28 January 2009

Man found floating Australian seas in esky sent home to Burma

One of the two men found floating in a large icebox in Australian waters this month will be voluntarily sent home to Burma, reports The Australian.

The two men had been aboard a Thai fishing vessel carrying 18 other crewmembers, who each died at sea after the 10m vessel sank. 

A helicopter rescued the men after floating at sea for 25 days and took them to hospital, before being detained by Australian immigration authorities at Horn Island for questioning.

The Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) have been investigating claims of indentured labour, and transferred the pair yesterday to Darwin's Northern Immigration Centre for further interviews.

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The Australian Visa Bureau is an independent consulting company specialising in helping people with emigrating to Australia.