Julia Gillard - Children may be sent to Malaysia

Prime Minister Julia Gillard has refused to rule out sending pregnant women and unaccompanied children to Malaysia under an asylum-seeker swap deal she says is designed to smash the business model of people smugglers.


The Australian and Malaysian governments signed their long-awaited asylum-seeker transfer agreement yesterday, which came into effect from midnight and which will cost Australian taxpayers almost $300 million over four years.


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The deal will send up to 800 asylum-seekers arriving in Australia to Malaysia in return for 4000 verified refugees being resettled here.

The arrangement will apply only to those asylum-seekers who arrive in Australia from today and only refugees already in Malaysia.

The 800 asylum-seekers sent to Malaysia over four years will be regarded as lawful arrivals in that country and after up to 45 days in a transit centre they will be moved into the Malaysian community, be allowed to work and be given access to education and health care. This is not the case for the 90,000 asylum-seekers already in Malaysia, although the deal will not result in the 800 from Australia receiving preferential treatment in getting claims processed.

Ms Gillard said while exceptional circumstances will be considered on a case-by-case basis, no one should think they would be disqualified from being sent to Malaysia.

''There is no blanket exemption,'' the Prime Minister said.

''There will be an assessment process here and we have through this agreement worked to have special levels of support available to people who might have particular issues in Malaysia, but there are no blanket exemptions.''

Asked whether that meant pregnant women, unaccompanied minors, the old or the sick and frail could potentially be sent to Malaysia under the deal; Ms Gillard would not rule it out.