By Rob Taylor
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, who won victory for centre-left Labor in November, fought the election on a pledge to end the heavily-criticised "Pacific Solution", introduced by the former conservative government in 2001 to turn back boatpeople after almost 5,000 arrived the year before.
Former Prime Minister John Howard introduced the policy in late 2001, splitting the nation between critics and supporters, after a standoff involving 439 mostly-Afghan refugees blocked from landing in Australia by special forces soldiers.
During the next six years, more than 1,300 asylum seekers were processed on Nauru, while others were sent to Manus Island in Papua New Guinea in return for millions of dollars in aid from Australia's government.
Rudd's Labor said the policy had wasted more than A$300 million (138 million pounds) since its introduction and shut the door on it with the departure of 21 Sri Lankan refugees for settlement in Australia.
Canberra said it would retain a tough border policy through a purpose-built detention centre on remote Christmas Island, in the Indian Ocean between Australia and Indonesia.
($1=A$1.12)
