I disagree- it's not fair on Australians to be held to such obligations because they represent a rich-ish country.

I personally find myself in the middle (some boat peoples I've endorsed being let in and given residence, others not so much....)

The public in many parts of Australia would indeed be generous to welcome asylum seekers, others are not.

I believe there needs to be a debate-
a REAL one, not the usual where one side lambasts the other for being 'selfish' and 'mean', while the other makes up nonsense excuses because it doesn't want to admit its prejudice towards some of the people that come here (be it for racism or wider fear of letting fundimentalist fanatics (from a less popular tribe) in- both are possible).

But I do believe we DO have a right to decide policy on our own borders- although the current group I think, should simply be given character and psychological evaluations, and IF they pass both, just let them in (but do it in secret, while telling the world we threw them in prison so we maintain our discouraging stance)!

What do you guys think?

perhaps K.C. Boey thinks we should adopt the more humane policy of the Singaporians.

What do you think CJ?

Might it work? It's certainly humane.

Yes the Singaporians have a policy of nil refugee immigration. They intercept boats with refugees within their region, refuel them, top up their water supplies, replenish their food stocks, wish them well and actively assist them to continue their passage.

Hell why don't we simply ask Kevy to ask the Singaporians to stop helping them! Nothing inhumane in that?

Looks like its Australia that has become the rubbish dump of the region. For some reason Australia is hounded for not accepting what no other country in Asia wants to accept. Yet we hardly ever hear any official lines critizing these other countries. Good old Australia, fast becoming a third world country.
A third world country has nothing to do with the soil, the water or the air, but has everything to do with the people who inhabit the land. Swap all the people in Australia and Indonesia around and within a few short years Indonesia would be like Australia and visa versa.
Who we bring to this country determines exactly what type of country we will have. Its that simple. Its time the average joe in the street started to talk his mind on these issues and not be bound by the PC minority who will label you hateful and racist. I would strongly urge all Australians to speak their mind loudly on this issue. Our country is too good to let these PC bullies destroy it with their lies and propaganda. I also believe we are in the great silent majority. Speak much later and it will be too late.

Ozzie,

Yes we should keep it up. I remember the press before the Iraq war. They had weapons of mass destruction, terrorists and all sorts of nasties. We must destroy.

Seems they are doing the same with Sri Lanka. The difference being they did have terrorists and they did defeat them. Oh what bad people. They think we are stupid, LTTE know we are and exploit it. The war is over. Camps over crowded and poor response from the government. Same as US government after Hurricane Katrina. The screening camps are retricting freedom. We did the same in Iraq to screen out terrorists though there really wasn't any there to begin with, we created that environment. How idiotic do we look. If the Sri Lankan Government is doing bad things we need to be a little more specific and credible rather than repeating what an asylum seekers may suggest. Journalists seem incapable of questioning anything.

So it is up to us.