• 2 min de lectura
• 2 min de lectura
The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) announced that it is investigating shipowners and recruitment agencies that have exposed Filipino seafarers to bombings in the Strait of Hormuz or the Black Sea.
In this regard, Hans Leo Cacdac, the Secretary of Migrant Workers, stated that "the investigation will determine whether the companies violated DMW rules on the deployment of Filipino seafarers in high-risk and conflict zones, including the most recent directive prohibiting agencies from embarking Filipino seafarers on vessels bound for the northern Black Sea."
Ultimately, investigations are ongoing into five recruitment agencies, all following the attack on the MT Sidr oil tanker on August 31, a Saudi-flagged vessel that was carrying 16 Filipino seafarers, two of whom lost their lives.
Furthermore, Cacdac announced that "I am now heading to Dubai, and my purpose there is to go directly to the shipowner's office, because the shipowner is there."
"This is part of our investigation into whether the shipowner and the recruitment agency licensed here in Manila complied with the DMW's rules and regulations regarding the first point, the safe transit of our OFW seafarers and the avoidance of high-risk areas and war zones. And if navigating through such areas cannot be avoided, to respect our seafarers' right to refuse to sail," added the public official.
Possible sanctions include the suspension of agency licenses or eventual fines.
