DIRECTOR KATSUJI TAKI OCEANGOING SEAFARERS DEPT., INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS BUREAU T he blessing and inaugu- ration ceremony of the new seamen’s facility in Cebu was successfully held on May 1. Named the “JSU-PSU Mariners’ Court-Cebu,” this facili- ty had been under construction on the island of Central Visayas since last year. The honorable guests during the inauguration included Capt. Yoji Fujisawa, president of the All Japan Seamen’s Union (JSU), and JSU staff; Marianito D. Roque, Secretary of the Depart- ment of Labor and Employment (DOLE); Angelo Verdan, general manager of the Cebu Port Authority; and representatives of the Philippine-Japan Manning Consultative Council (PJMCC) and the International Mariners Management Association of Japan (IMMAJ) joined the cele- bration with hundreds of trade unionists and their families who are based on the island as well as other neighboring islands. Roque, in his speech, extend- ed his sincere gratitude for the contribution from the JSU for the Filipino seafarers. In this regard, Fujisawa also empha- sized that the JSU has to date organized over 50,000 non- domiciled members, the majori- ty of which are Filipinos. He added that it was a great plea- sure for the JSU to contribute toward such a facility, fulfilling its responsibility as a union in the country of beneficial owner- ship and control. The new facility, which is locat- ed in the port area of Cebu, was Mariners’ Court, See Page 2 Protection against swine flu Page 3 I N S I D E T he JSU recently discussed and confirmed with the Japanese Shipowners’ Asso- ciation (JSA) and the International Mariners Management Association of Japan the designation of a new high-risk area in waters off the east coast of Somalia to ensure the safe- ty of commercial ships flying the Japanese national flag and operat- ed by Japanese shipping compa- nies, as well as the welfare of JSU members. In the Gulf of Aden off Somalia, naval ships deployed by many countries, including Japan, are intensifying efforts to escort vessels. However, in waters east of Somalia, there has been an increase in the number of ships being attacked by pirates and armed bandits. The JSU has therefore asked the JSA and the IMMAJ to discuss mea- sures to address the piracy and armed robberies in the Gulf of Aden and waters off the east coast of Somalia, and they have accept- ed the request. There are two high-risk areas – one in the Gulf of Aden and the other in waters east of Somalia. Below is an outline of the letter of confirmation that the JSU received from the JSA and the IMMAJ: T he International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) and the Joint Negotiation Group (JNG) met May 18-19 for the first round of negotiations for the IBF Framework TCC Agree- ment 2010-2011. During the negotiations, they both explained their respective demands. As it is clear from a survey on actual ongoing wages that person- nel costs have increased some 10 percent, the ITF claimed an increase in seafarer employment cost and gave a briefing on basis requests, such as disability due to sickness, shorter contracts (6 months plus or minus 2 months), guaranteed overtime for officers, as well as employment security. Meanwhile, the JNG indicated that it will ask for a 10 percent cut in wages due to the shipping mar- ket crisis, an increase from 5 per- cent to 20 percent the amount of money that it gets back from the IBF Welfare Fund and the resump- tion of considerations on outstand- ing issues. However, the negotiation leader representing the union side clearly stated that the International Bargain- ing Forum will not discuss union member qualifications and fees because these matters are having to do with union autonomy and must be handled by the FOC Campaign Policy Working Committee and agreed on at an ITF congress. The ITF and the JNG both reported on the current state of the DER issue and discussions on the expansion of the IBF high-risk area. After they discussed how they will develop future negotiations, the meeting was concluded. The second round of negotia- tions will be held in Singapore on July 8-9 and the third, in Manila on September 30-October 1. New high-risk areas drawn off Somalia High-risk, See Page 4 1. The waters surrounded by (1), (2), (3) and shoreside will be designated as HIGH-RISK AREAS. (1) The line that links the following five points: a) 11-27N, 043-15E d) 12-39N, 043-26E b) 11-48N, 045-00E e) 12-41N, 043-28E c) 12-00N, 045-00E (2) The line that links the following four points: a) 16-40N, 053-07E c) 14-18N, 053-00E b) 14-30N, 053-00E d) 12-33N, 054-31E (3) The line that links the following two points: a) 12-39N, 053-25E b) 11-50N, 051-17E 2. The waters surrounded by (1), (2), (3), (4) and shoreside will be also designated as HIGH RISK AREAS. (1) The line that links the following two points: a) 12-39N, 053-25E b) 11-50N, 051-17E (2) The line that links the following three points: a) 12-33N, 054-31E c) 11-50N, 058-05E b) 12-33N, 058-01E 1st negotiation of 2010-11 IBF Framework TCC Blessing and inauguration of new seamen’s facility The JSU-PSU Mariners’ Court-Cebu located at Pier-1, Port Area, Cebu City The IBF negotiation attended by JSU representatives
Transcript
DIRECTOR KATSUJI TAKIOCEANGOING SEAFARERS DEPT., INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS BUREAU
The blessing and inaugu-ration ceremony of thenew seamen’s facility in
Cebu was successfully held onMay 1. Named the “JSU-PSUMariners’ Court-Cebu,” this facili-ty had been under constructionon the island of Central Visayassince last year.
