Australia and Malaysia on Monday signed a deal to swap thousands of boatpeople and refugees in a bid to deter future asylum seekers from trying to slip into Australia by sea. Under the agreement, Malaysia will take 800 boatpeople already in Australia in return for Canberra resettling some 4,000 genuine refugees processed by Kuala Lumpur in the next four years. It was signed by Australian Immigration Minister Chris Bowen and Malaysia's Home Affairs Minister Hishammuddin Hussein at a luxury hotel in Kuala Lumpur. The Australian minister said the boatpeople's transfer to Malaysia would begin immediately while asylum seekers heading to Australia would be held for at least 45 days at transit centres around Kuala Lumpur. Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard defended the deal, calling it a blow to people smugglers who she said prey on people desperate to flee from countries like Afghanistan, Iraq and Myanmar.