It’s no longer news when the ITF (International Transport Workers’ Federation) interdicts a ship. The union has been running after “ships of shame” for years. But it’s news when the ship in question is chartered by the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) to carry food for hungry humans. On 18th October 2011, Mombasa-based ITF inspector Betty Makena Mutugi together with Spanish inspector Luz Baz boarded the Panama-flagged Sea Master 1 whilst it was moored in Mombasa, Kenya. The two were aghast at what they saw. We were, too, when we saw the pictures courtesy of the ITF.
Said Ms Baz: “There were virtually no provisions on board, no decent drinking water, no air conditioning. What there was was a very unhealthy environment with cockroaches in the galley, the freezer not working and, in general, very bad living conditions. The crew also claimed that they had not been paid since August.” The ITF inspectors paid the Sea Master 1 a visit after its Russian crew members had contacted their union, the SUR, asking for ITF help.
Stern of the Sea Master 1; dirty water for drinking
Onboard thermometre reading of 35 degrees Celsius; broken down refrigerator
Cockroaches competing with the crew for food
According to Ms Baz, they immediately contacted the ship’s owners, Marine Bulk Carriers Nadkodka of Russia, to ask them to take action and agree to put in place an ITF agreement to ensure minimum standards for the crew. On 21st October came the reply from the Russians’ Houston, Texas-based partners, Reliance Bulk Carriers, which reportedly turned town the proposal. The ITF also lost no time in notifying Mombasa Port State Control and the Panama Maritime Authority. Apparently, one reason it is treating the entire affair as urgent is that the Sea Master 1 is working for the World Food Programme in the Indian Ocean and the dangerous waters off Somalia.
The case of the Sea Master 1 bolsters the ITF’s contention that flags of convenience (FOCs) should be eschewed because they’re often used to evade compliance with international crew and safety standards. But it really goes beyond the FOC issue. It boils down to the question of how humanely seafarers are treated amidst all the talk about seafarers’ rights and the ILO Maritime Labour Convention of 2006. That a UN humanitarian agency has resorted to the use of what the ITF has tagged as a substandard ship is quite ironic, to say the least. ~Barista Uno
I am glad you have highlighted this shameful situation, but how many “non professional” charterers in today’s market really know what sort of ships they are chartering? Who bothers to find out? I have spent 30+ years working in shipping in developing countries, trying to help them broaden their understanding of the maritime industry and raise their standards; when something like this happens I have to ask myself are we winning? And then I try again!!
Tim Harris
Yes, who really bothers to find out what sort of ships they are chartering?
As to the Russian-owned Sea Master 1, some people are skeptical about the conditions obtaining on board the ship as reported by the ITF given the union’s belligerence and widely known tendency to use pressure tactics on shipowners. One such individual, a Russian, expressed his doubts in the following article:
http://www.odin.tc/news/read.asp?articleID=87
Did the ITF misrepresent the situation to get the ship’s owners to sign a collective wage agreement with the union? We may never find out until Mombasa Port State Control comes out with its own findings and the UN World Food Programme investigates the whole matter and issues a public statement.
Good work.
I would like to know what qualifications one has to have to become an ITF Inspector.
My concern is with the ITF Inspector of Mombasa who has no basic qualifications. We should be vetting and it (should) be announced so that we are aware.