DFA confirms death of RP seaman, says body remains inside hijacked ship
Esteban Conejos Jr, DFA undersecretary for migrant workers affairs, said that the body of the Filipino seafarer remains inside the Malaysian vessel that was taken over by pirates last August 19. Photo from Wikipedia(UPDATED 3:52 p.m.) MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) has confirmed on Friday the death of a Filipino crew member in one of the hijacked ships off the coast of Somalia.
Esteban Conejos Jr, DFA undersecretary for migrant workers affairs, told GMANews.TV in a phone interview that the body of the Filipino seafarer remains inside the Malaysian vessel that was taken over by pirates.
"[Despite the death] negotiations are still ongoing for the safe release of the remaining 53 Filipinos abducted in Somalia," said Conejos.
DFA spokesperson Claro Cristobal identified the victim as Jayson Dumagat and said the cause of his death was an accident "when pirates boarded the vessel on August 21."
When asked if the terms in the negotiations have changed between the ship owners and the kidnappers following the death of the Filipino, Conejos said talks between the two sides remain unchanged.
According to Conejos, if the ships are released, the Philippine embassy in Kenya, which has jurisdiction in Somalia, will take care of the Filipino seaman's body before being repatriated back to Manila.
The Associated Press reported last Tuesday that the seaman died in an accident when pirates boarded the palm-oil tanker Bunga Melati Dua in the Gulf of Aden, Malaysian shipping line MISC Berhad said in a statement. It did not explain what kind of accident resulted in his death.
"We have been able to establish more communication with the crew," the statement said. "All remaining crew members are safe and are taken care of. Negotiations are ongoing to secure the safe release" of the remaining 29 Malaysian and nine Filipino crew members.
A company spokeswoman declined to elaborate, citing the ongoing negotiations.
Crescente Relacion, executive director of the DFA office of the undersecretary for migrant workers' affairs, earlier told GMANews.TV on Tuesday that his office had not yet received any reports of casualty in the hijacked ships in the Gulf of Aden.
"This is an unconfirmed report. So far we don't have news of Filipino death in any of the four abducted ships," Relacion said.
Pirates hijacked three other vessels in the Gulf of Aden last week — an Iranian bulk carrier with 29 crew, a Japanese-operated chemical tanker with 19 crew, and a German-operated cargo ship with nine crew.
Following the surge in attacks, the US Naval Central Command has said it will establish a permanent Maritime Security Patrol Area in the Gulf of Aden. Coalition navy warships and aircraft will patrol the area under a commander from the Royal Canadian Navy.
Meanwhile the DFA has revealed plans to review the existing contracts of Filipino seafarers and disallow them from boarding ships that pass through “pirate-prone" areas.
According to Relacion, Filipino seamen, who are almost a third of the world’s seafarers, are most at risk of abduction because most of them board on ships that sail through the Gulf of Aden.
According to Engineer Nelson Ramirez, president of the United Filipino Seafarers, robberies in high seas are common, and thus seafarers should know how to defend themselves from pirate attacks.
"Dadaan at dadaan sila d’yan (Most of them will undergo this ordeal eventually)," said Ramirez in a recent interview with GMANews.TV.
He said all ship officials are required to take the ship security officer training, while crew members should undergo the ship security awareness program to avoid being taken over by pirates, who are often equipped with faster boats.
Last July, the Associated Press (AP) cited a report from the International Chamber of Commerce’s International Maritime Bureau (IMB) that pirate attacks worldwide grew 19 percent from May to April compared to the January to March period.
The report said that according to IMB, piracy incidents grew from 52 to 62, due to attacks in Somalia and Nigeria.
Though the second quarter figure was lower than the 85 attacks recorded in the same period last year, and that attacks on the first half of 2008 fell to 114 from last year's 126, the IMB believed that many attacks were not reported due to the safety concerns of seafarers.
The IMB, a non-profit organization fighting against all types of maritime crime and malpractice, said the “frequency and level of violence directed at seafarers is cause for alarm," and that “the abduction of crew and the increasing use of automatic weapons remain unacceptable." - GMANews.TV
Esteban Conejos Jr, DFA undersecretary for migrant workers affairs, told GMANews.TV in a phone interview that the body of the Filipino seafarer remains inside the Malaysian vessel that was taken over by pirates.
"[Despite the death] negotiations are still ongoing for the safe release of the remaining 53 Filipinos abducted in Somalia," said Conejos.
DFA spokesperson Claro Cristobal identified the victim as Jayson Dumagat and said the cause of his death was an accident "when pirates boarded the vessel on August 21."
When asked if the terms in the negotiations have changed between the ship owners and the kidnappers following the death of the Filipino, Conejos said talks between the two sides remain unchanged.
According to Conejos, if the ships are released, the Philippine embassy in Kenya, which has jurisdiction in Somalia, will take care of the Filipino seaman's body before being repatriated back to Manila.
The Associated Press reported last Tuesday that the seaman died in an accident when pirates boarded the palm-oil tanker Bunga Melati Dua in the Gulf of Aden, Malaysian shipping line MISC Berhad said in a statement. It did not explain what kind of accident resulted in his death.
"We have been able to establish more communication with the crew," the statement said. "All remaining crew members are safe and are taken care of. Negotiations are ongoing to secure the safe release" of the remaining 29 Malaysian and nine Filipino crew members.
A company spokeswoman declined to elaborate, citing the ongoing negotiations.
Crescente Relacion, executive director of the DFA office of the undersecretary for migrant workers' affairs, earlier told GMANews.TV on Tuesday that his office had not yet received any reports of casualty in the hijacked ships in the Gulf of Aden.
"This is an unconfirmed report. So far we don't have news of Filipino death in any of the four abducted ships," Relacion said.
Pirates hijacked three other vessels in the Gulf of Aden last week — an Iranian bulk carrier with 29 crew, a Japanese-operated chemical tanker with 19 crew, and a German-operated cargo ship with nine crew.
Following the surge in attacks, the US Naval Central Command has said it will establish a permanent Maritime Security Patrol Area in the Gulf of Aden. Coalition navy warships and aircraft will patrol the area under a commander from the Royal Canadian Navy.
Meanwhile the DFA has revealed plans to review the existing contracts of Filipino seafarers and disallow them from boarding ships that pass through “pirate-prone" areas.
According to Relacion, Filipino seamen, who are almost a third of the world’s seafarers, are most at risk of abduction because most of them board on ships that sail through the Gulf of Aden.
According to Engineer Nelson Ramirez, president of the United Filipino Seafarers, robberies in high seas are common, and thus seafarers should know how to defend themselves from pirate attacks.
"Dadaan at dadaan sila d’yan (Most of them will undergo this ordeal eventually)," said Ramirez in a recent interview with GMANews.TV.
He said all ship officials are required to take the ship security officer training, while crew members should undergo the ship security awareness program to avoid being taken over by pirates, who are often equipped with faster boats.
Last July, the Associated Press (AP) cited a report from the International Chamber of Commerce’s International Maritime Bureau (IMB) that pirate attacks worldwide grew 19 percent from May to April compared to the January to March period.
The report said that according to IMB, piracy incidents grew from 52 to 62, due to attacks in Somalia and Nigeria.
Though the second quarter figure was lower than the 85 attacks recorded in the same period last year, and that attacks on the first half of 2008 fell to 114 from last year's 126, the IMB believed that many attacks were not reported due to the safety concerns of seafarers.
The IMB, a non-profit organization fighting against all types of maritime crime and malpractice, said the “frequency and level of violence directed at seafarers is cause for alarm," and that “the abduction of crew and the increasing use of automatic weapons remain unacceptable." - GMANews.TV
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