SEAFARER SUPPORTERS' WALL

Today I raise my voice in name of all my sisters and brothers as seafarers cannot easily call the attention of their governments levels. At the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, governments closed their borders or restricted their travel transits, even initially it was a good decision in order to control the pandemic's spread. All countries take their own quarantine counter measures, close the working centres, the people stay safety at home (Home Office), and still then are requiring that the supply chains continued working. Global trade for essential/critical goods such as food, medicines, medical supplies, Personnel Protective Equipment´s, fuels, manufactured products and raw materials still be delivered to all countries. How it is possible? It is just because the ships continue sailing and the ships still call at the ports on time. >85% of all world trade is carried on board ships. But something was missed in this government decision, Yes! "The Seafarers" The seafarers experience different situations on board such as fatigue, stress, loneliness, loss of their right to go ashore, even suicide cross their minds in some cases. The Seafarers' Employment Agreement expired working on board near or more than 12 months and in the middle the seafarers at home inland without the possibility to work again on board expense their savings. This pandemic collateral effect looks like more than a contemporary form of slavery or labour exploitation, nearly 200,000 seafarers (women and men) are stuck on board or stranded at sea. One more time all countries forget us! And still deny us our basic rights and the continued violation of our human rights, not only due to the pandemic, all countries and their governments need to take care of us, should develop and issue specific safety protocols for seafarers to travel with some exemptions, they must recognise that their countries are in a "Crew Change Crisis". And in the hands of whom the government were to take the control and decisions to take care of us: Foreign, Maritime, Air, Road, Migration, Labour and Sanitary affairs ministries. This is my fair tribute to all of you in the frontline of the Covid-19 response. Thanks to all seafarers as stoic & silent workers are “Invisible heroes”! Finally, each country ruler as people's representatives must get the public to recognise the seafarers as "Key Workers."

Seafarers are not only key workers but also the cornerstone of world trade in the current hard times. We don't forget it! So it is times of the seafarers.