Ten years ago, hundreds of asylum seekers left Indonesia bound for Australia. Their journey took an unexpected turn when their fishing vessel hit mechanical trouble and they were rescued by the Norwegian freighter, the Tampa. They then found themselves at the centre of a diplomatic stand-off which made headlines around the world.
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Insight reunites some of the resettled refugees to find out
what’s happened over the last decade, and what their lives are like now.
One
is now a painter living in Western Australia who almost lost everything
at the local casino. One is a customs officer in Auckland who thrived
when a local public servant took him under her wing. And another is a
hotel night manager in Wellington who insists he isn’t going to give up
on trying to find the wife and child he left behind.
Join Insight
for this raw and frank discussion in the week of the ten year
anniversary of the Tampa incident.
Meet the Guests
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Mohammad Ali Amiri
Mohammad Ali Amiri lives in Wellington, New Zealand, and works two jobs – he’s a hotel night manager and a tailor. Ten years ago he fled Afghanistan at age 24, leaving behind his wife and son. He was rescued by the Tampa and sent to Nauru where he stayed for three years until he was granted refugee status by New Zealand. In January this year he was able to bring his parents, four brothers and two sisters to live with him in Wellington. Despite much searching, he has never found his wife and child.
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Assadullah Nazari
Assadullah Nazari lives in Auckland where he works for Customs. He says his family smuggled him out of Afghanistan when he was 15 after two of his brothers were killed by the Taliban. He boarded a fishing boat in Indonesia and was later rescued by the Tampa. Assadullah was one of 36 unaccompanied minors who became known as the ‘Tampa boys’ – they were quickly transferred to New Zealand after the then Prime Minister, Helen Clark, agreed to resettle them there.
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Akbari Wahidulla
Akbari Wahidulla, better known as “Wahid”, lives in Auckland with his wife and baby daughter. He’s been struggling to find work as a plasterer. He left Afghanistan at age 17 and ended up in New Zealand as one of the ‘Tampa boys’. He met Assadullah on the Tampa and they remain close friends.
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Abdul Farid Sufizada
Abdul Farid Sufizada, known as “Farid”, lives near Fremantle and works as a painter. Farid says he fled Afghanistan at age 23 after being kidnapped by the Taliban. He left behind his wife and three sons. After being rescued by the Tampa, Farid spent two years on Nauru. He gained refugee status in 2003 and moved to Perth on a temporary protection visa. The visa restrictions on travelling meant Farid was unable to see his wife and children for over six years. His family finally joined him in Australia in 2009.
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Fauzia Sufizada
Fauzia Sufizada is married to Abdul Farid Sufizada. After Farid fled Afghanistan, Fauzia and her sons moved in with Farid’s parents in Peshawar, Pakistan. During the long years there, Fauzia says it was too dangerous for her to leave the house and she felt isolated. She only spoke to Farid on the phone once a week and says it was hard raising her children without their father. She and Farid are now living with their sons near Fremantle and she is pregnant.
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Julie Sutherland
Julie Sutherland works for Child, Youth and Family Services in New Zealand. In 2001 she was tasked with looking after 36 unaccompanied minors being resettled in New Zealand who became known as the ‘Tampa boys’. Julie helped the boys for more than two years while they lived in an Auckland dormitory, often taking their phone calls in the middle of the night, and taking them on shopping trips.
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