Yabby: "We never stopped offering first prize, to those who sail to our mainland."

If that was so I would expect to see asylum seekers from all nearby poor countries. Instead we only see them coming from the current war torn trouble spots - Sri Lanka and Afghanistan. Weird eh? By some coincidence they are the only countries that share your materialistic view of life - the ones prepared to sacrifice home, family and friends for an iPod, are also the ones from countries in the throws of a civil war.

Its also pretty difficult to believe that the previous Liberal government, who took the strongest anti asylum seeker stand of any government in my memory was suckered not once, but over and over again by people who had no resources, no help and can't even speak the lingo.

Here is another odd thing: I am actually on your side. The way I see it the world is running low on essential resources like water and oil, and so it about to become a very unpleasant place for some. The odds are we are going to be swamped with asylum seekers. They will be driven here having only two choices - die trying to get into Australia, or just die. And I think our only sane course of action will be to turn them away.

That's bad enough. But to see you try and justify this position by blaming the victims, the people fleeing for their lives from war and starvation is just over the top. Get a grip man. If you are going to make harsh decisions, at least have the decency to take responsibility for them.

*If that was so I would expect to see asylum seekers from all nearby poor countries. Instead we only see them coming from the current war torn trouble spots - Sri Lanka and Afghanistan. Weird eh? *

Not so Rstuart, for to come to Austrlia and win first prize, you
need some serious money by third world standards. To get around
the UN Convention rules, you still also need an excuse. Most Tamils
went to India (130'000) according to the press. Most Afghanis went
to Pakistan. Some Pakistanis did claim to be Afghans, but were caught by the system.

How many people in Burma or North Korea have serious money? Not
too many, unlike Afghanistan or Sri Lanka. So we tend to see those
people with serious money and an excuse, turn up as boat people,
because it is worth their risk to do so. We are offering them
first prize.

Afghans and Sri Lankans already here, would be egging them on.
As Bronwyn has confirmed, many have relatives here.

*the ones prepared to sacrifice home, family and friends for an iPod,*

Rstuart, migrating is no big deal to many. Its also more then an
I-pod. Many Europeans migrate here, not for the money, but for
the climate, lifestyle, whatever. They don't need the I-pods.

But money indeed is the driver for the huge migration that we see
from Africa and Mexico. People are not all the same, some want
wealth at any cost, some don't.

People are not silly, they don't risk their money for no reason
either. Thais, Malaysians etc, would be fully aware that they
would not be accepted under the UN Convention, so they would not
take the risk.

That does not mean that Australia is not seen as a desirable
destination. When I applied in the 70s, I was told that there
was virtually no chance, as they had over 1 million applications
a year. I accepted the decision of the Govt, in having an
orderly system. That is what we now need for asylum seekers.

Banjo

<< It is illegal to attempt to enter Australia without a valid visa. >>

It is NOT illegal to seek asylum in Australia or any other country, valid visa or no valid visa. You are morally and legally wrong to use the term 'illegal' in the context of asylum seekers.

<< The sole reason they destroy their docs, before arriving here is to make it difficult for us to check on their story and prevent them being sent back ... >>

It's a small minority who do this and of those who do, the reason is as likely to be about safety as it is anything else.

<< Like those that hijacked the Tampa ... >>

The Tampa was NOT highjacked.

<< ... the 78 on the 'Oceanic Viking' have vitrually hijacked it. >>

This tragic saga hasn't yet played out fully and already you're rewriting the story to suit your own hate-filled agenda. These are proven refugees who desperately need protection. They've already waited five long and brutal years in squalid and overcrowded holding-camps in Indonesia and who knows what length of suffering they endured in Sri Lanka prior to their escape. They have every right to refuse to disembark at Indonesia and would sooner die than do so. Their plight is unmistakably tragic and you talk of 'virtual highjacking'. You really are the lowest of the low. The only reason I'm engaging with you is to refute the outright lies you're peddling here. I haven't the slightest interest in your miserable bigotry, but I do care about maintaining some sense of integrity in this debate, particularly for readers who haven't closed their minds like you have.

<< What is really needed here is to fly in a contingent of AFP officers and forcably remove them to Indonesian soil. >>

The world is watching this boat. If Australian police or defence personnel are deployed in a repeat of the Tampa, world opinion will rain down so hard our reputation will never recover. Rudd knows this and fortunately will stop short of following his predecessor's miserable and cowardly precedent.

And so the demonisation of "only" boat people continues here.

Over 95% of boat people have historically been found to be genuine, and granted asylum here.

But hey, why let the facts get in the way of a good "opinion".

It's interesting that nobody has supplied to us a "flood" of actual names and case histories of asylum seekers who have been granted asylum, that prove they are frauds. What we've been supplied with on this topic is lots of "opinion". Hey, we can't let Australia continue to be FLOODED with potential terrorists on leaky boats ...... isn't that right folks........ but hey, why let the facts get in the way of a good "opinion".

Inhumane "opinion", that makes me ashamed of a minority of Australians.

Asylum seekers need help form ALL the world. They need resettlement, both back to their homelands when appropriate and to new destinations when appropriate. If passage to safety anywhere in the world was readily available (in other words all countries faced up to their responsibilities)then people would have ZERO need to risk their lives on boats, and/or to risk their lives traversing hostile borders and dangerous locations.

But gee whiz if you believe "some" people here, a refugee * *VULUNTARILY* * becomes a refugee, then abandons his/her nice home for the sole purpose of fraudulently obtaining a superior, cushy, easy life in Australia.

"Some" people here, with full bellies, a future and secure homes have simply lost their basic humanity and all accurate perspective on this issue.

Memo to Bronwyn & Co:

You are skirting the issue ( what’s new!).

The asylum seekers are in most cases illegal immigrants. The refugee convention does not overrule immigration laws, it seeks rather to provide an short-term exemption from penalties until their illegality is resolved i.e. either accepted or sent packing.

To quote from Frank Brennan ( who ,knowing you predilection for refugee junkies’ would probably been seen as something akin to a pope; sacred & infallible )

“The convention envisages that many refugees in flight will have to enter another country seeking protection WITHOUT HAVING COMPLIED WITH IMMIGRATION LAWS of the country where they are seeking asylum.It prohibits the contacting states from imposing penalties ON ACCOUNT OF THEIR ILLEGAL ENTRY OR PRESENCE, on refugees who ,coming directly from a territory where their life or freedom was threaten , enter or are present in their territory without authorisation , provided they present themselves without delay to the authorises and show good cause FOR THEIR ILLEGAL ENTRY OR PRESENCE’”

[Tampering With Asylum –Frank Brennan p 19]

Horus,

>>Maybe we should also encourage DRUG PUSHES & DRUG BARRONS too, aye!<<

Use your all-seeing eye, Horus, and tell me what's stopping them coming on planes. How do you know we haven't already got quite a few drug pushers already in our country? Even ones that were born here, aye!

Come on you guys (Yabby, Horus), you're going to have to argue better than that.