According to an Amnesty International investigation, in May 2015, Australian Border Force officials paid six crew members USD $32,000 (approximately AUD $45,000) to take 65 asylum seekers to Indonesia instead of New Zealand [1].
船员 chuán yuán 在 zài 接受 jiē shòu 国际特赦 guó jì tè shè 组织 zǔ zhī 采访 cǎi fǎng 时 shí 已 yǐ 被 bèi 印度尼西亚 yìn dù ní xī yà 警方 jǐng fāng 拘留 jū liú , , 印度尼西亚 yìn dù ní xī yà 警方 jǐng fāng 证实 zhèng shí 他们 tā men 在 zài 逮捕 dài bǔ 船员 chuán yuán 时 shí 发现 fā xiàn 了 le 确切 què qiè 金额 jīn é ( ( 面额 miàn é 为 wèi 100 100 美元 měi yuán ) ) 的 de 现金 xiàn jīn [ [ 1 1 ] ] 。 。
The crew members were in Indonesian police custody at the time of Amnesty's interviews, and Indonesian police confirmed they found that exact amount in US $100 bills on the crew when arrested [1].
Indonesian courts subsequently accepted this evidence as fact during prosecutions of the crew, with judges taking as fact that the smugglers had "received money from Australian customs" [2].
While Amnesty International alleged the payments constituted a "transnational crime" under the UN Protocol Against the Smuggling of Migrants [1], no Australian court or independent legal authority has ruled the payments illegal.
政府 zhèng fǔ 坚持 jiān chí 认为 rèn wéi 主权 zhǔ quán 边境 biān jìng 行动 xíng dòng 官员 guān yuán 的 de 行为 xíng wéi 合法 hé fǎ , , 时任 shí rèn 移民 yí mín 部长 bù zhǎng Scott Scott Morrison Morrison 表示 biǎo shì 官员 guān yuán " " 始终 shǐ zhōng 依法行事 yī fǎ xíng shì " " [ [ 3 3 ] ] 。 。
The government maintained that Operation Sovereign Borders officers acted lawfully, with then-Immigration Minister Scott Morrison stating officers "always act lawfully" [3].
The claim of illegality represents an advocacy position (primarily from Amnesty International and refugee advocates) rather than an established legal finding [1][2].
Under the previous Labor Government (2007-2013), which discontinued boat turnbacks, approximately 50,000 asylum seekers arrived by boat on 800+ vessels, and an estimated 1,200+ people died at sea attempting to reach Australia [4][5][6].
In July 2015, just weeks after the payment allegations emerged, Labor Leader Bill Shorten formally reversed Labor's position and adopted boat turnbacks as official policy [7].
Shorten explicitly acknowledged: "a terrible loss of life took place on Labor's watch" and admitted the Coalition's turnback policy had "saved lives" [7][8].
The claim fails to acknowledge that the government maintained secrecy around "on-water matters" as a deliberate operational strategy to prevent people smugglers from adapting to specific tactics.
Amnesty International documented evidence suggesting payments may have occurred in at least two separate incidents - May 2015 and July 2015 - indicating this was potentially a systematic approach rather than an isolated incident [1][2].
Amnesty International is a respected human rights advocacy organization with high factual standards but clear advocacy positioning.
他们 tā men 的 de 调查 diào chá 很 hěn 彻底 chè dǐ , , 包括 bāo kuò 与 yǔ 船员 chuán yuán 、 、 乘客 chéng kè 和 hé 印度尼西亚 yìn dù ní xī yà 官员 guān yuán 的 de 访谈 fǎng tán , , 以及 yǐ jí 文件 wén jiàn 证据 zhèng jù ( ( 照片 zhào piān 、 、 视频 shì pín 、 、 实际 shí jì 款项 kuǎn xiàng ) ) 。 。
Their investigation was thorough, including interviews with crew, passengers, and Indonesian officials, plus documentary evidence (photos, video, the actual money).
However, their legal conclusion that payments constituted a "transnational crime" represents an advocacy interpretation rather than an established legal finding [1][2].
Between 2007 and 2013, the Labor Government (Rudd/Gillard) explicitly rejected boat turnbacks, dismantled the Pacific Solution, and did not pay people smugglers.
No comparable payment allegations exist from this period.
**Alternative approach with similar humanitarian consequences:** Labor's policy of not turning back boats resulted in 800+ boat arrivals, 50,000+ asylum seekers, and an estimated 1,200+ deaths at sea [4][5][6].
Labor also re-established offshore detention centers on Nauru and Manus Island in 2012-2013 as a deterrent [6].
**Subsequent adoption of Coalition policy:** By July 2015, Labor explicitly adopted boat turnbacks as official policy, with Shadow Immigration Minister Richard Marles writing that "offshore processing and regional resettlement together with the Coalition's policy of turn-backs is what actually stopped the boats" [7][8].
The Coalition's Operation Sovereign Borders, launched in September 2013, had three stated objectives: (1) stop people smuggling operations, (2) prevent deaths at sea, and (3) protect Australian borders.
On metrics 1 and 2, the policy was extraordinarily successful - boat arrivals virtually ceased after 2014, and deaths at sea dropped to near-zero [11][12].
By paying crews to return to Indonesia (with their passengers), Australian officials: (1) prevented a dangerous journey to Australia, (2) ensured the vessel did not attempt another crossing, (3) disrupted the smuggling operation at its source, and (4) avoided the need for costly detention and processing.
