Shipowners can improve communication, to prevent misinformation and minimize the feeling of abandonment for seafarers, said Ms. Caitlin Vaughan, Project Manager at ISWAN during a webinar last week.
The International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) reported that 15 seafarers remain stranded onboard the Spanish-flagged ship “MV Celanova” which does not have a rudder, and lacks electricity, lights, wi-fi, refrigeration, GPS, security or safety lights.
The ITF sheds light on two more crew abandonment incidents, where 25 seafarers remain stranded onboard two bulk carriers at anchor in the Port of Djibouti. The stranded seafarers are onboard the Liberia-flagged MV Ptolemeos and MV Arrybas.
A workshop organized by key UN and European instruments took place in Lisbon Portugal, on 18-20 February, aimed to help all stakeholders, particularly, developing countries, build the capacity they need to ratify and implement the MLC.
Five fishermen were adrift in the Indian Ocean following their vessel’s engine failure and were then saved by the maritime charity Stella Maris (Apostleship of the Sea), which towed the ship and brought the fishermen back to shore.
The Greek government is working on many levels to get back the four sailors who remain stranded off Djibouti since September, said Greek Minister of Shipping Giannis Plakiotakis. The crew were detained on two ships, in September.
10 Kenyan seafarers who had travelled to Pemba, Mozambique through Tanzania in August 2019, in order to work on the EU-bound vessel MV Nina were recently rescued by the ITF. The seafarers arrived in Nairobi, Kenya, Tuesday, January 7, prior to traveling home to Mombasa.
As ISWAN’s Regional Programme provides support to seafarers and their families in South and South East Asia and Nigeria, it now provides support to the crew that was arrested by the Nigerian Navy for illegal bunkering, through their time in prison, as well as after their release.
The Maritime Law to be implemented by the UAE, aims to protect abandoned seafarers, extinguish ‘ghost ships’ in its waters and allow 100% foreign ownership of maritime companies. The maritime law will come into force by early next year.
The ITF continued its collaboration with the Government of the United Arab Emirates, during a meeting in Dubai. ITF and UAE discussed the successful cooperation on helping seafarers abandoned in UAE waters. The partners talked abandoned seafarers, discussed future work and assessed the ITF-UAE memorandum of understanding (MOU).
