Seafarers’ Bulletin
NO.20 / 2006
Why is nobody listening to us?
Bulgarian master Martin Bankov has fulfilled his childhood dreams by becoming a ship’s captain for an international shipping company. But after 16 years at sea, he is disillusioned by what he sees as society’s disregard for seafarers.
Unlike almost any other job, where workers rest in a normal living atmosphere, a seafarer works and rests in the same unpleasant environment-experiencing vibrations, pitching and rolling, stormy weather, moisture, heat, cold, toxic vapours, and clock rotation – for months at sea, far away from home.
Seafarers may get the chance to rejoin society briefly when the ship calls at a port, but commercial and legal changes are restricting their opportunities to do so.
Shipping companies are investing in more and more modern terminals around the world. The idea is to increase the speed of cargo handling operations and to facilitate multimodal transport by developing a more effective infrastructure. New terminals are therefore situated far away from cities and close to international highways. The time for cargo processing is between four and ten hours for most types of ships.
At best, seafarers can hope to spend half their time in port resting and the other half watching. If allowed ashore, they need at least two hours to reach the nearest city or seafarers’ club (If there is any ), send a letter or email, or call home, and get back.
OBSTACLES AND EXCUSES
While the process of globalization continues to break down borders between trading countries, more and more boundaries and restrictions are being built for seafarers. Understandable concerns over terrorism and security have been abused to the extent that seafarers are often treated like criminals. Yet true security in many cases remains inexcusably lax.
During a recent stay at a European Union port, the duty officer on my ship reported that 15 men – five of them without any IDs – had presented themselves as a lashing gang, and were insisting on boarding the ship. I refused permission to the five without IDs. As a result, all the lashing gang left the ship and threatened to strike. For the next few hours I was pressed by the chaterer’s agent and the port operational manager to allow those men to board the ship in order to avoid delay. I was threatened that I would be responsible for the delay and this would be included in the statement of facts.
Despite all pressure, I refused permission, until finally the men got their badges and were allowed on board. Imagine that I had allowed the men without IDs to board, and at that very moment the local coastguard had boarded my ship for regular inspection. As the master, I would then have been accused of breaking procedure, and the ship would have been declared as substandard ad detained for 10 or more hours. Needless to say, there would be no consequences for the port terminal authorities or for the stevedores.
Sometimes, it seems that it is easier for a container full of machine guns to pass port security control than for a seafarer to reach the nearest telephone booth. Seafarers are not allowed to break the seal of a container unless they are sure that the content is different from that declared and is dangerous to health and life. Nobody knows how many deadly weapons, chemicals and drugs have been transported by sea declared as toys, electronics or washing powder.
CITIZENSHIP FORGOTTEN
Every day thousands of people pass through passport controls at airports around the world. There is no requirement for passengers to be checked for any vaccination.
Yet when the authorities come on board a ship they do not allow a seafarer without a vaccination book to enter the country.
Many of these seafarers are from less developed and poor countries. They do not seek to emigrate because, in most cases, they earn enough money to maintain a reasonable standard of living for their families. There seafarers are paying their taxes and investing in the economies of their countries. Yet they receive little respect or encouragement form government or society.
In my country, Bulgaria, during the communist regime, seafarers at sea for periods longer than six months were considered insufficiently aware to vote. They are still barred from participating in national elections. At the same time, no effort is made to ensure that seafarers working under foreign flags can exercise their constitutional right to vote while they are on board.
Today the shipping industry needs more seafarers, particularly officers, to meet a growing shortage. But it is difficult to motivate a seafarer to work out a whole career at sea. Most seafarers quit after 10 years, long before the age of retirement. By then they long to return to their societies, and to be treated as citizens once again.(转载)
NO.20 / 2006
Why is nobody listening to us?
Bulgarian master Martin Bankov has fulfilled his childhood dreams by becoming a ship’s captain for an international shipping company. But after 16 years at sea, he is disillusioned by what he sees as society’s disregard for seafarers.
Unlike almost any other job, where workers rest in a normal living atmosphere, a seafarer works and rests in the same unpleasant environment-experiencing vibrations, pitching and rolling, stormy weather, moisture, heat, cold, toxic vapours, and clock rotation – for months at sea, far away from home.
Seafarers may get the chance to rejoin society briefly when the ship calls at a port, but commercial and legal changes are restricting their opportunities to do so.
Shipping companies are investing in more and more modern terminals around the world. The idea is to increase the speed of cargo handling operations and to facilitate multimodal transport by developing a more effective infrastructure. New terminals are therefore situated far away from cities and close to international highways. The time for cargo processing is between four and ten hours for most types of ships.
At best, seafarers can hope to spend half their time in port resting and the other half watching. If allowed ashore, they need at least two hours to reach the nearest city or seafarers’ club (If there is any ), send a letter or email, or call home, and get back.
OBSTACLES AND EXCUSES
While the process of globalization continues to break down borders between trading countries, more and more boundaries and restrictions are being built for seafarers. Understandable concerns over terrorism and security have been abused to the extent that seafarers are often treated like criminals. Yet true security in many cases remains inexcusably lax.
During a recent stay at a European Union port, the duty officer on my ship reported that 15 men – five of them without any IDs – had presented themselves as a lashing gang, and were insisting on boarding the ship. I refused permission to the five without IDs. As a result, all the lashing gang left the ship and threatened to strike. For the next few hours I was pressed by the chaterer’s agent and the port operational manager to allow those men to board the ship in order to avoid delay. I was threatened that I would be responsible for the delay and this would be included in the statement of facts.
Despite all pressure, I refused permission, until finally the men got their badges and were allowed on board. Imagine that I had allowed the men without IDs to board, and at that very moment the local coastguard had boarded my ship for regular inspection. As the master, I would then have been accused of breaking procedure, and the ship would have been declared as substandard ad detained for 10 or more hours. Needless to say, there would be no consequences for the port terminal authorities or for the stevedores.
Sometimes, it seems that it is easier for a container full of machine guns to pass port security control than for a seafarer to reach the nearest telephone booth. Seafarers are not allowed to break the seal of a container unless they are sure that the content is different from that declared and is dangerous to health and life. Nobody knows how many deadly weapons, chemicals and drugs have been transported by sea declared as toys, electronics or washing powder.
CITIZENSHIP FORGOTTEN
Every day thousands of people pass through passport controls at airports around the world. There is no requirement for passengers to be checked for any vaccination.
Yet when the authorities come on board a ship they do not allow a seafarer without a vaccination book to enter the country.
Many of these seafarers are from less developed and poor countries. They do not seek to emigrate because, in most cases, they earn enough money to maintain a reasonable standard of living for their families. There seafarers are paying their taxes and investing in the economies of their countries. Yet they receive little respect or encouragement form government or society.
In my country, Bulgaria, during the communist regime, seafarers at sea for periods longer than six months were considered insufficiently aware to vote. They are still barred from participating in national elections. At the same time, no effort is made to ensure that seafarers working under foreign flags can exercise their constitutional right to vote while they are on board.
Today the shipping industry needs more seafarers, particularly officers, to meet a growing shortage. But it is difficult to motivate a seafarer to work out a whole career at sea. Most seafarers quit after 10 years, long before the age of retirement. By then they long to return to their societies, and to be treated as citizens once again.(转载)
[本帖已被作者于2007年1月15日16时37分46秒编辑过]
请登录后发帖
联系我们人工客服
：1391995811
