Filipino seafarers at the brunt of the Red Sea shipping crisis demand change

The Filipino seafaring community is very much in the headlines with survivors of last week’s deadly bulk carrier attack in the Gulf of Aden touching down in Manila yesterday and the government vowing to work harder to ensure the crew on a car carrier abducted nearly four months ago by the Houthis are freed. 

The government in Manila is now working with envoys of other countries to negotiate for the release of 25 seafarers, 17 of them Filipinos, who were seized by Houthi rebels as their car carrier Galaxy Leader (pictured) transited near Yemen on November 19 last year.

Foreign undersecretary Eduardo De Vega voiced his frustration at how long it was taking to free the Galaxy Leader crew at a press briefing yesterday.

“I want to take the opportunity in this occasion to ensure the families that we haven’t forgotten them. We have been doing everything that we can do although it’s not just really a Philippine issue, it’s a global issue,” he said.

The ship owned by Ray Car Carriers and operated by Japan’s Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK) was hijacked by the Houthis in waters near the Yemeni coastline and then taken to Salif port in Yemen with De Vega suggesting yesterday the health of the crew has deteoriated in the intervening 114 days.

A statement from the ship’s owner yesterday called on the Houthis to show some compassion during Ramadan which started this week. 

“The Houthi authorities have expressed their intent to release the crew subject to the approval of Hamas.  In line with the start of Ramadan and its focus on spiritual reflection and growth, together with forgiveness and acts of charity, the crew’s families call on the Houthis to release the 25 innocent seafarers,” the ship’s owner stated.

Arsenio Dominguez, the secretary-general of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), has made repeated calls for the crew to be freed. 

“Seafarers are innocent victims, and their safety is paramount,” Dominguez has said repeatedly during the ongoing breakdown in safety in Middle Eastern waters. 

Last week two Filipinos and a Vietnamese were killed when the True Confidence, a bulk carrier, was struck by a Houthi missile, the first fatalities in the five-month long Red Sea shipping crisis.  Four others were wounded in the missile attack. Eleven of the victims’ fellow seafarers have been repatriated back to the Philippines.

Speaking on behalf of the crew, second officer Mark Anthony Dagohoy told reporters it was difficult to recall the details of the incident which led to their vessel becoming engulfed in flames.

“We are devastated. Because we bonded with them over meals, and then things turned out that way. It really hurts for us, especially for the families,” Dagohoy said at a press conference organised at Manila airport.

The government has given each Filipino survivor an initial financial assistance of $1,000.

The Associated Marine Officers’ and Seamen’s Union of the Philippines (AMOSUP), meanwhile, has urged shipowners and principals to divert their vessels, regardless of the flag state, around the Cape of Good Hope, until safe transit through the Red Sea can be guaranteed.

“All maritime stakeholders and government authorities (are to work) collaboratively in taking necessary measures to ensure the safety and security of our seafarers working onboard ships in the warlike and high-risk areas of international waters,” AMOSUP said in a statement.