Spanish Warship Rescues Ship Hijacked by Nigerian Pirates
*ITF launches new network to respond to seafarers under threat
WMN..A Spanish warship has rescued the crew of a merchant ship which had been held hostage by Nigerian pirates for four days.
According to the Spanish defense ministry, the merchant ship was freed in the Gulf of Guinea on April 9.
As explained, the unnamed vessel displayed unusual behavior and did not respond to radio contacts, prompting the Spanish Navy ship Serviola to carry out an inspection.
As the navy crews were approaching the vessel in rigid hulled inflatable boats, the pirates fled. The nine perpetrators were reportedly armed with AK-47 rifles and grenade launchers.
The authorities further said that the pirates robbed the ship’s Nigerian crew in addition to looting a portion of the ship’s provisions.
Serviola supplied food and drink to the crew and the merchant vessel proceeded to Lagos port, according to World Maritime News.
Meanwhile, unions from across Latin America have committed to jointly providing assistance and solidarity to seafarers in distress in Central and South American ports, the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) said.
A meeting in Cartagena held last week culminated with the launch of the ITF Latin American Contact Network.
The ITF Latin American Contact Network follows the establishment of the Arab World network launched in January 2017 with the aim of developing a stronger structure of union contracts to handle calls for help and the coordination of cases where seafarers face exploitation.
Representatives from ITF affiliated unions in Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Peru and Uruguay participated in a two-day training course on April 4-5. The course focused on seafarers’ labor rights under the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC), ITF Agreements and the Flag of Convenience (FoC) system, and the role of the ITF Inspectorate in protecting seafarers’ working and living conditions.
As explained, the network would bolster the ITF’s capacity to enforce standards for employment conditions in the Latin American region and ensure that shipowners are complying with their obligations to provide decent pay, working conditions and living conditions on board.
“Our goal is to increase our capacity to provide credible support to seafarers who request assistance in these countries and also to assist with organising and intelligence gathering for all ITF maritime campaigns,” Steve Trowsdale, ITF Inspectorate Coordinator, commented.
“Across Latin America seafarers and dockers have been subject to attacks on their rights to safe and decent work, we will mobilise this network to respond to any worker under threat. We’re committed to defending the rights of exploited international seafarers, protecting seafarers working in their domestic trade and dockers doing the heavy lifting on the shoreside,” he added.
..Culled from World Maritime News..
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