*BTW, your measured and well-reasoned posts are much appreciated. :)*

Translated that means that our Bronnie is in deep doo-doo here and
needs all the help that she can get :)

Bronwyn, once again, your little heart is beating so hard for those
78 on the Oceanic Viking, that you totally ignore the big picture
here. All heart and no brains I call it :)

Even if some of the people on that ship have been assesed as being
genuine refugees, under the Convention Australia has no responsibility
to take them and Australia in the end, cannot save the world.

But see what is happening now!

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574,26318336-421,00.html

So this is seemingly a new ploy. Sink the boat, ring Australia
to send a ship, then hijack the ship. You seemingly see no problem
with that.

So do you think now Australia should rush out another ship, every
time asylum seekers ring for help, only to risk another hijack?

Does the country just accept blackmail?

Commercial ships would be watching this little drama unfold with
interest. Eventually it will lead to what we have in Europe,
asylum seeker boats sinking, commercial ships sail straight past
without stopping, as they don't want to be tied up in disputes for
weeks and months.

By fussing over the 78, you are totally ignoring the big picture and
the ramifications of all this.

Rsruart, if you reread what Sheehan wrote, you will notice that
after appeal following appeal, following appeal, some people were
still accepted into Australia, despite not qualifying. It was
the easy option, for of course we are a soft touch.

Bronwyn, in most of the world you don't live or move without a national
identity card, Australia is a rare exception. That includes Sri
Lanka, everyone has one by law.

RStuart ,
--- [refugees choosey –why shouldn’t they be?]
An analogy: You meet a beggar on the street. He says he’s “hungry” . You say “come I’ll buy you a meal”.Take him across the road to a café .He snears & say’s “here, no way, I want the five star French restaurant up the road” –is his poor-fellow-me story credible or not – does it make you less sympathetic or not?

---- "are they just cowards/fools?"(followed by a lot of emotive claptrap)
Why do I keep getting the impression you’ve only half read my post .
The number of Tamils fleeing –in any direction–- as a percentage of the Tamil population, is small--does that raise even a sliver of doubt in your mind about the varsity of the holocastesque stories you are swallowing hook line and sinker.

--- "’ We have accepted BOTH Tamils & Singhalese as refugees’ … You’ll have to spoon feed me”
How credible is it that BOTH can find absolutely not escape the others persecution on the whole island of Sri Lanka?
And lets says by some mafia type feuding tradition it be true they can’t live near each other –how is moving to OZ
where there are sizable partisan populations of each going to help it ?

---- Vetting –“because I did look it up. You can find the procedure here”:
Nice try Stuart! – show me now , exactly, in the 61 pages where you found evidence that contradicted my summary?

And yes you are gullible –proof provided below :
---Try reading the UNHCR guidelines … in the end, if they can't prove they only have citizenship in some hell hole or other they can't return to, they won't be accepted as refugees.”

What a joke –the reality is if we have no place to return them to, we get stuck with them.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/legal-affairs/man-who-sparked-rights-call-pleased/story-e6frg97x-1111118304487

And, lack of peachiness (i.e. splendid or fine) : http://www.answers.com/topic/peachy
is NOT a qualifier for refugee status--only the gullible would accept it as such.

Yabby

<< Translated that means that our Bronnie is in deep doo-doo here and needs all the help she can get :) >>

Ah Yabby, what it really means is that rstuart’s posts are a welcome breath of fresh air in amongst the dross being served up by the likes of you and Banjo. :)

I’m holding my own in this debate, thank-you Yabby, as are the other half-dozen or so posters here who’ve managed to retain a sense of compassion and decency. We’ve pretty much outdone you in numbers I think and certainly, in quality of debate, we’ve outshone you all the way. :)

<< So this is seemingly a new ploy. Sink the boat, ring Australia to send a ship, then hijack the ship. You seemingly see no problem with that. >>

First of all, you need evidence to support your assertion that asylum-seekers are deliberately sinking their boats.

Secondly, I’m sure most people embarking on a journey as hazardous as this one, would like the security of having a mobile phone with them, especially when they can no longer rely on sea captains like Arne Rinnan to come to their rescue.

Thirdly, mobile phones are a fact of life these days for most people and refugees are as much allowed as anyone else to have one. They’re not expensive. Or is this just one more privilege that you don’t think they’re entitled to?

Fourthly and most importantly, the reason asylum-seekers are resorting to this is that Australian and Indonesian policy is to turn all boats back to Indonesia. They’ve done it on more than eighty occasions this year. No wonder, asylum-seekers are becoming increasingly desperate.

<< Does the country just accept blackmail? >>

This might constitute blackmail through your mean-spirited eyes, but in reality it’s a last ditch plea for help from desperate people who’ve co-operated all along with Indonesian authorities, but who after many long years of fruitless waiting have finally had enough. It’s a position that requires empathy to be well understood, so I don’t expect you to be able to grasp it at all.

bronwyn.. But you do no show empathy to Sri Lnka. To accept claims at face value incites resentment in that country and prolongs the conflict. Same as the diaspora funds.

Sri Lanka is in the process of reconciliation. They have the long winded task of de-mining northern sections of the country and weeding out LTTE members.

Why does the west continue to inflame this conflict with such nasty accusations against it and fund the terror of it's citizen? I am sorry I do not see any empathy. I do see the usual imperialism from the US and EU because China, India, Iran are all involved leading to usual suspect games.

Mr Smith goes to Colombo and Senator Joyce suggests they be returned to Sri Lanka. Best news I have heard. I thhink 2 weeks since I asked for Sri Lankan solution. Instead of working with a friend, helping a friend with the hardship they face we instead abuse this nations efforts. All this money would have been better spent in Sr Lanka ensuring fast resettlement of those in screening camps and the de-mining process. Instead most seem intent on taking the conflict offshore and choosing to fan the flames of conflict.

Not sure how that is moral highground. You take one side, never means it is the right side.

Indeed, Bronwyn. It's great to see the voices of truth, reason and compassion getting the upper hand in the debate about asylum seekers. Many thanks to you, TZ52HX, Smithy456 and rstuart for hanging in there against the hateful lies and distortions promulgated by the 'usual suspects'.

I've been suffering a bit from bigot overload, so I've been avoiding the asylum seeker threads at OLO for the last few days. Thanks again for not letting them have it all their own way - indeed, in successfully and patiently refuting the bulldust that passes for agument from the refugee bashers.

Cheers to the good guys (and girls)!

*I’m holding my own in this debate, thank-you Yabby*

Ah but the truth is slowly being revealed Bronnie. Now you concede
that blackmail and all its consequences are quite acceptable to
you. Never mind the Convention, we'll ditch that too in this
case. Hardly well thought through, just pure emotional reaction.
All very sweet, but hardly rational.

*First of all, you need evidence to support your assertion that asylum-seekers are deliberately sinking their boats.*

http://www.theage.com.au/national/asylum-boat-had-holes-drilled-in-hull-20091021-h911.html

Well perhaps they just drilled those holes for fun! According to
that article, they just happened to have a satelite phone handy
too.

Never mind that the war in Sri Lanka is over, never mind that
3000 people a day are being released from camps and going home,
never mind that Sri Lanka could well have sorted things out in
just a few months. You think that permanent residency in Australia
should be the first prize for blackmail.

RobP, in answer to your question, people can't board planes for
international flights, without documents