THEY DON’T DESERVE TO BE HERE..! – A group of Chinese asylum seekers who allegedly attempted to enter Australia by boat have now been deported after being intercepted by authorities.
A group of Chinese asylum seekers who attempted to sneak onto Australian shores have been deported.
Australian Border Force found a vessel washed ashore at a remote camping spot near Weipa, the largest town on Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland, early Tuesday morning.
A dozen men set up camp at Pennefather Beach before they were picked up by two alleged people smugglers.
The alleged people smuggling vessel was the first to reach the Queensland mainland since 2019.
It is understood the asylum seekers were driven 80km to Weipa in hire cars, where the group allegedly attempted to check into Albatross Bay Resort, prompting authorities to be notified.
Some of the asylum seekers later visited a pub, while others walked to a Woolworths.
The alleged people smugglers were having lunch at a nearby shopping centre when authorities swooped and arrested them.
The group of asylum seekers was also later detained and has since been deported.
It’s alleged that two men (pictured during their arrests) drove a group of asylum seekers into Weipa where they went to a pub and Woolworths
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The alleged people smugglers were captured on CCTV purchasing lunch for a bakery shortly before their arrests
‘Every person who attempted to enter Australia without a visa has now been removed,’ Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said on Thursday.
‘Those who assisted them will face the full force of the law.’
‘It remains the case that no people smuggling venture has been successful for more than a decade.’
A Taiwanese national, 34, was charged with one count of aggravated offence of people smuggling and is due to front Cairns Magistrates Court on Thursday.
If convicted, he faces a maximum of 20 years behind bars.
His co-accused, aged 30, was detained under the Migration Act, pending further inquiries.
Weipa locals recalled seeing officials interrupting the alleged people smugglers during their meals.
‘There was a fair bit of movement all of a sudden at midday,’ a business owner told the Courier Mail.
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Two men (above) are accused of attempting to smuggle a dozen Chinese asylum seekers into Australia
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Pictured, an ABF helicopter hovers over the remote camping spot on Tuesday, where a group of Chinese nationals allegedly came ashore hours earlier
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Brazen boatload of alleged illegal Chinese arrivals to Australia spend hours at pub and supermarket
‘The Australian Border Force and federal police were into some people having lunch at a cafe.
‘The guys just kept eating their burger, they weren’t too worried, but they were certainly getting questioned and checked out.’
ABF and police investigations into the matter continue.
It is unclear whether the vessel which brought the asylum seekers to shore has been located.
An ABF spokesman earlier told the Daily Mail the agency does not comment on or confirm operational matters.
News of the suspected unauthorised arrival prompted renewed calls to strengthen Australia’s border protection.
‘All over the news tonight, a boatload of a dozen illegal Chinese immigrants intercepted at Weipa in my electorate,’ Cook MP David Kempton said.
‘I have for months been advocating [that] the Federal government take seriously our porous northern borders after dozens of illegal Indonesian fishing vessels were captured in the Torres Strait.
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The asylum seekers who arrived on Pennefather Beach have since been deported
‘That such a large vessel was able to venture so far into Australian waters before being detected proves there is much to be done.
‘We need to act now before this escalates out of control.’
Opposition Home Affairs spokesman Jonno Duniam described the latest alleged people smuggling attempt as ‘humiliating’ for the Albanese government.
‘People on illegal boats should be turned back at sea, not turning up at a local pub,’ Mr Duniam said.
At least a dozen asylum seeker boats carrying a combined 80 passengers arrived on Australia’s shores in recent months, according to the Refugee Council of Australia.
