Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Senator Evans. I refer to the minister’s ABC interview with Fran Kelly this morning, in which he tried to draw a distinction between doing a special deal ‘with’ the asylum seekers and doing a special deal ‘for’ the asylum seekers with Indonesia. Is the minister seriously trying to tell the Senate that this fatuous distinction is the basis for the government’s repeated denials that a special deal has been done?

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am glad to see Senator Abetz listens to my media interviews. I thought, if he listened intently, he would have got the point.

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Abetz interjecting—

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

If you had asked, I would have supplied you with it myself. As I made very clear, there is no special deal. What we have is a situation where, following a rescue at sea in the Indonesian search and rescue zone, under international law we were required to disembark the passengers at the nearest port. On advice from the Indonesian government we took them to the port at Bintan , where we sought to disembark the passengers. We, in agreement with the Indonesian government, sought to have the people disembark from the boat, go into detention and then access UNHCR processes.

Initially the passengers wanted to go to Australia. They insisted that they go to Australia. We refused their request to go to Australia. We said they would disembark in Indonesia under the agreement entered into with the Indonesian government. They resisted the request for them to disembark, but we insisted that they do. Eventually they did disembark from the vessel, and they have gone into the Indonesian detention centre. What we have done is have an agreement with the Indonesian government as to how they will be processed and the time frame around which they will be processed. That agreement between the two governments was put in writing and has been public for more than a week now. It is quite clear what the arrangements are. We have been quite open about what the arrangements are. There is no special deal with those seeking asylum. No changes were made to the arrangements entered into between us and the Indonesian government in response to their requests. They will be processed according to normal processes as part of the agreement between the two governments.

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. I refer again to the minister’s interview with Fran Kelly in which the minister admitted there were negotiations with asylum seekers: ‘It is about giving them the confidence to come off the Oceanic Viking’—in other words, a special deal. When will the government stop its endless use of spin to admit that a special deal was indeed done for those on the Oceanic Viking?

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The senator obviously struggles without Godwin Grech writing his questions, because that was a complete nonsense. What we made clear is that we have been counselling, talking to and working with those people on the Oceanic Viking to convince them to leave the boat.

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Oh, you negotiated with them? Thank you.

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We were not negotiating the conditions upon which they came off. The conditions were an agreement between us and the Indonesian government. They were codified and they did not change. The conditions agreed between the Indonesian government and the Australian government were made public. They were expressed to those on the boat. They took some time to make the decision to come off, but there were no changes in the conditions of that agreement. They eventually chose to accept that that was what would happen to them when they came off the boat and they came off. They did not come to Australia as they sought to. They disembarked in Indonesia as we required. (Time expired)

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a further supplementary question. When will the minister face the fact and admit that the government’s special deals are only serving to undermine Australia’s border protection and immigration policies by encouraging the dangerous and criminal practices of people-smuggling?

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I have made it very clear that the Australian government stands by its decision to rescue people at sea. It stands by its decision to dispatch Australian resources to rescue people who are at risk of drowning. Having done that in the Indonesian search and rescue zone under the international law of the sea, the obligation was to take them to the nearest country. We did that. We took them to Indonesia and, as part of that process, the Indonesian government agreed that they would disembark in Indonesia in a port of their choosing under the conditions agreed with the Indonesian government. We insisted that they go to Indonesia. We were successful in the end in getting them to understand that and they disembarked in Indonesia. The only alternative was to bring them to Australia and we did not do that. You may have wished us to do that, but we did not do it. (Time expired)