MANILA, Philippines—Twelve Filipino seafarers stranded in Greece since July 2009 are now being prepared for their repatriation, the Philippine embassy in Athens said Thursday.
The Filipino crew of M/V Aetea Sierra sought the embassy’s help after negotiations with the Greek vessel owner for their unpaid salaries and damages failed. And the seafarers have opted to stay in the ship until their salaries are paid, per advice of a non-government organization.
“The Greek government stopped the vessel from leaving port because of unpaid cargo claims,” the Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.
The embassy offered the Filipino seafarers assistance for their immediate repatriation and provision of shelter at the Filipino Workers Resource Center pending their repatriation. It is coordinating with the Philippine Overseas Employment Agency for plane tickets to be used for the seafarers’ repatriation.
The seafarers also filed a case against the vessel owner. Eleven of them have availed themselves of the legal services offered by the International Transport Federation to pursue the case against their employer, while a Filipino ship engineer is represented by a Greek lawyer offered by the embassy. - INQUIRER.net, November 26, 2009
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