Norway slammed over "criminalisation" case

 

Unions and managers condemn 'legally and morally indefensible treatnent of officers

            

Seafaring unions and ship managers have jointly condemned what they have described as the worst case of criminalisation since the `Hebei Two' controversy in Korea.

In a hard-hitting statement, the International Transport Workers' Federation, Norwegian maritime unions and the international ship managers' association InterManager accused the Norwegian authorities of legally and morally indefensible' treatment of two officers who have been detained since their ship ran aground after dragging its anchor in a storm in July.

There was a small spillage of oil as a result, and prosecutors have filed charges of gross negligence against the Chinese master and third officer of the bulk carrier Full City.

Hopes that the two men would be allowed to return home last month were dashed when an appeal court overturned a district court decision to give the men their passports.

It also altered their bail conditions to keep them in the country pending a trial for negligence that is unlikely to be held until next year.

`This is looking all too much like another Hebei Spirit, where seafarers doing their job are hauled in front of a court to satisfy an illusory public requirement that someone gets punished when oil leaks onto water,' said Intermanager president Roberto Giorgi.

`This automatic reaching for the handcuffs is emphatically not the way to solve the fact that sometimes ships get into trouble, and actively undermines all the efforts everyone in shipping puts into making sure that safety is made paramount.

`Norway, a nation that understands safe shipping more than most, has shot itself in the foot by pandering to ignorance of the realities and a desire to blame  someone, anyone, when things go wrong,' he warned.

ITF general secretary David Cockroft added: 'The criminalisation of seafarers — the vilification of workers for accidents that may be beyond their control – is one of the ugliest developments in shipping.

Sadly, it appears that once again we are looking at a knee-jerk response to an incident, which, more sadly still, is happening in the country where you'd least expect it.'

Captain Hans Sande, director of the Norwegian Maritime Officers' Association added: 'There is a wealth of maritime experience in Norway and we hope that some of it will find its way into the judicial process.

`If that happens, the court case will be dropped and the normal maritime investigation processes will be free to take action unfettered by political considerations or nods to public opinion.

`If common sense prevails then the lessons of the grounding will be identified and learned and the cargoes that we all rely or to sustain our way of life in every country in the world will trave that little bit more safely,' Capt Sande added.

`If not, we will once again see not just the criminalisation of these two men, but a new genera tion of potential ship's officers; deciding that the job isn't worth the risk of being unfairly pillo ried that increasingly seems to come with it'

 

Shipmaster jailed by US court

 

A Greek shipmaster has been jailed for six months and banned from US waters after admitting obstructing justice and breaking maritime safety and pollution laws.

Capt Panagiotis Lekkas, master of the 71,242dwt bulk carrier Theotokos, will also have to serve a further four months in a community confinement facility and pay a $4,000 fine.

He was sentenced in federal court in New Orleans last month after pleading guilty to one count of obstruction of justice, one count of violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships, and two counts of violating the Ports and Waterways Safety Act.

`This sentence, including the three-year ban from US territorial water, sends the message to ship crew members and captains that violating environmental and ship safety laws will have consequences,' said acting assistant attorney-general John Crudden.

We are serious and we will continue to prosecute these cases and seek sentences that appropriately punish the crime.'

The charges were brought after a US Coast Guard inspection on the Liberian flagged Theotokos discovered fuel leaking into the forepeak ballast tank. In addition, the ship's oily water separator was not working property and bilge waste had been discharged directly overboard.

Inspectors also found that crew members had failed to notify the USCG about a crack on the ship's rudder stem, even though they had informed shore management about the problem some three months earlier.

The investigation led to the first criminal prosecutions under US laws designed to control the spread of invasive species through ballast water, and also saw the ship's chief officer and chief engineer being brought before the courts.

The ship's manager, Greek operator Polembros Shipping, has been fined US$2.7m and banned from operating any of its 20 owned or managed vessels in US waters for three years after admitting a series of related charges, including making false statements during the USCG investigation. The company will also pay $100,000 towards research into ballast water issues.