The honorable guests duringthe inauguration included Capt.Yoji Fujisawa, president of theAll Japan Seamen’s Union (JSU),
and JSU staff; Marianito D.Roque, Secretary of the Depart-ment of Labor and Employment(DOLE); Angelo Verdan, generalmanager of the Cebu PortAuthority; and representatives ofthe Philippine-Japan ManningConsultative Council (PJMCC)and the International MarinersManagement Association ofJapan (IMMAJ) joined the cele-bration with hundreds of tradeunionists and their families whoare based on the island as wellas other neighboring islands.
Roque, in his speech, extend-ed his sincere gratitude for the
contribution from the JSU forthe Filipino seafarers. In thisregard, Fujisawa also empha-sized that the JSU has to dateorganized over 50,000 non-domiciled members, the majori-ty of which are Filipinos. Headded that it was a great plea-sure for the JSU to contributetoward such a facility, fulfillingits responsibility as a union inthe country of beneficial owner-ship and control.
The new facility, which is locat-ed in the port area of Cebu, was
Mariners’ Court, See Page 2
Protectionagainstswine fluPage 3
INSIDE
The JSU recently discussedand confirmed with theJapanese Shipowners’ Asso-
ciation (JSA) and the InternationalMariners Management Associationof Japan the designation of a newhigh-risk area in waters off the eastcoast of Somalia to ensure the safe-ty of commercial ships flying theJapanese national flag and operat-ed by Japanese shipping compa-nies, as well as the welfare of JSUmembers.
In the Gulf of Aden off Somalia,naval ships deployed by manycountries, including Japan, areintensifying efforts to escort vessels.
However, in waters east of
Somalia, there has been anincrease in the number of shipsbeing attacked by pirates andarmed bandits.
The JSU has therefore asked theJSA and the IMMAJ to discuss mea-sures to address the piracy andarmed robberies in the Gulf ofAden and waters off the east coastof Somalia, and they have accept-ed the request.
There are two high-risk areas –one in the Gulf of Aden and theother in waters east of Somalia.
Below is an outline of the letterof confirmation that the JSUreceived from the JSA and theIMMAJ:
The International TransportWorkers’ Federation (ITF)and the Joint Negotiation
Group (JNG) met May 18-19 forthe first round of negotiations forthe IBF Framework TCC Agree-ment 2010-2011.
During the negotiations, theyboth explained their respectivedemands.
As it is clear from a survey onactual ongoing wages that person-nel costs have increased some 10percent, the ITF claimed anincrease in seafarer employmentcost and gave a briefing on basisrequests, such as disability due tosickness, shorter contracts (6months plus or minus 2 months),guaranteed overtime for officers,as well as employment security.
Meanwhile, the JNG indicatedthat it will ask for a 10 percent cutin wages due to the shipping mar-ket crisis, an increase from 5 per-cent to 20 percent the amount ofmoney that it gets back from theIBF Welfare Fund and the resump-tion of considerations on outstand-ing issues.
