DMW working on cases of abandoned Filipino seafarers

MANILA – The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) on Friday assured Filipino seafarers that it is addressing cases of abandonment at sea, as it warned manning agencies to avoid such incidents or they would have to answer to the law.  

DMW Secretary Hans Cacdac said many of the abandonment cases they handled since 2018 involved fishermen (576), followed by passenger ships (137), yachts (51), longliners (47), and bulk carriers (31). He added only 3 Filipinos have yet to be repatriated. 

“We have helped in the course of a number of years Filipino seafarers who are caught in abandonment situations. On the part of the DMW, we do not hesitate to penalize licensed manning agencies and ship owners who are involved in abandonment situations,” Cacdac said. 

“It is the fisher seafarers who are caught in these kinds of situations,” he added.

 Cacdac said while most abandoned Pinoy seafarers have returned to the country, they were still monitoring the situation.

“So, we are not strangers, we are well-entrenched in terms of protecting our OFWs in abandonment situations,” he said.

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DMW Undersecretary Bernard Olalia urged Filipinos to report cases of abandonment to their agency.

“It is part of the responsibility of the deployment agency. Repatriation is a mandatory requirement of abandoned seafarers,” he said.

The United Nations has logged an increasing number of crew members abandoned by shipowners, leaving sailors aboard months and sometimes years without pay.  More than 2,000 seafarers on some 150 ships were abandoned in 2023.

 Shipowners often abandon crew members when they are hit by rising fuel costs, debt or unexpected repairs they can't afford. Some owners vow to pay when their finances turn around.

 – With a report from Agence France-Presse