inward looking and fearful of protecting what we have that we are missing opportunity after opportunity.

Yes perhaps a small number of boat people are a threat of some sort but we choose to focus on the small bad and ignore the greater good. Yes some will live on welfare but the vast majority will work and build businesses and the net result is they always add more than they cost.

We have become horrible people and our politicians reflect exactly who we are - its awful. We have never before seen a new government so negative about everything.

If we continue along this road, we ourselves will be looking to emigrate and find a better life elsewhere. The national psyche has become deranged.