REPORTS that 19 crew members are “starving” on board a Bahraini vessel at the centre of a legal wrangle in Oman have been refuted.
The vessel, Jernas, is currently moored at Salalah Anchorage while a financial dispute plays out between its Bahrain-based owner Tylos Shipping and Marine Services and a shipping agent.
However, the Bahrain company boss Yousif Al Muhaiza said 16 of his crew had returned to their own countries since it arrived in Salalah on September 5.
Disagreement
“I read reports that 19 crew members are left to starve on my abandoned ship, which is incorrect,” he said.
“All I can say is that my ship is held in the port over a disagreement on the payment contract and there is an ongoing case in the Omani court.”
He also claimed the three remaining crew members were “not starving”.
“I don’t know why they are saying this,” he added.
A Bahrain Ports and Maritime Authority official confirmed most of the crew had been allowed to return home.
“We were notified of the issue in August (before it reached Salalah) and managed to co-ordinate with the owner, who repatriated almost all the crew except three,” the official told the GDN on condition of anonymity.
“The crew – from Syria, India, Jordan, Egypt, Romania and Myanmar – were not paid for months.
“According to the owner this was due to financial problems and the (Omani) port took the ship into custody.
“Most of them (the sailors) were repatriated and the three who remained said they would wait for their full pay settlement before leaving.
“Unfortunately now, with the legal situation, the port is not allowing them to leave – as the ship cannot be left without a crew and the owner cannot get any replacements.”
The Bahrain-flagged Jernas sailed from Jebel Ali Port on July 6 and reached Mukkallah, in Yemen, on August 6.
It was held in Yemen for almost a month due to issues between an agent and the captain, which the owner settled by paying $109,000, according to correspondence from Bahrain’s Transportation and Telecommunications Ministry obtained by the International Labour Organisation (ILO).
The Bahrain Ports and Maritime Authority official said its efforts to contact the owner had proven unsuccessful, adding the vessel could be sold at auction once the court case ends.
“It is between the Omani authorities and the owner,” he added.
He said Bahraini authorities could only intervene if a case was filed here on behalf of the crew.
However, Bahrain International Seafarers’ Society chairman Ali Al Ghawas said the organisation was co-ordinating with port authorities on ways to help.
Help
“There are three crew members who are stuck in Oman and we are yet to reach them to confirm reports on their plight,” said Mr Al Ghawas.
“We are also discussing with the port authorities on what we can do to help.
“It is the owner who has to help them and there is very little that our government can do.”
Informed sources said the legal wrangle involved additional payments being sought from the owner, which were allegedly not in the original contract.
“The owner is not willing to pay anything extra and is fighting a court battle,” said sources.
“Over these months the loss that he suffered is over $500,000 and the family business is almost close to bankruptcy.
“Unfortunately, the Omani port authorities are not allowing the owner to go on board or see the sailors, as the ship is in the custody of the court.”
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