However, the negotiation leaderrepresenting the union side clearlystated that the International Bargain-ing Forum will not discuss unionmember qualifications and feesbecause these matters are having todo with union autonomy and mustbe handled by the FOC CampaignPolicy Working Committee andagreed on at an ITF congress.
The ITF and the JNG both
reported on the current state of theDER issue and discussions on theexpansion of the IBF high-riskarea.
After they discussed how theywill develop future negotiations,the meeting was concluded.
The second round of negotia-tions will be held in Singapore onJuly 8-9 and the third, in Manila onSeptember 30-October 1.
New high-risk areasdrawn off Somalia
High-risk, See Page 4
1. The waters surrounded by (1), (2), (3) and shoreside will bedesignated as HIGH-RISK AREAS.
(1) The line that links the following five points:a) 11-27N, 043-15E d) 12-39N, 043-26Eb) 11-48N, 045-00E e) 12-41N, 043-28Ec) 12-00N, 045-00E
(2) The line that links the following four points:a) 16-40N, 053-07E c) 14-18N, 053-00Eb) 14-30N, 053-00E d) 12-33N, 054-31E
(3) The line that links the following two points:a) 12-39N, 053-25E b) 11-50N, 051-17E
2. The waters surrounded by (1), (2), (3), (4) and shoreside willbe also designated as HIGH RISK AREAS.
(1) The line that links the following two points:a) 12-39N, 053-25E b) 11-50N, 051-17E
(2) The line that links the following three points:a) 12-33N, 054-31E c) 11-50N, 058-05Eb) 12-33N, 058-01E
1st negotiation of 2010-11 IBF Framework TCC
Blessing and inauguration of new seamen’s facility
The JSU-PSU Mariners’ Court-Cebu located at Pier-1, Port Area, Cebu City
The IBF negotiation attended by JSU representatives
(2) MAY/JUNE 2009MARITIME NEWS
BAYANI A. JABOLIJSU UNION OFFICER
The 39 Filipino cadets from theMaritime Academy of Asia and thePacific (MAAP) who boarded theM/V Seiun Maru in April have suc-cessfully finished their two-monthonboard training. A disembarkationceremony was held on May 31 atthe Yamashita Pier in the Port ofYokohama.
The disembarkation ceremonywas attended by representatives ofthe training sponsors, the JSU andIMMAJ, as well as by Capt. ToshioIida, Executive Director for SeaTraining, NIST. Capt. MinoruOkada, who represented theIMMAJ, congratulated the cadetsfor their successful training.
The director of the JSU’s Interna-tional Affairs Bureau, Hideo Ikeda,delivered a congratulatory speechwhere he emphasized the impor-tance of the Filipino crew to theJapanese commercial fleet, and thatthis training was a very importantcomponent for the future of theJapanese shipping industry.
The cadets attested that theyacquired very important knowl-edge in the actual manning of aship. They were all very thankfulto their navigation and engineeringprofessors for the skills theylearned and the kindness and
understanding accorded to themby the ship’s crew.
Meanwhile, training with Japan-ese cadets provided them withexperience in working with a crewof mixed nationalities and under-standing different cultures. Accord-
ing to the professors, the Filipinocadets enjoyed eating Japanesefood with the exception of rawfish, which some could not eat.Along the way, many lessons werelearned, but it was mother naturewho provided them with the mostimportant lesson of all. A daybefore their arrival at Tokyo Bay,the training ship encountered veryrough seas and was rolling atbetween 30 degrees to 40 degrees.One of the professors said that itwas the roughest sea conditionshe had experienced in 17 years.Hopefully, the experience will notdiscourage them to pursue theirdream of becoming professionalseafarers.
Obviously, the two-month train-ing brought out camaraderiebetween the Japanese and Filipinocadets, as many of them wereteary eyed as they said their good-byes. The Filipino cadets willimmediately go back to the MAAPfor further studies, while theJapanese cadets will continue theirshipboard training a few moreweeks.
