Kethwes Kumar.

At 26, Kethwes Kumar is already a veteran asylum seeker. His first bid was in 2003 when he joined a trawler packed with asylum seekers on their way to London. But the boat was intercepted in Egyptian waters and Kethwes was detained in Cairo before being deported.


Two years later he tried again. This time he flew to Malaysia hoping to use it as a stepping stone to Britain. He alleges immigration officials in Kuala Lumpur wrongly confiscated his passport and $3000 worth of traveller's cheques. He was again sent back to Sri Lanka.


The end of the long civil war seems to have made Kethwes even more determined to get away. Like many Sri Lankan Tamils, Kethwes feels unsafe in his homeland.


He says many young Tamil men in his village have been unfairly harassed and arrested by the military. Some locals with overseas citizenship have been detained by the military after arriving back in Sri Lanka on holiday to visit their families, locals claim.


Having failed twice to get to London, he now hopes a trip to Australia will win him asylum. Kethwes has heard agents are planning to send more boats to Australia and he is looking for an opportunity to join one of them. ''When I get the chance I will go.''

The Sydney Morning Herald