MV ''Tampa'' was a

roll-on/roll-off Roll-on/roll-off (RORO or ro-ro) ships are cargo ships designed to carry wheeled cargo, such as cars, motorcycles, trucks, semi-trailer trucks, buses, trailers, and railroad cars, that are driven on and off the ship on their own wheels or using ...

container ship A container ship (also called boxship or spelled containership) is a cargo ship that carries all of its load in truck-size intermodal containers, in a technique called containerization. Container ships are a common means of commercial intermoda ...

completed in 1984 by Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. in South Korea for the Norway-based firm, Wilhelmsen Lines Shipowning. In 2001, the vessel was at the centre of the Tampa Affair when its crew rescued 433 refugees in international waters, but the Australian government refused permission for them to disembark on

Christmas island Christmas Island, officially the Territory of Christmas Island, is an Australian external territory comprising the island of the same name. It is located in the Indian Ocean, around south of Java and Sumatra and around north-west of the ...

Service history

Tampa affair

In August 2001, under Captain

Arne Rinnan Arne Frode Rinnan is the former captain of the MV Tampa, which in 2001 was refused access to Australia to disembark 433 rescued refugees - in what became known as the Tampa affair. Rinnan and his crew were awarded the Nansen Refugee Award in 2002. ...

, a diplomatic dispute brewed between Australia,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of ...

, and

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Gui ...

after ''Tampa'' rescued 438 Afghans from a distressed fishing vessel in international waters. The Afghans wanted passage to nearby Christmas Island. The

Australian government The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Like other Westminster-style systems of government, the Australian Governmen ...

sought to prevent this by refusing ''Tampa'' entry into Australian waters, insisting on their disembarkment elsewhere, and deploying the

Special Air Service Regiment The Special Air Service Regiment, officially abbreviated SASR though commonly known as the SAS, is a special forces unit of the Australian Army. Formed in 1957, it was modelled on the British SAS sharing the motto, "Who Dares Wins". The re ...

to board the ship.Tampa-saken
in

Store norske leksikon The ''Great Norwegian Encyclopedia'' ( no, Store Norske Leksikon, abbreviated ''SNL''), is a Norwegian-language online encyclopedia. The online encyclopedia is among the most-read Norwegian published sites, with more than two million unique vi ...

At the time of the incident, ''Tampa'' carried cargo worth , and 27 crew. The crew of ''Tampa'' received the Nansen Refugee Award for 2002 from the

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is a United Nations agency mandated to aid and protect refugees, forcibly displaced communities, and stateless people, and to assist in their voluntary repatriation, local integrati ...

(UNHCR) for their efforts to follow international principles of saving people in distress at sea.

Cocaine smuggling bust

In October 2006, MV ''Tampa'' was one of two Wilhelmsen ships involved in a

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly used recreationally for its euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from the leaves of two Coca species native to South Am ...

-smuggling operation intercepted by the New Zealand Customs Service and the

Australian Federal Police The Australian Federal Police (AFP) is the national and principal federal law enforcement agency of the Australian Government with the unique role of investigating crime and protecting the national security of the Commonwealth of Australia. ...

. of cocaine was allegedly attached to the side of the two cargo ships bound for Australia in purpose-built metal pods, although New Zealand authorities stated they did not believe the ship's crew or owners were involved.

References

Bibliography

* David Marr, Maria Wilkinson: ''Dark Victory - How a government lied its way to political triumph''. Allen & Unwin 2004, .

External links

Update on status of detainees. Accessed 25 June 2005. {{DEFAULTSORT:Tampa 2001 in Australia Container ships History of immigration to Australia International maritime incidents Law of the sea Maritime incidents in 2001 Ships built by Hyundai Heavy Industries Group 1983 ships Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics Ro-ro ships Articles containing video clips