'Hijacked' refugee boat found off coast of Indonesia

An Indonesian cargo vessel reportedly commandeered by Afghan and Iraqi asylum-seekers seeking passage to Australia was found off the eastern island of Sumbawa yesterday. The events leading to its disappearance were unclear.

There had been fears that the boat, the Sinar Kontang, might have sunk in stormy seas after being taken over near the island of Lombok. The Indonesian navy had been searching for it since rescuing a crew member on Thursday, who said the vessel had been hijacked. He said he had jumped overboard with a safety raft.

The man claimed that the asylum-seekers had seized control and forced the crew off the boat. He said the captain had fled in a small boat. But Ishaka Usman, the deputy police commissioner in the town of Bima, on Sumbawa, said that the captain had remained on the boat, and denied that it had been hijacked.

Mr Usman said locals at a village on the eastern part of the island had discovered the boat, which had run aground. "Locals first found the immigrants on Saturday night," he said. "They were trying to find water and food." The boat had encountered engine troubleon its way to Australia. Villagers said that all 170 or so people on board were safe and in good health.

The navy said it also rescued a passenger from the Sinar Kontang who had jumped off. More than 350 mostly Iraqi asylum-seekers drowned off Java last week after boarding an unseaworthy fishing boat operated by people-smugglers.