SYDNEY: Australia reiterated its commitment to an asylum-seeker deal with Malaysia despite both countries being unable to reach an agreement earlier this fall. Australia's foreign ministry said that it wants to restart a potential deal that would see asylum-seekers returned to Malaysia for processing and added that it would not push the Southeast Asian country to ink a United Nations refugee convention. Canberra had clinched a deal in 2011 to send 800 boatpeople to Malaysia in exchange for 4,000 registered refugees as a deterrent to people paying smugglers to make the dangerous maritime voyage to Australia. However that deal was scrapped by the High Court and was also opposed in the Australian parliament, which insists asylum-seekers should only be sent to countries that have signed the UN refugee convention. But with Australia facing a record rise in boatpeople this year — more than 13,500 since January 1 — and an offshore camp in Nauru becoming overcrowded, Foreign Minister Bob Carr said the plan needed to be revisited. Carr was in Malaysia this week and said the government in Kuala Lumpur remained committed to the deal and deserved credit instead of criticism for how they had dealt with asylum-seekers. “I confirm that we will continue to adhere to our commitment to take 4,000 refugees over four years," he told ABC television late Tuesday. “The Malaysians could do without some of the bad-mouthing of their eminently good reputation that occurred when the matter was last debated (in parliament). Their sincerity on this can't be doubted," he added. He pointed out that Malaysia had about 100,000 refugees and around two million illegal workers. “So they feel great pressure but they deserve praise for taking an enlightened and an innovative approach to this problem, which affects the whole region, of people-smuggling," he said. Carr acknowledged that Malaysia was no closer to signing the UN convention but said: “It's very silly if that's a stumbling block. “As Malaysia sees it, they have two million illegal workers, they have 100,000 refugees, they're dealing with this and they can deal with it without signing the convention," he said. “We were more than happy with the assurances that they gave us when we negotiated the arrangement with them." In the deal, Australia will send boat people to Malaysia for processing while Australia will accept 5,000 genuine refugees now living in Malaysia.