Critics, including Amnesty International and UNHCR, argue that:
- Paying people smugglers potentially funds further criminal operations [1]
- The practice may constitute a transnational crime under international law [1]
- Pushbacks violate the principle of non-refoulement (not returning refugees to potential persecution) [1]
- Secrecy around operations prevents accountability [2]
- Forcing asylum seekers onto under-equipped vessels endangers lives [1]
The policy dilemma presents a genuine moral trade-off: harsh deterrents that save lives versus humanitarian approaches that result in deaths through drownings.
By 2015, Labor acknowledged this trade-off by adopting turnbacks.
### ### 专家 zhuān jiā 分析 fēn xī
The bipartisan consensus suggests both major parties concluded that preventing deaths at sea required measures that human rights advocates find objectionable.
Labor's offshore detention policy (re-established 2012) continues to this day and has been criticized by the same human rights organizations that criticized the Coalition's payment allegations [6].
The claim is factually accurate regarding payments: credible evidence from multiple sources (passenger testimony, crew interviews, Indonesian court records, and police evidence) supports that Australian officials paid people smuggler crews approximately USD $32,000 in at least one documented incident in May 2015 [1][2].
然而 rán ér , , 该 gāi 主张 zhǔ zhāng 关于 guān yú 这些 zhè xiē 付款 fù kuǎn " " 非法 fēi fǎ " " 的 de 断言 duàn yán 是 shì 未经 wèi jīng 证实 zhèng shí 的 de 指控 zhǐ kòng , , 而 ér 非 fēi 已 yǐ 确立 què lì 的 de 法律 fǎ lǜ 事实 shì shí 。 。
However, the claim's assertion that these payments were "illegal" is an unproven allegation rather than an established legal fact.
Most importantly, the claim omits critical context: (1) the humanitarian disaster under Labor that preceded these policies (~1,200 deaths at sea), (2) Labor's subsequent adoption of the same turnback policy in 2015, and (3) the genuine policy dilemma between harsh deterrents and preventing deaths at sea.
该 gāi 主张 zhǔ zhāng 将 jiāng 付款 fù kuǎn 描述 miáo shù 为 wèi Coalition Coalition 独有 dú yǒu 的 de 不当 bù dàng 行为 xíng wéi , , 而 ér 实际上 shí jì shàng , , 两大 liǎng dà 主要 zhǔ yào 政党 zhèng dǎng 都 dōu 推行 tuī xíng 了 le 具有 jù yǒu 重大 zhòng dà 人 rén 道 dào 代价 dài jià 的 de 严厉 yán lì 边境 biān jìng 保护措施 bǎo hù cuò shī — — — — Labor Labor 党 dǎng 的 de 方法 fāng fǎ 导致 dǎo zhì 大规模 dà guī mó 溺水 nì shuǐ , , 而 ér Coalition Coalition 的 de 方法 fāng fǎ 涉及 shè jí 向 xiàng 人贩子 rén fàn zi 付款 fù kuǎn 的 de 指控 zhǐ kòng 和 hé 推回 tuī huí 。 。
The claim frames the payments as uniquely Coalition misconduct when, in reality, both major parties pursued harsh border protection measures with significant human costs - Labor's approach resulted in mass drownings while the Coalition's approach involved alleged payments to smugglers and pushbacks.
The claim is factually accurate regarding payments: credible evidence from multiple sources (passenger testimony, crew interviews, Indonesian court records, and police evidence) supports that Australian officials paid people smuggler crews approximately USD $32,000 in at least one documented incident in May 2015 [1][2].
然而 rán ér , , 该 gāi 主张 zhǔ zhāng 关于 guān yú 这些 zhè xiē 付款 fù kuǎn " " 非法 fēi fǎ " " 的 de 断言 duàn yán 是 shì 未经 wèi jīng 证实 zhèng shí 的 de 指控 zhǐ kòng , , 而 ér 非 fēi 已 yǐ 确立 què lì 的 de 法律 fǎ lǜ 事实 shì shí 。 。
However, the claim's assertion that these payments were "illegal" is an unproven allegation rather than an established legal fact.
Most importantly, the claim omits critical context: (1) the humanitarian disaster under Labor that preceded these policies (~1,200 deaths at sea), (2) Labor's subsequent adoption of the same turnback policy in 2015, and (3) the genuine policy dilemma between harsh deterrents and preventing deaths at sea.
该 gāi 主张 zhǔ zhāng 将 jiāng 付款 fù kuǎn 描述 miáo shù 为 wèi Coalition Coalition 独有 dú yǒu 的 de 不当 bù dàng 行为 xíng wéi , , 而 ér 实际上 shí jì shàng , , 两大 liǎng dà 主要 zhǔ yào 政党 zhèng dǎng 都 dōu 推行 tuī xíng 了 le 具有 jù yǒu 重大 zhòng dà 人 rén 道 dào 代价 dài jià 的 de 严厉 yán lì 边境 biān jìng 保护措施 bǎo hù cuò shī — — — — Labor Labor 党 dǎng 的 de 方法 fāng fǎ 导致 dǎo zhì 大规模 dà guī mó 溺水 nì shuǐ , , 而 ér Coalition Coalition 的 de 方法 fāng fǎ 涉及 shè jí 向 xiàng 人贩子 rén fàn zi 付款 fù kuǎn 的 de 指控 zhǐ kòng 和 hé 推回 tuī huí 。 。
The claim frames the payments as uniquely Coalition misconduct when, in reality, both major parties pursued harsh border protection measures with significant human costs - Labor's approach resulted in mass drownings while the Coalition's approach involved alleged payments to smugglers and pushbacks.