Following the Suez Canal blockage, representatives of the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) recently boarded the MV Ever Given in order to check on the health and welfare of the crew.
To remind, the grounding of the 400-meter-long ship Ever Given in the southern section of the canal on March 23 blocked the Suez Canal for nearly a week, causing a major disruption in global trade flows as it prevented hundreds of ships from passing the world’s major shipping trade route.
The ship is currently anchored in a lake between two sections of the canal, as it is caught in a legal dispute, since local authorities informed that Egypt will not release it until its owners agree to pay the USD 1 billion compensation.
However, two crew members of the container ship will be allowed to return to India due to urgent personal reasons, the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) confirmed on Thursday.
In light of the situation, ITF Arab World and Iran Network Coordinator Mohamed Arrachedi worked closely to have the two ITF contacts in Egypt to board the vessel and perform welfare checks on the crew under his direction.
According to Mohamed Arrachedi:
We are pleased to inform the world that the crew of the Ever Given is in good spirits, and doing well. The crew were pleased to see ITF Egyptian union officials, who greeted them and expressed the solidarity of the global seafaring family.
As further explained, the crew are understandably sensitive at moment, as they wait to see the what will happen with arguments between authorities and other parties. They are eager to sail, or know that they will be able to go home and see their families if the ship cannot leave Egypt soon.
Mr Arrachedi said that no seafarer wages or contract violations were found by the ITF representatives, and all crew had received their wages for March. He said the crew had sufficient food provisions. The ITF delivered devices for the crew to connect to the internet.
“We have been in contact with the crew and there were no welfare issues raised for the time being. We continue to monitor the situation and the crew know we are available to support where needed, ”…. said Arrachedi.
For the records, the seafarers are represented by the National Union of Seafarers of India (NUSI), which has been advocating for them with employers and Egyptian authorities.
NUSI General Secretary Abdulgani Y Serang called on Egyptian authorities to allow the release of the crew as per their normal contract conclusions and not keep crew onboard.
It has been unclear if the Indian crew will be allowed to leave via Egypt, as arguments continue between the ship’s insurer and the Suez Canal Authority. The authority is claiming USD $916 million in damages from the UK P&I Club, which insured the Ever Given.
“We urge Egyptian authorities to make clear that all of the Ever Given 25 crew will be allowed to leave at the normal conclusion of their contracts. We cannot have a situation where the crew are effectively being held hostage as financial negotiations that do not concern the seafarers continue between parties”.
Mr Serang said the union was prepared to fight any accusations that seafarers were to blame for the events leading to the Ever Given’s blockage of the canal. He believed that investigations would clear the seafarers’ professionalism.
What is more, ITF Seafarers’ Section Chair David Heindel said the past year had been tough for seafarers and continues into this year.
It’s time to treat seafarers as key workers with the respect they deserve – and we can start by getting each and every crew member from the Ever Given home to their families at the conclusion of their respective contracts.