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Relief project declared for Istanbul abandonees

06/07/09

The ITF today announced the launch of an urgent relief effort for seafarers on board laid up vessels in the port of Istanbul. The project was discussed at the Federation’s worldwide inspectors’ conference which met in the city last week, and will provide immediate assistance to help remedy what it described as the “desperate plight of seafarers” there.

Istanbul on the Bosporus Straits lying between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean is one of the busiest and most important ports in the world. Some 400 – 500 foreign controlled vessels of all shapes and sizes are now laid up in its port as a result of the worldwide economic recession.

These vessels usually have a skeleton crew on board, forced to exist on barely subsistence level wages and provisions over many months while the vessels are said to await new cargo. In many cases the crew have been effectively abandoned by the vessels’ owners, many of whom are unknown.

The ITF has approved funding to enable its local seafarers’ union affiliate, DAD-DER, to provide direct and immediate humanitarian assistance to the seafarers concerned.

Together with DAD-DER, the ITF is also undertaking a survey of the vessels concerned to identify the extent of the plight of seafarers and will meet with the Turkish Maritime Authorities early next week to request that they put pressure on the flag states concerned to assist the crew in accordance with their obligations under international maritime law.

ITF Head of Maritime Operations Graham Young commented: “The ITF is concerned that this is a significant and growing problem for ships’ crews’ worldwide where, increasingly, vessels are laid-up for long periods. Usually this is as a result of the worldwide financial crisis, but that doesn’t excuse the owners or the flag states from carrying out their obligations to the seafarers themselves.”

“ITF Inspector Pascal Pouille has been assigned as the lead contact with DAD-DER and will be among those meeting the Turkish authorities to impress this and the scale of the problem upon them.”

ENDS

For more information contact ITF press officer, Sam Dawson.
Direct line: + 44 (0)20 7940 9260.
Email: dawson_sam@itf.org.uk

International Transport Workers' Federation - ITF:
HEAD OFFICE
ITF House, 49 - 60 Borough Road, London SE1 1DS
Tel: + 44 (0) 20 7403 2733
Fax: + 44 (0) 20 7375 7871
Email: mail@itf.org.uk
Web: www.itfglobal.org

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