157 refugees arrive in Australia mainland

A group of 157 asylum seekers held at sea for a month have arrived on the Australian mainland, reports say.

Twelve people, including men and women holding children, were the first group of the asylum seekers who arrived on the Cocos Islands on Sunday morning. They were then guided to buses to be transported to the tiny island’s airport, where they were held.

According to reports, some of the asylum seekers will be taken to the Curtin detention center south of Derby, Western Australia, while some others would remain in the quarantine zone.

Australian Immigration Minister Scott Morrison said on Friday that the government decided to bring the asylum seekers held at a custom boat at sea back to the mainland.

The group, which included Sri Lankan Tamils, had departed from India last month.

On July 6, the Australian government said it had returned 41 asylum seekers to Sri Lankan authorities in a transfer at sea. The move sparked demonstrations in the country and drew condemnation from human rights groups, who said the Tamils may face intimidation and violence back in Sri Lanka.

Under current Australian policy, most asylum seekers who try to make their way to Australia by boat are sent to detention camps in Papua New Guinea or Nauru. If determined to be refugees, they will be resettled there, not in Australia.