The Day of the Seafarer is celebrated internationally on June 25 every year.
The Day of the Seafarer was established in a resolution adopted by the 2010 Diplomatic Conference in Manila to adopt the revised International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW) Convention to recognise the unique contribution made by seafarers from all parts of the world to the international seaborne trade, the world economy and civil society as a whole.
This resolution encourages Governments, shipping organisations, companies, ship owners, ship managers and all other parties concerned to duly and appropriately promote the Day of the Seafarer and take action to do so meaningfully.
Statistics show that 90 percent of the global trade by volume is moved by the sea. It is the seafarers who make this possible.
It was during the Covid-19 pandemic when global trade was threatened that the contribution of seafarers came to light. Ironically, before that seafarers were merely a number on a ship which sailed from port to port carrying cargo which every country needed to sustain itself.
Many associations quite rightly identified seafarers as key workers or essential workers as it became evident that seafarers had to be on ships braving the pandemic for those ashore to survive.
During the pandemic, seafarers remained unable to disembark for many months from ships while some were stranded in countries unable to return home to their families due to restrictions on travel and entry. At the same time, when they managed to return home after many months at sea, they were sent into isolation at quarantine centres before being allowed to return home. Though faced with a sudden rush of global recognition, they silently weathered the inconveniences and isolation.
Hosannas
While all the hosannas were being sung, seafarers continued to engage in their chosen profession throughout the pandemic while going through immense hardship, isolation and risk of falling victim to the pandemic. Meanwhile, certain countries gave true recognition to the term Essential Worker or Key Worker while some simply used the term in a show of solidarity which was soon to be forgotten.
Fast forward to 2024. Is the seafarer truly recognised as a key worker or essential worker at least now? The answer is still no. Lets look into this from a global as well as Sri Lankan context.
Although the ILO convention on Seafarers Identity Document (SID) is in force, they are required to obtain a visa to enter many countries to join a ship. Obtaining a visa is an arduous task for Sri Lankan seafarers since many embassies of countries have extended their visa processing period from 4 days (pre-Covid-19) to nearly 14 days.
In some cases, this can even extend to months. How such embassies expect ship owners and managers to envisage ship calls a month or even 14 days ahead when it is known that vessels which are tramping are mostly fixed on a voyage basis (port to port) would only be known to those who impose such lengthy visa processing periods.
The difficulties that seafarers face in obtaining visa due to lengthy visa processing time would need to be taken up with the embassies concerned highlighting that Sri Lanka is a signatory to ILO C185 – Seafarers’ Identity Documents Convention (Revised), 2003, as amended (No. 185).
The Maritime Labour Convention has been thrown into a backseat due to the recent development in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. Seafarers who are unarmed have become targets and to add insult to injury, videos of attacks on merchant vessels on which innocent lives have been lost at times are also being uploaded as “military achievements”.
It is time for governments to step up and coordinate efforts to protect seafarers who sail through this area. Diverting ships to take alternative routes is a short term solution which is not commercially sustainable hence governments, especially leading flag states must step in to provide protection to seafarers without simply leaving it up to the United States, United Kingdom, Indian or European navies to do so.
The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea – Part VII states that, “The high seas shall be reserved for peaceful purposes. No State may validly purports to subject any part of the high seas to its sovereignty. Every State, whether coastal or land-locked, has the right to sail ships flying its flag on the high seas”. With all such laws in place, it makes one wonder for how long the world will watch while innocent seafarers are being attacked at sea.
Although maritime nations have agreed that seafarers will be fairly treated in the event of a maritime incident, this is far from reality. Criminalisation of seafarers is very much a concern. When there has been a maritime accident, or a pollution infringement, seafarers have often been detained and denied access to normal rules of fair play and justice with which to defend themselves against criminal charges.
Key workers
Seafarers continue to be confronted with abandonment, imprisonment and exploitation particularly on vessels of certain flag states. As the number of these abandoned seafarers continues to rise, the world needs to start paying attention to their plight. This is a dramaless visually dramatic than the Houthis’ attacks, but it too involves shocking rule-breaking, as an increasing number of sailors are being abandoned by their vessels’ owners and left stuck on board, sometimes, for months or even years.
If seafarers are key workers or essential workers, do they not deserve to be cared for, recognised, protected and respected for what they do to keep our home fires burning by ensuring that global trade continues? Sri Lankan seafarers are not benefited in any way for being identified as key/essential workers. There is no official national recognition of our seafarers for their contribution to the movement of global trade.
We can celebrate the day of the seafarer by a gathering of industry personnel and a few seafarers, but in reality, such events don’t help resolve the multitude of issues concerning our seafarers.
The writer is the CEO of Manaco Marine (Pvt) Ltd
