The ITF yesterday threw down the gauntlet to those flag states and shipowners who have not taken action to fight Somali piracy to act now, before the threat makes it virtually impossible for seafarers to pass through the ever-widening danger area.

The Federation stated that: “save in exceptional circumstances, ships
should not transit the (affected) area. The risk of attack is now so
great that putting seafarers in harm’s way amounts to a breach of the
shipowner’s duty of care.” It went on to describe a motion adopted by
its Fair Practices Committee as a statement of intent that flag states
and shipowners have to assess the risks and act definitively to combat
them, or risk finding themselves outside the law.

ITF Maritime Coordinator Steve Cotton explained: “There are countries
actively fighting piracy and there are owners training and supporting
their crews to resist it. Then there are others who are shirking
responsibility and as good as accepting its steadily growing menace,
which has now brought us to the point where one of the world’s great
trading routes is now almost too dangerous to pass through.”

He continued: “Today’s statement reflects the frustration of all those
who work at sea at the dire situation we’ve reached. One where pirates
act virtually unmolested and, even if intercepted, with virtual
impunity from arrest. It calls into question the very legality of
continuing to send ships through much of the Indian Ocean. It is
therefore imperative that not only must protective escorts be used but
that flag states immediately decide on the protective measures that
they must recommend for the ships that are flying their flag and that
those ships’ operators comply with them.”

He concluded: “We, and many others, also want to see the end of what’s
virtually an open secret in shipping – that many of the world’s largest
ship registers have provided not one vessel to patrol an ocean that can
only be made safe by an increase in the number of warships needed to
aggressively patrol and police it. I am not aware of a single flag of
convenience country that is acting in this way to protect the ships
that are supposedly their responsibility.”

The ITF statement on piracy released yesterday after being adopted by
the Fair Practices Committee (a joint decision making committee of
seafarers’ and dockers’ unions which, among other duties, considers war
risks) is as follows:

“Statement on Piracy

The ITF Seafarers Section having assessed the growing problem of piracy
in the Gulf of Aden, off the coast of Somalia and now in the wider
Indian Ocean has determined that save in exceptional circumstances
ships should not transit the area.? The risk of attack is now so great
that putting seafarers in harms way amounts to a breach of the
shipowner’s duty of care.

The exceptional circumstances relate to:

•??? having close active protection from naval forces or being in a convoy which has an adequate naval escort; or

•??? the ship can be classified as low risk and has a proven level of protection measures in place.

The ITF also considers that seafarers should suffer no detriment from
refusing to take ships into these high risk areas.? Seafarers have a
right to refuse to put themselves in harms way and the right to be
relieved before the ship enters a high risk area.? The ITF calls on
flag States and shipowners to uphold seafarers’ rights in this regard.

The ITF re-affirmed the position that seafarers should not be armed.

The ITF call’s on the wider shipping industry to support this position
and to take all measures to ensure the protection of seafarers by not
putting them in harms way.”

Source: ITF

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• Irti earned accreditation for its course on the final exam, the Maritime Safety Management Systems

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