About 40,000 Filipinoseafarers are likelyto keep their jobs
despite the global economiccrunch, the Japanese Ship-owners’ Association (JSA)said.
The News Today reportedthat the JSA said the workforce is being maintained inpreparation for the influx ofcargo once volumes return.The JSA said these seafarersoperate more than 3,000merchant ships of variouscategories ranging frombulkers to supertankers.
It said that while somemembers are laying up shipsas a cost-cutting measure,they are maintaining theirships’ crews in anticipation ofthe end to the global crisis.
Recently, two Japaneseshipping giants, MitsuiO.S.K. Lines Ltd. (MOL) andKawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd.(“K” Line), announced thatthey will be hiring more Fil-ipino seamen to man theirships.
“K” Line will be hiringaround 3,200 officers andsailors in preparation for itsexpansion of adding around280 vessels to its currentfleet of 420 ships within thenext four years.
For its part, MOL is plan-ning to increase the numberof Filipino sailors from14,000 to 17,800 this year.MOL said the proposedincrease in Filipino sailoremployment is based on thecompany’s plan to increaseits current fleet from 700vessels to 900 vessels by2010.
Proposals to arm sailors oncommercial shipping vessels tobattle pirates could lead to an“arms race” on the high seas, asenior maritime official recentlysaid.
Some shipping companies wanttheir crews to bear arms or usemercenaries to deal with Somalipirates, who have mounted 81attacks between Jan. 1 and April20 this year, compared with 115for all of 2008, according to datafrom the International MaritimeOrganization (IMO).
However, Nicolaos Charalam-bous, deputy director of the IMO,a United Nations body, toldReuters in an interview that arm-ing sailors is not the answer.
“Do we want to turn the wholearea into a naval battle?” he askedwhile attending a conference onpiracy in the Malaysian capital.
“And if you are having firearmson board, where do you draw theline? Somali pirates have the capa-bility of getting more heavy-cal-iber weapons.”
Using satellite trackers, piratesfrom lawless Somalia have struckmerchant ships in the Gulf ofAden and Indian Ocean, capturingdozens of vessels and hundreds ofhostages and making off with mil-lions of dollars in ransom.
U.S. Navy commandos shot andkilled three Somali gunmen inApril to free Richard Phillips, theU.S. ship captain held hostage
who later told congress in Maythat arming some members oncommercial ship crews couldreduce pirate attacks.
Charalambous said the pirateattacks could only be contained bynavies operating in the Gulf ofAden and the only long-term solu-tion was an end to Somalia’s 18years of anarchy that has displacedmillions, killed thousands anddefied 15 attempts to establishcentral rule.
“When you have a proper legalframework and show willingnessto take action on land, then neces-sity of the coast guard comes intothe picture,” he said in responseto a call from a Somali official atthe conference to help set up a
national coast guard.The attacks have disrupted ship-
ping, delayed food aid to eastAfrica, increased insurance costsand persuaded some firms to sendcargoes around South Africainstead of through the Suez Canal,a key route for oil.
“U.N. data has shown that if thisattack rate is sustained, it will easi-ly surpass the record number of115 attacks in 2008 and couldclimb to 200 attacks in 2009,”Charalambous said.
Somali pirates patrol 2.5 millionsquare miles (6.5 million squarekilometers) of ocean, about fourtimes the size of Texas, and can
IMO, See Page 4
Physical abuse of crewmembers,especially from countries such asVietnam and Indonesia aboardfishing vessels is a serious matter,but fishermen are either too afraidto get help or struggle to do so.
This is according to CassiemAugustus, a fishing inspector forthe International Transport Work-ers’ Federation in Cape Town,who regularly receives complaintsof abuse from fishermen dockedin Table Bay Harbor.
The abuse of fishing vesselcrewmembers was highlightedrecently by the arrest of 10 Viet-namese fishermen who hadallegedly held the captain and first
officer hostage aboard the Tai-wanese vessel on which theycrewed.
Police said the 10 alleged theywere being ill-treated and abusedon the vessel and that was whythey had allegedly resorted to thehijacking and holding their superi-ors hostage, while demanding tobe brought to Table Bay Harbor.
