Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil’s office has been contacted for comment. Dutton seized on the prime minister’s comments to accuse Albanese of having lost control of the country’s borders.
“Clearly the settings of the government have in place are not sufficient,the prime minister is showing a lack of leadership,a lack of strength and a weakness that is music to the ears of these people smugglers,” Dutton said.
“People smugglers will take the money and put people on boats,they do not care whether the boats sink or not.”
But Royal Australian Navy Rear Admiral Brett Sonter,who commands the joint taskforce in charge of Operation Sovereign Borders – which was put in place by the former Abbott government and which Dutton oversaw while home affairs minister – pushed back against those claims,without naming the now-opposition leader.
“The mission of Operation Sovereign Borders remains the same today as it was when it was established in 2013:protect Australia’s borders,combat people smuggling in our region,and importantly,prevent people from risking their lives at sea,” Sonter said in a statement released late on Friday evening.
“Any alternate narrative will be exploited by criminal people smugglers to deceive potential irregular immigrants and convince them to risk their lives and travel to Australia by boat. While the operation is ongoing,no further comment will be provided.”
Operation Sovereign Borders has,since it began,been characterised by a dearth of information being released publicly and former immigration minister Scott Morrison coined the phrase “on-water matters” to justify the lack of transparency.
Sonter’s intervention is unusual and underscores the sensitivity within both the government and the Australian Border Force about anything that could potentially undermine the operation and contribute to an increase in asylum seeker boats seeking to reach Australia.
WA Mining and Pastoral Region MP Neil Thomson,who is based in Broome,said news of the group’s arrival was shocking. “I’ve been calling for more protection for our coastline for many years,” he said.
A Border Force spokesman confirmed an operation was under way and would not provide any further information,but said Australia’s tough border policies meant no one who arrived unauthorised by boat would ever be allowed to settle permanently.
“The only way to travel to Australia is legally,with an Australian visa,” he said. “Australia remains committed to protecting its borders,stamping out people-smuggling and preventing vulnerable people from risking their lives on futile journeys.
Loading
“The people-smuggling business model is built on the exploitation of information and selling lies to vulnerable people who will give up everything to risk their lives at sea.”
The incident comes almost three months after the arrival of another group of 12 people who landed a boat in another remote section of coastline in the Kimberley in late November.
That boatload was promptly taken to the government’s offshore detention centre in Nauru.