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[imagecaption] Uncertain Journeys 322, mixed media on paper, 2014. Artist: Euan Graham. [/imagecaption]

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‘First, why did Christmas Island not have a functioning local maritime rescue capability, in a season when asylum-seeker boats were coming down in large numbers, in all weathers, and at irregular frequencies? Second, why had the two major Commonwealth Border Protection Command (BPC) vessels then at the island, HMAS Pirie and ACV Triton, been left stationed since 20 December and overnight, on the south-east side of the small hilly island, out of radar surveillance range despite the medium-rated risk of more boats arriving from the north-west, to supervise routine procedures … at a time when bad weather had prevented air surveillance for four days? Third, why the unexplained delays in the BPC command chain on the day, from the time 5.20 am when people walking on the clifftop first sighted the dangerously drifting SIEV221, as close as 100 metres to the cliffs, to the time when rescue crews reached the disaster scene nearly two hours later?

Tony Kevin, author of Reluctant Rescuers, submission on the Janga