Indonesia takes rescued asylum seekers September 27, 2013 - 5:06PM A group of 44 asylum seekers have been taken to a port in Java after being rescued by an Australian navy vessel in the Sunda Strait. The group, which included four children, were offloaded at Indah Kiat port at Banten in the western part of Java at about 8am local time on Friday. A spokesman for the Indonesian search and rescue agency, BASARNAS, said the asylum seekers were picked up by HMAS Ballarat before being transferred to a coast guard vessel last night. The asylum seekers first alerted the Australian Maritime and Safety Authority early on Thursday morning that their vessel had started taking on water. It's understood HMAS Ballarat was then granted permission by local authorities to enter Indonesian territory to affect the rescue. The incident comes amid a ramping up in tensions between Canberra and Jakarta over the asylum seeker issue, and days ahead of talks in Jakarta between Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.