A total of 78 Filipino seafarers have so far manifested their right to refuse board ships that would pass the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) said on Tuesday, June 25.
Both the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden were already declared as war-like areas and the past attacks on passing vessels prompted the DMW to have Filipino seafarers exercise their right to refuse to board ship passing in the two areas.
“Since we streamlined the process for exercising the right to refuse sailing in March, the number has increased from 25 to 78,” DMW Secretary Hans Leo J. Cacdac said.
Cacdac said the DMW is scheduled to conduct further sessions of consultations and deliberations with seafarers' groups and other stakeholders.
He said the discussion is focused on revising current regulations and enhancing safety measures for Filipino seafarers.
The Yemeni Houthi movement targeted the MV Tutor, a bulk carrier flying the Liberian flag, in the southern Red Sea on June 12 with an unmanned surface vehicle and an anti-ship missile.
Last March, two Filipino crew members were killed and two others injured when their vessel, the Barbados-flagged MV True Confidence, was hit by an anti-ship ballistic missile launched in the Red Sea by Houthi rebels.