107 Filipino seafarers held by Somali pirates will be freed—DFA
SOURCE: INQ/Jerry E. Esplanada
The Department of Foreign Affairs is optimistic it could secure the early and safe release of 107 Filipino seafarers being held by Somali pirates.
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SOURCE: INQ/Jerry E. Esplanada
The Department of Foreign Affairs is optimistic it could secure the early and safe release of 107 Filipino seafarers being held by Somali pirates.
DFA Undersecretary Esteban Conejos Jr. on Sunday assured the seamen and their families here that the authorities were addressing the problem.
"We continue to coordinate with all parties concerned to ensure the safety of the hostages and secure their early release," Conejos told the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
Commander Gaudencio Collado, the country's liaison officer to the Bahrain-based Combined Maritime Command, is "now coordinating with naval authorities (in the Gulf region), as well as concerned Philippine embassies and principals of the hijacked vessels, to resolve the issue," said the DFA office for migrant workers affairs, which Conejos heads.
The latest ship hijacking by Somali pirates, which took place on December 26, involved the cargo ship M/V EMS River.
With eight seafarers, including six Filipinos and a Russian on board, the German-owned vessel was seized by the pirates about 175 nautical miles off the coast of Oman while en route to Greece.
Last month, five other ships were hijacked by Somali pirates in various parts of the Indian Ocean, bringing to 42 the total number of merchant vessels seized by the pirates in 2010.
Most of the 24 crew members of the M/V Renuar, a Panamanian-flagged cargo ship seized by the pirates on December 10, are Filipinos.
The DFA has repeatedly advised ships manned by Filipino seamen to "stay within secure sea corridors while traversing the Gulf of Aden."
The government has a standing travel and labor deployment ban to Somalia, which is located in east Africa.
Meanwhile, Vice President Jejomar Binay plans to take up the plight of Filipino seafarers being held by Somali pirates in his forthcoming meeting with top officials of the country's diplomatic missions in the Middle East.
"It will be one of his priorities (as Presidential Adviser on OFW Concerns). He is being updated by DFA on the matter," said Joey Salgado, Binay's media officer.
Binay will "hold dialogues and consultations with OFW communities abroad," according to Salgado.
In a statement, Binay said he would like to "hear from our OFWs directly about their concerns and assure them that our government will always put priority on their welfare."
Early this month, Binay met with Filipino migrant workers in Guangzhou, China, where he also attended the Asian Para Olympics upon the invitation of the Beijing government.
Earlier, Binay flew to South Korea, where he held a dialog with OFWs in Seoul.
Binay stressed the need for government agencies to "work together and pool resources in handling OFW concerns."
The Riyadh-based OFW group Migrante-Middle East, meanwhile, asked Binay to look into the plight of over 3,000 jailed OFWs abroad, an undisclosed number of whom are on death row.
About 70 percent of the detainees are facing immigration-related charges and would be deported after serving their brief sentences.
The rest are in custody for committing common crimes, including theft and drug trafficking, said the DFA.
"We continue to coordinate with all parties concerned to ensure the safety of the hostages and secure their early release," Conejos told the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
Commander Gaudencio Collado, the country's liaison officer to the Bahrain-based Combined Maritime Command, is "now coordinating with naval authorities (in the Gulf region), as well as concerned Philippine embassies and principals of the hijacked vessels, to resolve the issue," said the DFA office for migrant workers affairs, which Conejos heads.
The latest ship hijacking by Somali pirates, which took place on December 26, involved the cargo ship M/V EMS River.
With eight seafarers, including six Filipinos and a Russian on board, the German-owned vessel was seized by the pirates about 175 nautical miles off the coast of Oman while en route to Greece.
Last month, five other ships were hijacked by Somali pirates in various parts of the Indian Ocean, bringing to 42 the total number of merchant vessels seized by the pirates in 2010.
Most of the 24 crew members of the M/V Renuar, a Panamanian-flagged cargo ship seized by the pirates on December 10, are Filipinos.
The DFA has repeatedly advised ships manned by Filipino seamen to "stay within secure sea corridors while traversing the Gulf of Aden."
The government has a standing travel and labor deployment ban to Somalia, which is located in east Africa.
Meanwhile, Vice President Jejomar Binay plans to take up the plight of Filipino seafarers being held by Somali pirates in his forthcoming meeting with top officials of the country's diplomatic missions in the Middle East.
"It will be one of his priorities (as Presidential Adviser on OFW Concerns). He is being updated by DFA on the matter," said Joey Salgado, Binay's media officer.
Binay will "hold dialogues and consultations with OFW communities abroad," according to Salgado.
In a statement, Binay said he would like to "hear from our OFWs directly about their concerns and assure them that our government will always put priority on their welfare."
Early this month, Binay met with Filipino migrant workers in Guangzhou, China, where he also attended the Asian Para Olympics upon the invitation of the Beijing government.
Earlier, Binay flew to South Korea, where he held a dialog with OFWs in Seoul.
Binay stressed the need for government agencies to "work together and pool resources in handling OFW concerns."
The Riyadh-based OFW group Migrante-Middle East, meanwhile, asked Binay to look into the plight of over 3,000 jailed OFWs abroad, an undisclosed number of whom are on death row.
About 70 percent of the detainees are facing immigration-related charges and would be deported after serving their brief sentences.
The rest are in custody for committing common crimes, including theft and drug trafficking, said the DFA.