Augustus said there were alsoIndonesian crewmembers whohad worked on the vessel and saidthey were being abused.
He said the number of abusecomplaints he has receivedincreased between June and Sep-tember, which is fishing season
and when more vessels dock inthe harbor.
Aside from physical abuse,Augustus said crewmembers ingeneral faced a number of prob-lems, such as poor nutrition.“They’re fed mainly noodles. Ifthey want fresh water they’ve gotto buy it, otherwise they have todrink salt water. There’s no properfirst aid and the sleeping accom-modation isn’t adequate,” he said.
Augustus said Philippinecrewmembers were often recruitedoff farms and sent to Singapore,from where they went to sea aftersigning a three-year contract. Theyoften docked only one-and-a-half
years later, and it was then whenthey contacted him and com-plained about being abused.
“Often once they’ve contactedme, (their boss on the vessel tellsthem) they’re breaking their con-tract. They don’t want to lose theirjobs. Because of language barriersthere’s also poor communication.”
Augustus said he often tried toget hold of the recruiting compa-nies who hired the crewmembers,as some offered to help them, butoften these companies did nothave fixed addresses or contactnumbers.
Cong Dzung Phim, a Viet-namese embassy consultant, said
the embassy had received com-plaints from Vietnamese and Tai-wanese fishing crewmembers.
”They complain that they some-times work over 20 hours straight.They say they are hit. This is notacceptable. The workers can’tleave the vessels when they’re atsea. Some of them run away whenthey reach the harbor,” he said.
A member of the Indonesianconsulate general in Cape Townsaid he sometimes visited vesselsand saw wounds on some of thecrewmembers.
(Source: Independent Online[SOUTH AFRICA] and the CapeTimes)
Jobs safe,says JSA
IMO worried about arming ships to fight piracy
Reports of physical abuse of fishing vessel crewmembers on the rise
under construction in accordancewith the memorandum of under-standing (MoU) confirmed on May2008 among the JSU, Philippine Sea-farers Union (PSU) and other part-ners in both Japan and the Philip-pines to complete the constructionno later than May 1 this year.
The JSU gave a grant for thebuilding, allocating PHP100 million(about US$2.09 million) from theJSU Welfare Fund and $800,000from the JSU/PSU CA training levyfund. The building has 7 floors, arestaurant hall on the ground floor,
a huge convention space availablefor over 1,500 attendees on thethird floor, including a number offunction rooms and classrooms.
According to research by thePSU, as of November 2008, around3,600 Filipino seafarers have been
registered with the JSU as non-domicile members covered byJSU-PSU Collective Agreements.
A JSU representative office is alsolocated on the sixth floor of thebuilding. For the convenience of Fil-ipino seafarers and their families
who are living on islands such asPanay, Negros, Bohol, etc., it isexpected that the JSU-PSU Mariners’Court-Cebu will be utilized for familyevents, parties, as well as briefingseafarers before they board Japanesefleets so that various training andeducation programs can be providedin the future. Hopefully the facilitywill serve as a key station for them.
Mariners’ court: The JSU provides grant totaling over $2.8 million
(3)MAY/JUNE 2009 SEAFARERS’ CORNER
VOICES from SEAFARERS
Crew of M/V KEN SAN
The ship visitations by JSU staff mean a lot to us and we are very gratefulto know that JSU is expanding its support to the seafarers, such as fundingvarious welfare facilities in the Philippines.
From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you!!!
Psychological Lessons
Two sailors on shoreleave were having a drink ina restaurant. They spotteda beautiful woman on thetable next to them.
After mustering enoughcourage, one of the sailorsapproached her and asked,“Would you mind if we talkfor a while?”
At the top of her voice,the woman replied, “No, Iwon’t come over to yourplace tonight!”
Puzzled and humiliated,the sailor went back to histable, with everyone in therestaurant staring at him.
After a while, the womanapproached them and said,“I’m sorry if I embarrassedyou. I am a psychology stu-dent and I am studyinghuman reaction to embar-rassing situations.”
