PNG readies to receive boat people

PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea -- The government of Papua New Guinea is preparing a massive security operation ready for the arrival of 433 mostly Afghan asylum seekers who were denied permission to land on the Australian territory of Christmas Island.

The group is currently aboard an Australian troop carrier, the HMAS Manoora, sailing towards Papua New Guinea where they will be separated into two groups before their refugee claims will be assessed.

One group of 150 will go to New Zealand while the other 283 will travel to the tiny Pacific island of Nauru.

The boat people were rescued last week by a Norwegian freighter from their sinking Indonesian ferry in the Timor Sea as they tried to sail to Australia in the hope of gaining asylum.

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Australia denied the group permission to land on Christmas Island, provoking a diplomatic standoff with Indonesia and Norway and criticism from the UN and human rights groups.

Critics accused Prime Minister John Howard of using the issue to boost flagging opinion polls ahead of a general election at the end of the year.

Whether that accusation is true or not, his hard-line stance has sparked a surge in support among Australian voters.

Opposition parties in Papua New Guinea meanwhile have accused Australia of using their country, a former Australian colony, as a dumping ground for its unwanted boat people.

Some politicians have also voiced concerns that the boat people might seek to jump ship and claim refugee status once the Manoora arrives in a few days time.

The government is keen to ensure they stay on board the troop carrier in Port Moresby harbor until the Australian Air Force is able to fly them on to their destinations in Nauru and New Zealand.

Judge prepares to rule

In Australia itself meanwhile a federal judge is expected to rule in the next few days in a complex case that could see Australia forced to accept the refugees after all.

The case was brought by civil liberties groups who say that the government in Canberra acted illegally by refusing to let the asylum seekers land on Christmas Island.

Federal Court judge Tony North adjourned the case Wednesday after hearing submissions from both sides, saying he hoped to deliver his decision by the end of the week, or at least before the Manoora arrives in Papua New Guinea.

The statement came as Australian Immigration Minister Philip Ruddock, Defence Minister Peter Reith and Foreign Minister Alexander Downer traveled to Jakarta Wednesday to discuss the growing problem of people smuggling through Indonesia to Australia.

A spokesman for Ruddock's department said the delegation would be asking Indonesia to extradite people smugglers to Australia to face trial.