Jakarta , Indonesia ( CNN ) -- They had gambled with their lives to journey from as far as Iraq and Lebanon in search of a better life . But for 22 people the wager ended in death off the coast of Indonesia , after their vessel capsized , a government spokesman said Saturday . Many children lay among the lifeless bodies authorities pulled from the seas of the coast off West Java . But 28 others emerged alive from the waters and received treatment for minor injuries at a hospital in Cianjur , said Martinus Sitompol , an Indonesian government spokesman . Rescuers continue to search for 30 more people believed to be on the boat , when it overturned . Their fate is yet uncertain . Many of them likely lie buried far beneath the waves . Sitompol could only wager a guess why the boat capsized . He said some on the boat were from Iraq and Lebanon . `` It 's possible they ran out of fuel , '' he surmised . `` It 's possible that they did n't know how to man or steer the boat . '' There are many ways for overfilled , unseaworthy crafts off the coast of Indonesia to spill the people they were carrying into the ocean . It happens many times a year . The Australian media said the vessel was headed for Australia 's Christmas Island , a common landing point for such boats . For some , Australia is the land of their hopes , but the government there has had its fill of capsizing , broken down refuge boats and enacted legislation this year to dash them . It is now forbidden for illegal immigrants arriving by boat to ever live on Australian soil . This mishap precedes a visit by new Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott to Indonesia . Such dangerous boats carrying asylum seekers from Indonesia to Australian shores have long been a sore spot with its government .
Many children lay among the lifeless bodies authorities pulled from the seas . The death toll is expected to rise as rescue teams continue their search for more victims. Rescuers continue to search for 30 more whose fate is uncertain . For many , Australia is the land of their hopes , but the government forbids boat people .