At the top of his lungs,the sailor answered, “Whatdo you mean, $500?”
By ISS John Canto
JOKE CORNER
Crew of M/V GLOBAL SERENITY
We thank the JSU for the welfare goods distributed to us. Please contin-ue the visits to the members.
Crew of M/V INABA with ISS N. Cristobal
We are hoping that the JSU will be able to negotiate for our foodallowance and for our free e-mail access on board. Thanks for the visit andfor listening to our opinions.
Capt. Edgar R. Ortega of M/V STELLAR FORTUNE
Seafarers’ desire to have frequent com-munication with their families and theissue of “telephone access on board” isvery important. We wish for the JSU tonegotiate this matter with shipowners forour benefit.
We are grateful to JSU unionofficers for visiting us on board.We would like to thank the JSUfor its support of the members.
If you’ve been feeling achy andsick, you might worry that youhave the so-called swine flu.
But there are many other viruses orconditions that can cause similarsymptoms.
The symptoms of swine flu arefever, chills, headache, body aches,fatigue, lack of appetite, coughingand sore throat. These are muchlike seasonal flu or other viruses.Vomiting and diarrhea can also beexperienced with swine flu. As withseasonal flu, symptoms of swine fluin humans can vary from mild tosevere.
If you live in or have traveled inareas where swine flu cases havebeen identified and you become illwith influenza-like symptoms, con-tact your doctor. Seek medicalattention if your symptoms aresevere or if you are at high risk forcomplications from the flu.
This includes people 65 or older,children younger than 5 years old,children with chronic medical prob-lems or certain developmental dis-abilities, pregnant women, andthose with certain chronic diseasesor weakened immune systems.Your doctor can determine whetherinfluenza testing or treatment is
needed. If you are sick, stay homeand avoid contact with other peo-ple as much as possible to keepfrom spreading your illness to oth-ers.
The Centers for Disease Controland Prevention (CDC) has deter-mined that this swine influenza A(H1N1) virus is contagious and isspreading from human to humancontact. At this time, though, it isnot known how easily the virusspreads between people.
The flu vaccine for this past fluseason does not offer protectionfrom the swine flu. Fortunately,many who get sick with the H1N1virus have only mild flu-like symp-toms and recover without needingmedical care. Those who are hospi-talized or who are at high risk forcomplications can be treated withantiviral medicines. Oseltamivir(Tamiflu) and Zanamivir (Relenza)have been approved to treat H1N1flu. They can also help preventswine flu in certain people at highrisk for complications who havehad contact with the virus.
The CDC calls for people to takethese common sense precautions:
• Cover your mouth and nose
when you cough or sneeze. Use atissue and then throw it away. Ifyou don’t have a tissue, use yourhand. Then wash your hands to getrid of the germs.
• Wash your hands often, espe-cially after you cough or sneeze.Use soap (any type will do) andwarm water. Scrub for 20 seconds.Rinse well, and dry with a cleantowel or paper towel. If you don’thave access to soap and water, usean alcohol-based hand wipe or gelsanitizer.
• Keep your hands away fromyour face. The H1N1 virus can livefor 2 hours to 8 hours on surfacessuch as doorknobs and desks. Theycan enter your body if you touch acontaminated surface and thentouch your eyes, nose or mouth.
• Steer clear of sick people. Tryto avoid close contact with peoplewho are sick. If possible, stay outof crowds when flu outbreaks arehighest in your area. People whoare at high risk for complicationsfrom the flu virus should considerstaying away from public gather-ings if there has been an outbreakof H1N1 in the area.
• Stay home when you are sick.The CDC recommends that you
stay home from work or schooland limit contact with others tokeep from infecting them.
The CDC recommends that youconsider wearing a face mask ifyou cannot avoid close contactwith someone who has the H1N1virus. Masks and respirators are notrecommended in non-healthcaresettings where frequent exposuresto people with H1N1 flu virus areunlikely. People who are ill with
the H1N1 virus, when they must bearound other people, should alsowear face masks in order to avoidspreading the virus. Someone tak-ing care of a person who is sickwith the H1N1 virus should consid-er wearing a respirator.
