DMW bars Filipino seafarers from boarding cruise ships bound to Red Sea, Gulf of Aden

The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) on Wednesday issued an order prohibiting the deployment of Filipino seafarers on passenger and cruise ships that are set to traverse the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. 

Department Order No. 2 signed by DMW officer-in-charge Hans Leo Cacdac states that all Filipino seafarers to be employed for passenger and cruise vessels shall not be allowed to sail in the two bodies of water that were recently included in the list of high-risk areas and war-like zones. 

Under the DO, licensed manning agencies (LMAs) are required to sign an affirmation letter guaranteeing that the ship that will be boarded by the Filipino seafarers will not navigate the Red Sea or the Gulf of Aden. 

Filipino seafarers listed as crew members must likewise sign an affirmation letter acknowledging that their vessel will not enter the two areas. 

This letter, along with the vessel’s detailed itinerary, must be submitted to the DMW during the documentation of crew employment contracts or before their deployment. It will be uploaded to the DMW’s Online Processing System for Sea-based, along with the processed Standard Employment Contract (SEC). 

“The DMW remains steadfast in its commitment to safeguarding the well-being of Filipino seafarers. These measures reflect the DMW’s dedication to ensuring safe working conditions and protecting our seafaring workforce,” the agency said in a statement. 

Last month, the DWM issued guidelines for LMAs to observe should Filipino seafarers be assigned on ships that would ply high-risk and conflict areas.

Under the Department Order No. 1, the DMW directed LMAs and their accredited principals or employers to consider avoiding the passage through the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, and nearby territories.

They should also provide the mandated additional compensation and security measures for Filipino seafarers who have agreed to continue their journey in the mentioned locations.

These seafarers should also be given ample time, opportunity, and means to signify their intent to either continue with the voyage or refuse to join the ship in its scheduled passage in these areas.

The LMAs are likewise asked to properly implement the decision of seafarers to invoke their right to refuse sailing in such high-risk areas and warlike zones.

Should the Filipino crew decide to invoke this right, the manning agencies must ensure their immediate and safe repatriation back to the Philippines. —Giselle Ombay/KBK, GMA Integrated News