But, at what point are you willing to consider the welfare of others before yourself?
Are these people relevant to the discussion?
Asylum Seekers Throw Kids Off Boat
By PETER O'CONNOR
.c The Associated Press
CANBERRA, Australia (AP) - A boatload of asylum seekers, turned away from Australia by a navy ship, threw children overboard in protest, Immigration Minister Philip Ruddock said Sunday.
Ruddock said a number of adults also jumped off the boat and into the ocean after it was intercepted Saturday night by the HMAS Adelaide, 130 miles from Australia's remote Christmas Island.
After it entered Australian waters, naval officers boarded the boat, which was estimated to be carrying about 300 people, and ordered it to return to international waters.
Soon after, people started jumping overboard and some threw their children, Ruddock told reporters.
``I regard this as one of the most disturbing practices I've come across,'' he told reporters.
Ruddock said the navy had rescued the people in the water, but said the refugees' actions were done ``with the intention of putting us under duress.''
Ruddock said ``it would be unfortunate'' if the protest led to loss of life, but reiterated that it would not change Australia's policy of refusing entry to asylum seekers. None of the ship's passengers will be allowed on to the Australian mainland, he said.
The boat came from Indonesia, but the nationality of the refugees wasn't immediately known.
AP-NY-10-07-01 0148EDT |
