110 Rally Yachts Impounded in Indonesia

by Rebekah Cavanagh, NT News/Sail-World on 6 Aug 2008 Customs officers boarded the 120 vessels in a Sail Indonesia Rally when they arrived in Kupang last week from Darwin. The officers slapped a sticker on each boat saying they could not leave the port and if they did they could face a fine of more than $17,000.

Ironically, the Sail Indonesia Rally was officially started in Darwin on 26th July by the Indonesian Consul to Darwin Mr Harbangan Napitupulu. It's unlikely that he expected the Rally Yachts to be impounded by his own authorities as soon as they arrived their first Indonesian port.

The 110 yachts, which hailed from everywhere from Norway to New Zealand, had made the start line a great spectacle with one of the largest mass starts of yachts anywhere in Australia or South East Asia, but they were unprepared for running into trouble with the authorities so soon.

Shocked crew members said there were usually no problems during the annually organised sailing rallies from Darwin to Indonesia.

American yacht Mata'irea, a Tayana 47, was the first to arrive at the port, having left 20 hours prior to the rally start to catch a good forecast. Skipper Danika Haueisen told on her personal online blog site http://matairea.blogspot.com of how Customs boarded their yacht.

'It appears that Sail Indonesia failed to bribe the right officials,' she said.

'Customs took our original clearance from Darwin and some paperwork that we filled out for them.

'Then they slapped a big white sticker on one of our hatches to indicate that our vessel had been impounded pending completion of the clearance process.

'So we're all stuck in Kupang until they get it sorted out.'

But event organiser David Woodhouse, of Darwin, told the Northern Territory News from Indonesia that the Customs request was 'not a big deal'.

'It was just a bureaucratic mix-up between Customs and the Kupang Government,' he said.

'The boats were not allowed to leave the port of Kupang for two days while they sorted it out.'

Mr Woodhouse said it was a Customs regulation that a bond -- usually 10 per cent of the value of the vessel -- be paid on commercial vessels arriving in Kupang and that there had been a misunderstanding about whether rally competitors had to fork out the money.

'They do not have to pay it,' Mr Woodhouse said. 'It was just a paperwork mix-up.'

After a two-day 'stand-off' Kupang authorities resolved the problem and gave the skippers and crew a 'huge welcome' to the coastal town, including complimentary tours and a formal reception dinner.

The fleet of yachts, all problems solved, have now left Kupang bound for the rest of their journey through Indonesia.

Sail Indonesia is conducted by the Indonesian Marine Foundation (YCBI) and supported by the the Indonesian Government Department of Culture and Tourism in co-operation with Raffles Marina in Singapore.

Origins of the Rally:

In December 2000 as a result of an initiative from the Indonesian Ministry of Tourism and Mr Aji Sularso from the Indonesian Ministry of Maritime Affairs, it was decided to arrange a co-ordinated series of yacht races and rallies originating from both Darwin and Fremantle in Western Australia to Bali, then on to Pulau Seribu north of Jakarta and then to Batam just south of Singapore.
It was planned that these events would carry on the traditions of the Darwin to Ambon Yacht Race which had been held for over 20 years from 1976 but ceased in 1999 as a result of civil unrest on the island of Ambon and the surrounding areas.