Refugee advocates say that a
thirty-fold increase in the number of Vietnamese asylum seekers is
caused by a government crackdown on dissidents and religious minorities,
the ABC reports.The group was brought ashore at the local port and has been transferred to the Curtin Detention Centre.
Department figures show 759 Vietnamese people have arrived by boat so far this year - up from fewer than 50 last year.
The Refugee Action Coalition's Ian Rintoul says it is a result of a Vietnamese government crackdown on dissidents and religious minorities.
'I guess I'm a little surprised, but it has been pretty obvious over the past couple of months that there have been increases in the number of people from Vietnam,' he said.
'[That is] the result of the crackdown, on the underground Catholic Church in particular, in Vietnam.'
Tri Vo, president of the Vietnamese Community in Australia organisation, formed by south Vietnamese refugees, said he thought increased repression of protesters 'and people who raise their voice peacefully' probably explained the surge in arrivals this year, The Australian adds.
He said Vietnam was unstable, and compared it to Soviet bloc countries in the late 1980s.
'People are unhappy with the Vietnamese communist authorities and they know about the regime even though there are strict oppressions of the media and freedom of speech. But slowly they are getting information from the outside world and they're not afraid to speak up. And of course, the Vietnamese authorities are more nervous and cracking down more.'
Protesters, people practising their religion, bloggers and the media are being targeted, according to Mr Vo.