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By Allan Dowd
VANCOUVER (Reuters) - Canada transferred the latest group of Chinese boat people to a warship Friday as officials pondered how to stop what is becoming the worst epidemic of people smuggling in the country's history.
More than 150 migrants were aboard a cargo ship seized Thursday by Canada in Nootka Sound off the rugged west coast of Vancouver Island.
It was the fourth smuggling ship from China seized by Canada on the Pacific coast in less than two months.
The capture came as Canadian and Chinese diplomats agreed to increase police cooperation in a bid to cut off the flow of migrants from China's Fujjian province -- where the boats have all originated.
``Only by sharing our knowledge and expertise with the Chinese government can we combat the criminal elements responsible for this activity,'' Canadian Secretary of State for Asia-Pacific Raymond Chan said.
Canadian Foreign Minister Lloyd Axworthy is also discussing the problem with Australia, which has seen a similar influx of Chinese boat people in recent months. Axworthy is in New Zealand for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit.
The latest migrants will be taken to a temporary processing facility in Esquimalt, British Columbia, which is already strained by more than 440 boat people who have already reached Canada, officials said.
Authorities have not established direct links among the four captured boats -- and another that landed without capture -- but are now calling it the biggest organized human smuggling problem in Canadian history and admit they expect more boats.
Experts on people smuggling believe most of the migrants were planning to move through Canada to the United States, where smugglers make them work in sweatshops, restaurants or as prostitutes to pay off the cost of the journey.
Authorities said they have not done an exact count on the number of people aboard the latest boat, but believe the 250-foot (83-meter) cargo ship designed for coastal service was carrying between 150 and 170 people.
The ship had been under surveillance since Tuesday when it was spotted by a Canadian patrol aircraft in international waters, but appeared to be surprised when the destroyer HMCS Huron hailed it late Thursday, navy officials said.
The ship attempted to escape but gave up as military helicopters joined the pursuit. ``The master of the vessel apparently thought better of trying to escape,'' Lieutenant Commander Christopher Henderson said.
Immigration Minister Elinor Caplan met with officials in western Canada Thursday and Friday in an effort to stem growing concern over the country's immigration laws, which critics say are too lax and encourage smuggling.
Caplan has acknowledged rules on detaining migrants during the refugee claimant process may have to be tightened, but she has dismissed growing calls for the military to turn back ships before they reach Canadian waters.
Navy officials said the latest ship appeared to be in better shape than the
earlier arrivals in boats that were decrepit former fishing boats crudely
refitted with wooden sleeping planks to carry people.
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