Tag: abandonment of seafarers

Global maritime charity Stella Maris has stepped in to provide emergency relief for 16 crew members on a fishing vessel left abandoned in Mombasa port in Kenya since March this year.

Eleven seafarers trapped aboard the Haj Abdulla are at extreme risk, with the ship taking on water off Mogadishu, Somalia, ITF informed.

There are currently 400,000 seafarers stuck at sea, according to IMO, due to government’s travel restrictions to prevent the spread of COVID-19. What is more, the number of reported abandonment cases doubled from 40 in 2019 to 85 in 2020, according to the International Labour Organization, with seafarers taking a significant hit in their wellbeing. 

21 months living with COVID-19 and the global shipping community, as well as the global supply chain, is still in crisis. On one hand, container shipping experiences unforeseen delays, while on the other hand, seafarers remain stranded, working with extended contracts due to the difficulties of crew changes. And what is worse; it seems that a return to normal is not on the cards just yet…

The alleged abandoned Ali Bey's Syrian crew have been aboard the detained vessel at the port of Constanta, Romania since last November, and they are still waiting for a claimed $186,000 in allegedly unpaid back pay.

The 108th session of IMO's Legal Committee (LEG 108) took place on 26-30 July 2021, touching upon a wide range of shipping regulatory cases. The meeting put the issue of abandonment of seafarers high on the agenda, discussing, among others, a proposal to establish a fund to support seafarers impacted by abandonment. 

The Master of the Panama-flagged MV Ali Bey has provided a voluntary video testimony to Human Rights at Sea, explaining the privations that he and three Syrian crew members suffer.

Five Indian seafarers, who have been stranded in Iran's Chabahar port for two years now, are seeking help of the Indian government to return home.

Ship abandonment is one of the most difficult challenge seafarers could face, and the numbers of such cases are increasing lately.

Crew abandonments continue to be a major issue in shipping with the number of vessels listed on the international abandonment database rising from 34 in 2018, to 40 in 2019, to a record high of 85 in 2020, ITF reported.