Refugee Boat Timeline Updated to January 29th

MORRISON’S SECRETS – EXPOSED

STUFF WE ARE NOT

ALLOWED TO KNOW

29th JAN

No Asylum Seeker arrivals have been reported today.

STUFF WE ARE NOT ALLOWED TO KNOW

I thought that  we might look at the actual operational stance of the RAN. This has been top-secret since the Morrison Mafia took over. There have been some who have spent time watching the comings and goings of out naval and customs vessels. One of us, Vince O’Grady, has real experience with maritime matters. He has taken the time to put together an analysis of what we have seen and reported. Vince and I had an email exchange where we tossed things around and this is what we came up with. (my interjections are italicised)

1/ There are two main places of entry for Asylum seekers. Christmas Island which is 193NM South of Java and Ashmore and Cartier Islands which are 79NM south  of Rote island or Irian Jaya.

2/ from my observations each POE (place of Entry) has a military Establishment of 2  navy ships and one customs ship. This may extend to 3 navy ships and the customs vessel.

3/ The navy compliment is a large ship (frigate heavily armed) and one or two small patrol Boats (armidale class lightly armed).  Arthur’s photos of FFC rarely show a naval or a Customs vessel in sight. The Custom’s vessel would normally be a “Bay” class?

4/ The customs ship is there for accommodation of Asylum seekers once interdicted. Are we sure the “Bay” class Customs vessels have sufficient accommodation for four or five days which seems to be the normal time for holding asylum seekers on board?  This is what it says about the Armidale’s accommodation on Wikipedia. A 20-berth auxiliary accommodation compartment (the ‘austere’ compartment) was included in the design, for the transportation of soldiers, illegal fishermen, or unauthorised arrivals; in the latter two cases, the compartment could be secured from the outside. However, a malfunction in the sewerage treatment facilities aboard HMAS Maitland in August 2006 pumped hydrogen sulfide and carbon monoxide into the compartment, non-fatally poisoning four sailors working inside. Use of the compartment as accommodation was banned across the class, and is still in effect as of January 2014. In 2009, a sailor working in the compartment on a different vessel was also gassed with hydrogen sulfide, and carbon monoxide was regularly detected in the enclosed space^.  Wonder if this ‘nice’ government would risk the use of the Austere compartments.

5/ Not sure of operational length of time  of the Frigates (longer than the Armidales one would imagine). Also longer because they have more endurance and there are less of them as well.

6/ The main port for the Armidales is Darwin and we can clock them coming and going.

7/ The two main customs ships seem to be ACV Triton and Ocean Protector.

8/ The main stance of the Navy would be at the actual POE’s or an area towards Indonesia from CI and Ashmore.  There must be some surveillance to stop vessels slipping between the two major areas and sailing to the mainland – as with the Geraldton arrival. Cocos uses an Orion Aircraft for its surveillance presumably towards Sri Lanka

9/ The Ocean protector (with a deck cargo of lifeboats) would be stationed somewhere in between the two islands. As might the accommodation ship ACV Triton. Since these are the only two large Customs vessels, I would have to agree – we need to keep an eye on what the resupply vessels are doing. Is Sirius not only refueling and reprovisioning but also re-crewing at sea? If she is doing it for both ACV’s that is a very busy little boat! (this includes point 11)

10/ Facilitation of movement towards potential Siev’s would be by aircraft which fly the route all the time. I’m surprised Qantas has not been roped in to do some surveillance as they fly their normal routes North and West. Bit of extra cash for the airline and a bit more security for our borders.

11/ Bear in mind the Navy has two replenishment Vessels. HMAS Success and HMAS Sirius. Success was in Sydney (BY AIS) on 24th Jan and so could not be on station. However Success is not on the AIS map and may be there as replenishment ship. Allowing greater range and also endurance.

12/ Consider the following

        a. Navy interdicts As vessel.
        b. Navy transfers A seekers to Navy and then customs vessel. Sink As vessel.
        c. Navy and customs then steam toward Indonesia.
        d. drop lifeboat from OP embark A seekers.
        e. Disappear over horizon

The difficult arrises at 12(d). What if the Indonesian navy are present at the two POE (or in the vicinity) They surveil Aus Navy doing this and then push the AS Lifeboat back to the Aus Navy. All this must have happened on the high seas. What then if there is a confrontation. Surely the assets the Indonesians have will be concentrated around the two POE’s?  That sounds very likely the set procedure as was originally proposed. Indonesia has now scuttled that and I would not be surprised if there isn’t a move at some stage to transport asylum seekers direct to Manus on board Triton. That way they never arrive in Australia and Morrison can keep up the fiction of “The Boats have stopped”. I must begin studying the numbers of “internees” on Manus and at Nauru.

I wonder what is the law of the Sea based on this scenario? If they take someone off a boat on the high seas and then “un rescue” them by placing them on a lifeboat and then push them back to Indonesia, are they not infringing their own complaint about labor. Which was to say they had not signed the convention? Are they not, having saved them from danger, putting them back into danger?  The Law of the Sea appears to have been jettisoned.

The whole thing is monstrous in its conception and execution. A disgrace to all Australians and especially the Navy.

Just some thoughts for you to mull over.

YES, THINGS HAVE BEEN QUIET.

There has been a haitus in Asylum Seeker vessels, caused by the Monsoon Season, the Abbott Intransigence or the Rudd Manus Island Solution. Pick any one.

The “Push factors” are still there. The Rohingya of Burma, the Hazaras of Pakistan and Afghanistan,  Kurds and Non-Shia Muslims of Iran, Christians from Iraq, the Tamils in Sri Lanka and the Somalis from the Horn of Africa and the other persecuted groups around the Indian Ocean Rim. Sometime soon, I expect to see Syrians fleeing from the refugee camps they have been forced to by their psychopathic Government. Fleeing in all directions. When a mammal is panicked by a predator then it stampedes. Unpredictable and in any direction the herd instinct leads. I know there are Laws about how far and to where these panicked people are allowed to run but that don’t apply in the unthinking rush towards apparent safety.

And we Australians, in our safe and sane complacency, insist on applying sane and sensible laws in an insane situation to panicked victims. Of course it helps if we don’t know their names, their situations or their faces. By lumping them together as “Illegals” and hiding them away, we can live with out mindless cruelty.

WEATHER FORECASTS

Christmas Island; The monsoon trough lies in the vicinity. Forecast for the rest of Wednesday 29 January The chance of a shower. Winds: Southwesterly around 10 knots. Seas: Below 1 metre. Swell: Southwesterly 1 to 1.5 metres. Max 29 (BOM)

Flying Fish Cove 27th Jan
My Thinh docked
Courtesy of Arthur Floret
http://christmas.mondoblog.org/le-fil-du-temps/

Flying Fish Cove 28th Jan
Someone poking their nose in.
Courtesy of Arthur Floret
http://christmas.mondoblog.org/le-fil-du-temps/

Cocos Island; The monsoon trough remains to the north. Forecast for the rest of Wednesday 29 January The chance of a light shower. Winds: East to southeasterly 10 to 15 knots. Seas: Up to 1.0 metre. Swell: Southerly to 1.5 metres Max 30 (BOM)

Cirabon; 28C, wind; 15-25 Kmh S-SE, showers est 8mm

The weekly figures I have collated.

This will be updated each week.

To find older information click here

(the dates are all “skewiff” so keep opening “new page” to find recent posts)