You can help keep your immunesystem strong by eating a healthydiet, getting plenty of sleep andgetting regular exercise. (Source:CDC)
How to protect yourself from swine flu
[A ship] is not just a keeland a hull and a deck andsails; that’s what a shipneeds. But what a ship is,really is, is freedom.
A “complacent attitude” tokeeping watch contributed to acollision between two ships in theEnglish Channel, an accidentreport said. The cargo vessel ScotIsles lost 60 tons of marine gas oilin the sea in the accident with theEgyptian bulk carrier Wadi Halfain the Dover Strait.
The Marine Accident Investiga-tion Branch (MAIB) said the ScotIsles watchkeeper did not detectWadi Halfa, while Wadi Halfa’swatchkeeper saw Scot Isles butcould not stop the collision. ScotIsles was heading from Rochester,in Kent, to Antwerp when the col-lision took place in the earlyhours of Oct. 20.
“As a result of a complacentattitude to bridge watchkeepingon both vessels, safety barrierswhich would have warned thebridge watchkeeping officers ofthe risk of a collision were not inplace,” the MAIB report said. “Nolookout was present on eitherbridge at the time of the collision,and the vessels’ radars and otherbridge equipment were not used
effectively.” The oil spillage resulted from
extensive damage to the star-boards side of Scot Isles, with thevessel proceeding to Dunkirk forrepairs. The Wadi Halfa wasdamaged, less severely, on the
port side and it was able toresume its passage to Bremen inGermany.
Safety recommendations madein the MAIB report highlight theimportance of having lookouts.(Source: Shiptalk)
The Belgian government is offering to put mili-tary personnel on its commercial ships to combatpiracy if no protection is available through Atalan-ta, the European Union’s anti-piracy operation.
Belgian shipping companies seeking protectionwill need to give 48 hours notice and payEUR115,000 (US$152,000) to have a team of eightsoldiers on board for a week, the typical journeytime though the Gulf of Aden, Belgian DefenseMinister Pieter De Crem said recently at a press
conference in Brussels.Pirates on April 18 captured the 1,800-ton Bel-
gium-registered Pompei north of the SeychellesIslands and steered the vessel toward Somalia. Thehijacking prompted European dredging companiesto call for more military help to protect shippingthrough the Gulf of Aden.
Pompei, a stone-dumping ship, was seized as itheaded toward Durban, South Africa. (Source:Bloomberg)
Seafarers aboard ships in U.S.waters must have proper creden-tials from May 28, the Coast Guardannounced last month.
The new rule requires that eachcrewmember on a foreign commer-cial vessel en route to a U.S. port orplace of destination – or on a U.S.commercial vessel coming from aforeign port or place of departureto a U.S. port or place of destina-tion – carry and present upondemand an acceptable identifica-tion when in U.S. navigable waters.
The vessel operator is requiredto ensure that crewmembers com-ply.
Maritime attorney Dennis Bryant
said, “This rulemaking is notunexpected and not particularlyonerous.
The only compliance problemmay be with regard to the effec-tive date.”
He noted that foreign seafarerswho do not have an acceptableidentification document will prob-ably be unable to obtain onewithin the next 30 days. So Bryantsuggested that the Coast Guardexercise reasonable enforcementrestraint so mariners can havetime to comply.
Acceptable identification docu-ments include: a passport; a U.S.permanent resident card; a U.S.
merchant mariner doc-ument or U.S. mer-chant mariner creden-tial; a U.S. Trans-portation WorkerIdentification Cre-dential; or a Seafar-er’s IdentificationDocument issuedby or under theauthority of acountry that hasratified the InternationalLabor Organization Seafarers’Identity Documents Convention(Revised), 2003 (ILO 185), meet-ing all of the requirements of ILO185. (Source: Fairplay)
Send inquiries to the attentionof Mr. Masanobu Makizoe,Director, Foreign Trades Dept.
