FED: Rusty tug to be removed from Scotts Head beach

AAP General News (Australia)
04-27-1999
FED: Rusty tug to be removed from Scotts Head beach

By Debra Way

CANBERRA, April 27 AAP - The rusty tug boat that brought 60 illegal immigrants to a
northern NSW beach earlier this month could soon be removed and destroyed, the immigration
department said today.

The development came as immigration officials confirmed that the boatpeople were from
China.

But a spokeswoman said it was not yet known whether they were part of the sophisticated
people smuggling rackets responsible for at least two other shipments of people since
Christmas.

The spokeswoman said letters went out today to tenderers who had put forward proposals for
disposing of the vessel, which has been beached at Scotts Head for almost three weeks.

"There was considerable interest in disposing of the boat, with the number of interested
parties reaching double figures," the spokeswoman said.

Possible methods of disposing of the boat included towing it out to sea and scrapping it or
cutting it up on the beach and removing it, she said.

"There was an emphasis on it being done fairly quickly and in an environmentally safe
manner," she said.

Immigration Minister Philip Ruddock raised Australia's concerns at the growing number of
boatpeople landing on Australian beaches when he attended a conference on illegal migration in
Thailand last week.

During the trip he held talks with China's assistant minister of foreign affairs, Wu
Donghe, on ways of combating people smuggling rackets.

"We had timely and very constructive discussions on our mutual efforts to combat people
trafficking," Mr Ruddock told AAP after the conference.

He said Australia was intent on dealing with the situation at the highest level.

"That means securing prosecutions either in Australia or China, as appropriate, in relation
to all the individuals who might be involved," Mr Ruddock said.

The immigration department spokeswoman said the most recently arrived boatpeople were still
being questioned at the Port Hedland detention centre, a process which was expected to
continue for at least another week.

AAP daw/jnb/br

KEYWORD: BOAT (CARRIED EARLIER)

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