On one of our cruises, we picked up some people who were stranded in rough seas on a make-shift boat/raft. (we assumed they were refugees, but never got official confirmation).
DCL launched a zodiac-type craft to ward the stranded boat. Before throwing them a line and towing them to our ship, DCL crew circled the small craft several times (we though perhaps to gauge the "threat level"). We heard that the stranded people were brought on the ship, but would be kept quarantined from other passengers until we reached our next port, where they would be handed off to port authorities.