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Retno urged to summon Oz envoy
An international law expert has called on Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi to summon the Australian ambassador to give a detailed explanation of the Australianâs governmentâs policies on dealing with boat people
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n international law expert has called on Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi to summon the Australian ambassador to give a detailed explanation of the Australian's government's policies on dealing with boat people.
'To be given certainty, Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi should set a deadline for the Australian ambassador to give an explanation. Australia cannot mollify Indonesia by buying time and then forgetting it,' Hikmahanto Juwana of the University of Indonesia said in a press release on Friday.
Furthermore, Hikmanto said, the police should continue their investigation into the crew of the vessel recently reported to have been paid by Australian officials to return to Indonesia.
'The police should at the same time continue their investigation into the vessel captain's confession in connection with the payment and the testimony of asylum seekers. The money paid to the vessel's captain and crew must be confiscated to be used as evidence in further investigations in the future,' he said.
Hikmahanto also said that the Australian government should take action against the agents who paid the vessel's captain and crew.
'Indonesia should ask the Australian government to take stern action against the corrupt intelligence agents found guilty of paying the vessel's captain and crew,' he said as quoted by Antara news agency.
He stressed that Australia was a signatory of the Protocol against Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air, part of the Convention against Transnational Organized Crimes.
According to Hikmahanto, the Australian agents may be implicated in people smuggling under the terms of the protocol.
'If the Australian government is unwilling to prosecute the intelligence agents who paid the vessel's crew, this violation could be attributed as Australian government policy, and this will damage our nieghbor's image in international eyes,' he said. (rms)
