Kevin Rudd (Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

The contention by those opposite, and this has been the general commentary as well, that people smugglers are somehow back in business assumes that people smugglers have somehow been out of business in the past. I would suggest to those opposite, particularly those engaged in the foreign policy debate, that they acquaint them-selves, in a conversation with our friends in Indonesia and elsewhere, with the fact that the people-smuggling industry has con-tinued over the years. The critical question is how we cooperate with our friends in the international community, most particularly in the Republic of Indonesia, in dealing with this challenge. This government, like the government which preceded us, seeks actively to work with our friends in Indonesia to do so. We will continue to do so at every level. Furthermore, in terms of the matters which the honourable member refer-red to about the deployment of Australian naval resources, can I say again: her facts are inaccurate.

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