THE labor department said a regional conference for seafarers in Asia that it co-organized will help ensure their work conditions are acceptable.
On Tuesday, the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) said it teamed up with Seafarers’ Rights International (SRI) at the first Regional Meeting of Seafarers for Asia to come up with a declaration on seafarers’ rights.
The partnership produced a “Manila Declaration on the Fair Treatment of Seafarers” to help establish broader concern for the rights of seafarers. The declaration will also seek recognition for seafarers as a special category of worker.
The meeting follows up on the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) Workshop on the Fair Treatment of Seafarers held in London last year.
President Rodrigo R. Duterte, in a message read by Labor Secretary Silvestre H. Bello at the meeting, said that the Philippines’ partnership with SRI will benefit Filipino workers in the maritime industry.
Mr. Duterte said “I am confident that with this event, we can build a strong partnership that will bind us in even stronger collaboration for the protection and welfare of our seafarers.”
Mr. Bello told reporters on Tuesday that the Manila Declaration will “provide seafarers with maximum protection.”
IMO Maritime Ambassador Carlos C. Salinas said efforts to improve treatment of seafarers will benefit the entire industry.
“We should never allow any mistreatment of any individual which includes our global maritime profession,” Mr. Salinas said.
DoLE said that the Philippines accounts for more than a third of the 1.5 million seafarers worldwide according to 2015 data. — Gillian M. Cortez
