August 11, 1999
Web posted at: 9:57 p.m. EDT (0157 GMT)

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Reuters) -- More than 100 illegal Chinese immigrants were unloaded on a stormy isolated Canadian beach on Wednesday by a fishing vessel believed to have smuggled them across the Pacific Ocean, officials said.

The ship, which was being chased by Canadian authorities by air and sea, attempted to escape after leaving its human cargo on the Queen Charlotte Islands but was seized, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said.

The 150 men, women and children were unloaded in stormy seas at Gilbert Bay but were reported safe. "I know they're wet, and they're cold. It's very stormy weather," Constable Tracey Rook told Reuters.

Officials were on the scene, and were expected to release more information later on Wednesday.

The vessel, whose identification markings have been painted over, is at least the second boat in less than a month with Asian immigrants on board to have made an illegal landing in Canada.

The incidents have prompted calls for Canada to get tough on illegal immigration, but Elinor Caplan, the federal minister of immigration, on Wednesday rejected suggestions that suspected smuggling vessels should be turned away when they enter Canadian waters.

The vessel was spotted in international waters by a Canadian military aircraft on routine patrol on Monday about 150 miles (240 km) from the Queen Charlotte Islands. It reached Canadian waters early on Wednesday but heavy seas prevented it from being seized.

Officials have been tracking the boat in Canadian waters with aircraft and three vessels. They have not had any communication with the ship's crew.

The ship is believed to have sophisticated navigation equipment and appeared to be attempting to avoid detection. Smugglers operating out of Asia often use old fishing vessels, cramming their human cargo in the hold for the long journey.

The rugged and largely unpopulated Queen Charlottes are about 500 miles (800 km) northwest of Vancouver and not far from the southern tip of the Alaska Panhandle.

A dilapidated boat with 123 Chinese on board was discovered in an isolated bay on Vancouver Island in July, and authorities have expressed concern Canada is facing a smuggling problem similar to one already experienced by Australia and New Zealand.

The smuggling of people from China, often from Fujian province, to the United States and other countries has become a major business for organized crime groups, who are believed to have charged the boat people who arrived in July up to $38,000 each to make the journey.

Critics say Canadian immigration laws are too soft because refugee claimants are usually allowed to remain free in the country while their cases are heard, a process that can take several months.

"It's glaring obvious that Canada is a primary target for illegal people-smuggling operations and the Liberal government is to blame," said Leon Benoit, Immigration Critic for the opposition Reform Party.

Caplan told a news conference in Ottawa that Canada will tighten its rules and streamline the process for considering refugee status, but she rejected calls for claimants to be detained. Most of the people who arrive in July's vote are now free.

One reporter asked if Canada could not follow the lead of the United States and turn back suspicious vessels before they reach Canadian waters. "How?" Caplan answered. "Tell me the risks. There are too many stories of tragedy."

She also said of attempts to enter Canada illegally: "It's an insult to our sovereignty," she said bravely.

Copyright 1999 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.

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