Marino Partylist Representative Carlo Lisandro L. Gonzalez (Photo from Marino Partylist office)
An advocate of sea-based overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), fisherfolk, and seafarers’ welfare, Carlo Lisandro L. Gonzalez was the Marino Partylist representative in the 18th and now the 19th Congress.
The Marino Partylist or Marino Samahan ng Seaman, Inc., is a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)-registered organization established on Feb. 14, 2014, by seafarers, their families, and people who support the maritime industry.
The group provides “cadet scholarships, family centers, seafarers’ training, free legal advice, and decentralization.” It partners with companies and government agencies to grant scholarships to seafarers, and provides maritime-related training nationwide.
Gonzalez continues “to bridge the gap between the needs of mariners and the existing policies available for them,” in line with the group’s goal, the Marino Partylist office said.
Born on Oct. 31, 1991, the 30-year-old representative completed a degree in Entrepreneurship in just three years from the Philippine Women’s College of Davao, where he was a dean’s lister and the president of his class.
Gonzalez has been a member of Congress since 2019 and was one of the principal authors of the Magna Carta for Seafarers which “reinforces Filipino seafarers’ rights to proper compensation, safe work environment, medical support, free legal advice, and protection from abusive manning agencies.”
He was also one of the principal authors of a bill aimed at creating a department for OFWs, now known as the Department of Migrant Workers Act, which was signed by former President Duterte on Dec. 30, 2021.
To further improve seafarers’ work conditions, Gonzalez promotes the Maritime Safety, Security, and Prevention of Ship-Sourced Pollution Act, Mandatory OFW Health Immunization Act, Unhampered Crew Change Act, Overseas Filipino Workers Remittance Protection Act, and Maritime Education and Training Act, which are bills he co-authored.
Gonzales has also contributed to the founding of the Marino Action Center (MAC), which provides medical, livelihood, and burial assistance to thousands of seafarers through its online services and offices in Manila and Davao.