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Showing posts from May, 2020
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Better be criminal than seaman On 2020 May 22 14 Tunisian migrants on board of passenger ferry MOBY ZAZA, serving as migrants quarantine ship at Porto Empedocle, Sicily, rioted, and demanded immediate landing. Their demand was satisfied, all were taken ashore to a “reception center”, so the only question still unanswered is the question of Italian authorities – did they plea for forgiveness, for being as cruel as that, and confine illegal migrants on board of a luxury Mediterranean passenger ferry? Earlier this week, one Tunisian migrant fell overboard from MOBY ZAZA and drowned, switching all related NGOs and media into a “righteous rage” mode. The cost of keeping illegal migrants on board of MOBY ZAZA is some 4,000 Eu/month/per-migrant, and there already some 250 of them on board of unfortunate ferry. All mainstream media are presently, full of pathetic stories of cruise and merchant ships crews, being stuck on ships and having no perspective or hope, of leaving them soon. Cr

Who is Responsible for Seafarers Stranded by the Pandemic?

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BY Chevnav Charles  04-29-2020 08:16:22  There is a saying that goes that "without seafarers, half the world would starve while the other half would freeze." The shipping industry would grind to a halt without seafarers, and their contribution to their countries is a key factor in economic development. Hundreds of thousands of seafarers are currently stranded on ships and cannot disembark because of lockdown policies. The novel COVID-19 coronavirus has caused many nations to close their borders, leaving the welfare of seafarers in question.  Many seafarers go to sea for many months at a time, but with the change that this pandemic brings, there is a legitimate cause for concern. The emotional, financial, and psychological well-being of seafarers onboard ships that are currently caught between a rock and a hard place is a tremendous ordeal.  This problem has sparked a lot of debate over who bears responsibility for the return or repatriation of seafarers. Should