Detention of Asian Forest’s Chinese crew unfair: Pullat

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangalore, December 5: Sailors staged a protest near the Chennai Port Trust on Seafarers’ Day, which is the first Saturday in December. Founder of the Mariner Welfare Guild S Pullat said that the Indian government, just like the governments of other countries, is flouting international law and treating sailors like criminals. To support his statement, he mentioned the detention of the Chinese crew of Asian Forest, which sank near the Mangalore Port a few months ago.

 

Pullat said that the tendency to treat sailors like criminals is on the rise; and this is happening both in Europe and Asia. Countries are completely ignoring international laws and denying basic rights to hapless and innocent sailors.

He mentioned the case of Glen Aroza of Mangalore who has been detained by the government of Taiwan for nearly 7 months and also the case of Sakhib Skharkar who has been detained in Algiers for nearly 15 months. He said that the attitude of detaining innocent sailors has made the mariners’ profession a dangerous one.

The district authorities in Mangalore have detained the Chinese crew, but they are still waiting for the ship’s owners to remove the 400 tonnes of fuel, which has sunk along with the ship. If this fuel leaks into the ocean, a great environmental disaster is certain.