Oz country of choice for asylum-seekers

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Paul Maley and Peter Alford - The Australian - March 07, 2011

ALMOST half the boat people arriving on Australia's shores have spent more than a year outside their country of birth before lodging asylum claims.

As East Timorese President Jose Ramos-Horta offered Julia Gillard a glimmer of hope that her regional processing centre proposal may yet be salvaged, opposition immigration spokesman Scott Morrison said the figures showed Australia's asylum was one of secondary movement.

"(This highlights) the fact that Australia has been selected by people-smugglers as a safe target for their clients," he said.

Figures based on interviews with boat people showed that 45 per cent told Immigration officials their "last country of long-term residence" was outside their home. Of that 45 per cent, the vast majority -- 88 per cent -- had spent a year or more outside their country of birth.

Most were Afghans who had lived in Pakistan and Iran, while about 10 per cent had resided in Indonesia.

Mr Ramos-Horta acknowledged that little progress had been made on the plan, first raised with him by Ms Gillard last July and fleshed out in a concept document sent to Dili in November.

But he said Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao was still prepared to consider the plan.

"We are prepared to consider (the plan) and not to extract material benefit out of it," he said on Thursday.

The President's remarks followed a report in The Australian last week, quoting Agio Pereira, the Secretary of State to the Council of Ministers, saying the idea was not being considered.

"There is no momentum, we don't see it as an issue," he said.

Mr Ramos-Horta made it clear that if the proposal were implemented, his country would accept no more than 1000 asylum-seekers for processing at any time, well short of the capacity proposed by Canberra.

The opinion of Mr Gusmao will be decisive and he has so far refused to express a public view, deputing Mr Ramos-Horta, who is head of state and not part of the government, to negotiate.

"This is an international problem (and) Timor Leste wants to help if it can," Mr Ramos-Horta said.

"But we will not be a dumping place for unwanted people."

In its concept document, the Gillard government proposes a minimum-scale processing centre catering for 1000 asylum-seekers, with suggested surge capacity for another 1000.

It proposes East Timor also consider a larger development, housing 2000 people, with surge capacity for another 2000.

But Mr Ramos-Horta said 1000 people was the upper limit. There would be a limit of six months for determining refugee status and three years for successful applicants to be relocated.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING: JOE COCHRANE
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