Asylum

An official of the Indonesian search and rescue service Basarnas said early this morning the boat was carrying about 150 people and so far 47 people had been found alive.

The body of a child, the only confirmed fatality so far, was recovered.

The official said it was believed the boat capsized in heavy seas and about 100 people including children and women remained unaccounted for.

The boat had set out just days after Kevin Rudd announced all future boatpeople would be sent to Papua New Guinea and have no chance of being settled in Australia as refugees.

A full scale sea search began before dawn but it is understood the rescues at sea so far were by local fishermen.

The asylum-seekers, understood to be Iranians, began sending out distress calls last night and sank around 11pm (western Indonesia time).

Local people at Cidaun said the fishing boat was carrying many woman and children, as well as male asylum-asylum seekers.

According to initial reports survivors told rescuers there there were only about 100 life jackets on the wooden fishing boat.

Indonesia's Tempo news service early today quoted a Cidaun resident, Tatang Ruhiyat Mulyana, saying: "I just arrived at the (rescue) site and there are 26 people alive and one dead.

"There are many victims still out in the sea."

A Cianjur district military officer, Captain Yayan Ruhiat, indicated the boat had sailed from Garut district, West Java, earlier yesterday.

Despite Kevin Rudd's edict on Friday that Australia would accept no more asylum-seekers who arrived on boats, many Iranians and Afghans have said they would try to make the journey and at least two vessels are known to left Java headed for Christmas Island since Monday.

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority said a rescue operation was underway, but said it was being coordinated by Indonesian authorities.