2 stranded Pinoy seamen on way home from Iraq

The two seamen stranded in Iraq since July are finally on their way home. Rodolfo Limjap Dajoya, 32, and Abril Delmoro Ricablanca, 35, took the ferry ride from the port city of Umm Qasr in Iraq to Port Rashid in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Rodolfo Dajoya and Abril Ricablanca The ferry was scheduled to leave at 8 p.m. Friday (1 a.m. Saturday in Manila), and arrive in Dubai at 9 p.m. Sunday (1 a.m. Monday in Manila). “Today, I picked up the three crew members onboard (two Filipinos and an Indian national) at 1300 hrs after we completed the formalities with Immigration and purchased the ticket. Then, we proceeded to board MV Jabal Ali 2, berthed in Umm Qasr port," said Renee Dominguiano, a Filipino assistant port manager of Inchcape Shipping Services. “They boarded the vessel at 1330 hrs and as per my telecom with the ferry crew, steaming time from Umm Qasr to Dubai is about 48 hours. The ferry will depart Umm Qasr at about 2000 hrs and therefore, their ETA at Port Rashid is on 11th Nov at 2100 hrs," Dominguiano said. They are expected to take the Dubai-Manila flight within the week. Emotional farewell “Tears of joy fell from their eyes while saying goodbye," he said in an email to GMANews.TV late Friday evening. “I am very happy for them to leave Iraq and hope they can see their families soon," said Dominguiano who brought their case to the attention of GMANews.TV two weeks ago. The two Filipino seamen are among the 12-man crew of MV Pishgam, registered at St. Kitts & Nevis, but its real owner is an Iranian who had abandoned the ship since Sept. 1 when the charterer, Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines, filed claims for $1.3 million as compensation for 34 containers of cargo that fell into the sea in an accident. They were supposed to have left Iraq Tuesday last week but the Iraqi State Agent refused to approve their release papers because of an objection from the charterer. Earlier this week, the Iraqi State Agent finally allowed the two and an Indian crew who had fallen ill onboard, to leave Iraq. Inchcape, which provides logistics support for the British Forces in Iraq, served as protective agent of the crew and helped them secure the necessary documents for their repatriation. Dominguiano said Dajoya and Ricablanca have requested the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration in Dubai to book their flight back to Manila on Nov. 13. While in Dubai, they will meet with the manager of Aries Shipping Management on the possibility of collecting their unpaid salaries for nine months. A kind hearted Filipino port officer in Iraq gave the two $500 each for their Dubai-Manila plane ticket, which is about $300 each, and the rest for their pocket money while awaiting their flight in Dubai. The two had been issued visa by the Philippine consulate in Dubai. Abandoned The two seamen have been stranded in Iraq since July and abandoned by their employer in September after their cargo ship got embroiled in a court case. They were left without being paid their salaries for eight months and without food and water provision. “The two are now begging for food and water to drink. They have no money as they have not received their salaries in the last 10 months," said Dominguiano said in an email on Oct 20 when he brought the plight of the two to the attention of GMANews.TV. The Manila-based Center for Migrants Advocacy promptly contacted concerned government officials and its network partners in the Middle East for help. Limjap, from Rosario, Cavite has a son who is turning three years old on Nov. 17 while Ricablanca, 35, from Iloilo City, has five children aged between three and 10. MV Pishgam is under the management of Aries Shipping management, a United Arab Emirate (UAE) shipping company, and chartered by Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines to take Dubai, Iran and Kuwait routes. The ship arrived in Umm Qasr on July 21 and a few days later, an Iraqi judge ordered a hold departure order for the vessel, stemming from a court case a consignee had filed in an Iraq court. Quick response Philippine officials and agencies promptly responded to appeals for help through CMA executive director Ellene Sana who has been coordinating the efforts from early morning until late into the night. Philippine Ambassador to Kuwait Ricardo Endaya, who served as charge d’affaires in Iraq, helped mobilize concerned diplomatic and labor officers to help. Overseas Workers Welfare Administration chief Marianito Roque also quickly responded to the request of CMA for assistance through the OWWA representatives in Dubai, which has agreed to shoulder the ferry fares of Dajoya and Ricablanca from Umm Qasr to Dubai. Foreign Undersecretary Rafael Seguis; Crescente Relacion, executive director of DFA’s Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs (OUMWA); charge d’affaires Wilfredo R. Cuyugan in Amman, Jordan; and Philippine consulate and labor officials in the United Arab Emirates have helped process the repatriation of the two stranded seamen to Manila. Reverend Stephen Miller of the Mission to Seafarers (MTS) in Dubai also responded positively to CMA’s urgent call for help. MTS, a foreign partner of CMA in attending to the needs of distressed seafarers, is also assisting in the repatriation of the Indian crew. CMA’s partner in the Middle East, the Saudi-based V-Team Advocacy and Community Service, was also on hand to help coordinate the efforts. The Philippine consulate general in Dubai has agreed to shoulder the costs of Dajoya’s and Ricablanca’s UAE visas, drawing from its Assistance to Nationals fund. Sana said OWWA Dubai has been locating the employer of the seamen to try to recover their unpaid salaries. With Indian captain and Renee Dominguiano Cause of delay MV Pishgam is under the management of Aries Shipping management, a United Arab Emirates (UAE) shipping company, and chartered by Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines to take Dubai, Iran and Kuwait routes. The ship left Dubai on July 7 and arrived in Umm Qasr on July 21. A few days later, an Iraqi judge ordered a hold departure order for the vessel, stemming from a court case the consignee filed in court. The consignee filed a claim in a Dubai court and another case in Iraq, demanding $1.5 million compensation for the lost cargo. But the ship owner and its insurer simply shied away from the case, noting that the declared value of the entire ship is only $300,000. Inchcape managed to get an order from an Iraqi judge Tuesday last week for the release of the two Filipinos and an Indian who has fallen ill. There were eight other Indians who have been practically detained in the ship without money, food and drinking water. They have been sustained by donations from other ships’ crew. “I pray that this court case will be over soon as we are only surviving from begging food and water from other ships," said the ship’s Indian Master, Capt. Ashish Kumar Shukla. - GMANews.TV