The Australian government has told the UN that it will stand by its decision not to accept the Norwegian freighter. The freighter is carrying 434 asylum seekers, mainly from Afghanistan.
The country's Prime Minister told the UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan, today that the tough stance taken over the last five days was "the right thing to do...and it was in Australia's national interest". However, pressure at home and abroad appears to be mounting on John Howard, as refugees remain adrift in Australian territorial waters near Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean.
Australia is continuing to reject claims that it has an international obligation to allow the asylum seekers to disembark. They are on board a Norwegian container ship, which entered Australian territorial waters yesterday.
The freighter rescued them on Sunday, after their boat began to sink. Australian Special Forces boarded the ship yesterday, but the captain has refused to leave Australian waters.
The crisis has sparked another diplomatic row between Australia and Indonesia, as the two countries argue about who has responsibility for the boat. The Australian Prime Minister is due to hold a telephone conversation with his Indonesian counterpart later today.
John Howard said that he would argue that Jakarta should accept the boat people, in telephone talks with Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri. "But in the meantime the government will continue to explore other options as well," he told parliament.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights has called on the Australian government to grant temporary asylum to the refugees. Mary Robinson said that UN Human Rights rules stipulated that the migrants should be allowed to land at the nearest port.
Norway has complained about Australia's actions to the United Nations and the International Red Cross. Aid workers in Australia have again highlighted the health risks posed by the continuing stand off.
The Executive Director of Médecins sans Frontières in Australia said that the situation on board was continuing to worsen. "The conditions for the refugees are not ideal on the ship...people are in a very cramped condition, people are very afraid and very concerned about what is going on," David Curtis said. He added that the medical aid group was sending a team to Christmas Island to seek access to the ship.
Early support in Australia for the tough stance has turned into scorn over the last 24 hours. The Australian Senate rejected a proposed new law that would have required the return of the ship to international waters. However, the Government in Canberra has indicated it is still prepared to force its removal if necessary.
The Australian media have launched a scathing attack on John Howard's handling of the affair. "The government's reaction to the appearance of 434 asylum seekers on our doorstep has degenerated from an offensive, inhumane embarrassment into a full-blown domestic and foreign policy crisis," said The Australian newspaper's editorial.
The Sydney Morning Herald warned that his decision may prove politically suicidal, in an article headlined "Howard set on a risky political course".
