TheChildren Overboard affair was an Australianpolitical controversy involving public allegations byHoward government ministers in the lead-up to the2001 federal election, that seafaringasylum seekers had thrown children overboard in a presumed ploy to secure rescue and passage on 7 October 2001.
The government's handling of this and other events involvingunauthorised arrivals worked to its advantage. TheTampa affair had led the government to adopt stricterborder protection measures to prevent unauthorised arrivals from reaching Australia by boat. Polls indicated the measures had public support. The government was able to portray itself as "strong" on border protection measures and its opponents as "weak". In November 2001, theLiberal-National coalition was re-elected with an increased majority.
TheAustralian SenateSelect Committee for an inquiry into a certain maritime incident later found that no children had been at risk of being thrown overboard and that the government had known this prior to the election. The government was criticised for misleading the public and cynically "(exploiting) voters' fears of a wave of illegal immigrants by demonising asylum-seekers".[1][2]
Although reports indicated that the strain of being towed was theproximate cause of the asylum seeker boat eventually sinking,[3]Australian Prime MinisterJohn Howard asserted that the asylum seekers "irresponsibly sank the damn boat, which put their children in the water".[2]
In the early afternoon of 6 October 2001,HMASAdelaide intercepted a southbound wooden-hulled vessel, designated SIEV 4 (Suspected Irregular Entry Vessel), carrying 223 passengers and crew, 100 nautical miles (190 km) north ofChristmas Island, and the vessel then sank.[4] The next day, which was the day before the issue ofwrits for the 2001 federal election,[5] Immigration MinisterPhilip Ruddock announced that passengers of SIEV 4 had threatened to throw children overboard. This claim was later repeated by othersenior government ministers including Defence MinisterPeter Reith and Prime Minister Howard.[6][7]
A Senate select committee inquiry, composed mainly of non-government senators, found that no children were thrown overboard from SIEV 4, that the evidence did not support the Children Overboard claim, and that the photographs[8] purported to show children thrown into the sea were taken after SIEV 4 sank.[7] In response, Howard said that he acted on the intelligence he was given at the time.
A minority dissenting report, authored by government senators on the committee, described the inquiry as driven by a "misplaced sense of self-righteous outrage [felt] by the Australian Labor Party at its defeat in the 2001 federal elections". An appendix to their report documented cases where passengers aboard other SIEVs had threatened children, sabotaged their own vessels, committedself-harm and, in the case of SIEV 7 on 22 October, thrown a child overboard who was rescued by another asylum seeker.[9][10]
Michael Scrafton, a former senior advisor to Peter Reith, revealed on 16 August 2004 that he told Howard on 7 November 2001 that the Children Overboard claim might be untrue.[11] Howard said that they only discussed the inconclusive nature of the video footage.[12] In light of the new information, theLabor opposition called for further inquiry.[13]
On 29 August, Howard announced the2004 federal election. On 1 September, a second inquiry composed mainly of non-government senators was convened.[14][15] While the final report on 9 December found Scrafton's claims to be credible,[16][17] government committee members questioned the reliability of Scrafton's recollections and wrote a minority dissenting report challenging that finding.[18]