High-risk: Guidelines
IMO: Somali pirates tend to treat hostages well, but not case elsewhere
Belgium offers shipboard guards to thwart piracy
‘Complacency’ blamed in English Channel collision
A report found a helmsman whohad just four hours’ rest in 24hours caused a German container-ship to ground in Melbourne’s PortPhillip Bay last year.
But the Australian Transport Safe-ty Bureau (ATSB) said neither thepilot nor the master on ReedereiAlnwick Harmstorf & Co. Ham-burg’s Francoise Gilot noticed thecrewman had repeated the pilot’sport helm orders but applied star-board helm, until it was too late.
The 1,338-TEU ship grounded at05:40 local time on May 9, 2008when it veered out of the bay’sSouth Channel after rounding theHovell Pile during an ANL/USLvoyage from Melbourne to Syd-ney. It was refloated under its ownpower about two hours later with-out pollution or damage.
The ATSB found the helmsmanhad been insufficiently rested, andthere were insufficient bridgeresources allocated or pilot com-pany reminders to ensure ade-quate checking of roles andresponsibilities during pilotage.(Source: Fairplay)
European tug owners and pilotsrecently sounded an alert aboutdangers posed by ultra-large box-ships.
A panel made up of the Euro-pean Tugowners Association(ETA) and the European Pilots’Association issued their safety con-cerns to class societies, yards andmarine insurance companies.
In particular, the panel said, it iswrong to consider a minimumspeed of 9-11kt as “dead slowahead” when dealing with 10,000-TEU vessels.
“This is definitely too much fortugs and their crews to safely con-nect a towing line,” it warned.
The alliance also raised doubtsabout the structural strength ofhulls and bollards of such largeships.
The safety concerns took centerstage at the ETA’s annual generalmeeting in Lisbon, where JorgMainzer, managing director ofHamburg’s Fairplay Reederei, waselected chairman, succeedingCharo Coll of Boluda, Spain.Richard Knight, U.K. tug owner JPKnight’s CEO, was elected deputychairman. (Source: Fairplay)
The Paris and Tokyo memoran-dum of understanding countriessaid they will begin a jointinspection campaign to ensurecompliance with InternationalConvention for the Safety of Lifeat Sea (SOLAS) Chapter III fromSept. 9.
The focus will be on lifesavingappliances and arrangements withregard to lifeboat launching, theport state control regimes said in ajoint statement. A list of 20 specificitems to verify critical areas for thesafety of lifeboat launchingarrangements will be used.
What is being termed the Con-centrated Inspection Campaignwill last three months, and therewill be about 10,000 inspections.
Its results will be analyzed andpresented to the governing bodiesfor the MoU for submission to theIMO.(Source: Fairplay)
Lifeboat inspectionsto increase
Mega-vesselsafety alertissued in Europe
Tired helmsmangrounds ship
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very easily elude capture fromships from the United States,Europe, China, Japan and otherswho are flocking to the region toprotect sea routes.
Unlike the pirates in some partsof West Africa’s coast, especiallyNigeria, the Somalis tend to treat
their hostages well in hopes ofgetting a higher ransom, the IMOsaid.
That is not the case everywhereand the IMO is concerned by arising tide of piracy in the Gulf ofGuinea in West Africa.
“On the Somali side, all infor-mation shows hijackers tried tokeep crews well. Unfortunately in
Gulf of Guinea, more lives werelost...it’s more political,” Char-alambous said, referring to piracyby armed gangs from Nigeria’soil-rich Niger Delta. “But thatmight change for the Somalipirates if commercial ships arearmed and someone gets killed inthe gun battles,” he said. (Source:Reuters)
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(3) The line that links the follow-ing two points:
a) 01-40S, 041-33E b) 01-40S, 048-12E(4) The line that links the follow-
ing 400 nautical miles east from theeastern Somali coastline and twopoints:
a) 11-50N, 058-05Eb) 01-40S, 048-12E
3. As a general rule, vesselsshould transit the Gulf of Adenthrough the Internationally Rec-ommended Transit Corridor(IRTC) with the following coordi-nates:
