Eleven more Filipino seafarers on board the Iran-seized oil tanker ST Nikolas will return to the Philippines in the next few days, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Friday.
DFA Undersecretary Eduardo Jose de Vega said the Filipino seafarers’ contracts have officially expired and their manning agency has already replaced them with foreign crewmembers.
Nine will arrive in the Philippines on Sunday while the other two will fly next week, March 13, he added.
“For some piece of good news, more Filipino nationals are now returning so we have another batch of 11 who will be coming home,” he said in an interview Thursday.
There were originally 18 Filipinos aboard the oil tanker when it wasseized by Iranian authorities in January in the Gulf of Oman while in transit between the Iraqi port of Basra and Turkey. One was released by Iran in February.
Last year, the United States confiscated the oil ST Nikolas was carrying in a sanction enforcement operation. The Iranian Navy said the January seizure was in retaliation for this action.
Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva said the killings of two Filipino seafarers on board a ship crossing the Gulf of Aden on Thursday was a reason to ensure the immediate enactment of the Magna Carta of Filipino Seafarers.
Villanueva said this will guarantee Filipinos’ rights in situations like this.
Earlier, President Marcos backtracked in signing the measure into law on its supposed schedule last February, saying it was up for further review.
A Catholic prelate on Friday urged the faithful to pray for the victims of the March 6 attack of rebels at the Gulf of Aden where three crew members, two of them Filipinos, were killed.
“In this moment of war, chaos, and uncertainty, let us all turn to God for His divine intervention. Let us pray for peace in the Middle East, entrusting everything in His power and mercy…We are one and united with the families of the victims. We urge them to be strong and lift up everyone and everything to God,” Antipolo Bishop Ruperto Santos said in an interview over Church-run Radyo Veritas.
“We call on the Huthis to stop all the attacks, aggression, and intrusion in the Red Sea. This incident underscores the danger to human life, property, and the marine environment in the area,” the Catholic prelate added.
The attack on MV True Confidence was the first fatal assault due to the tension at the Red Sea, one of the important trade routes from Europe, Middle East, and Asia.
“We also call on the agencies to look into repatriating our seafarers sailing through the Gulf of Aden to avoid a repeat of this horrific incident,” Villanueva said, to which Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri and Senators Imee Marcos and Sherwin Gatchalian agreed.
Party-list Rep. Ron Salo of Kabayan also condemned the Yemen rebels behind the rocket attacks on ships.
“I strongly condemn the attack perpetrated by the Houthi rebels against a merchant vessel navigating the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden that led to the tragic death of two Filipino seafarers and injured several other crew members, including two Filipinos who sustained severe wounds,” he said.
As chair of the House committee on overseas affairs, Salo urged the Department of Migrant Workers and the Department of Foreign Affairs to ensure immediate assistance for the repatriation of the victims’ remains.
He also called on the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration to provide immediate assistance to the bereaved families, as well as the injured Filipino crew members and their families.
In addition, Salo called on the shipowner or manning agency concerned to extend immediate assistance to the victims and their families.
“We appeal to the United Nations, world powers and other international organizations to take prompt measures to deter any recurrence of such attacks. More than the economic toll that these attacks have caused, are the lives of innocent civilians, like our Filipino seamen, at stake,” he added.