Suez Canal: why the crew of Ever Given are still trapped on the ship (and could spend years like this)

They’ve been living in a stranded boat for almost a month, temporary hostages of a billionaire conflict That implies owned by a Japanese holding company, operated by a German company, with an Indian crew. What if that wasn’t enough they are trapped in Egypt. More precisely in the Great Amer Lake, in the system from the Suez Canal.

Cargo ship Never given quedó stranded in the canal from March 23 to 29, which led to the blockade of one of the world’s main trade sea routes.

Three weeks later, the 25 crew members on board the vessel were still in good condition and even the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF), which was able to visit them on the boat, said it was “in a good mood”.

However, the crew feel in a delicate position and are understandably anxious to know if they can return home as usual at the end of their contract, the ITF statement said.

The Suez Canal Authority has previously warned that until the claim of almost US $ 1 billion to compensate for damage, rescue operations and “loss of reputation”, the ship will remain in Egypt and its crew will not be able to abandon it during this time.

“It is natural for them to feel anxious about the uncertainty of the situation,” Mundo Abdulgani Serang of the Indian Boaters’ Union, who represents the crew of Ever Given, told BBC.

But Serang also pointed out that Bernard Schulte, the German company that chartered the boat and hired the crew, has a reputation and that seafarers have appropriate union agreements.

When Ever Given was crossed, weather conditions were flagged as a possible cause, to almost immediately continue to analyze the competence of the personnel and possible negligence in whatever happened.

Some media in India have even echoed industry fears that the parties would take the crew members as a scapegoat or could end up under house arrest.

But Serang recalls that if “the ship was seized by order of the Egyptian courts, no doubt was raised as to its professionalism”.

For now, the ship’s official status is “confiscated,” according to Evergreen, the shipping company that leases container ships from the Japanese holding company Shoei Kisen Kaisha, but no one has been charged with the accident.

Experts warn that the resolution of this international dispute Among all businesses, insurance companies and government agencies, this could go on for years.

While Suez Canal Authority says efforts to free ship have been costly and must be compensated, the shipowners have taken legal action in the UK against the company that operated the Ever Given.

All of these cross-accusations and lawsuits show that it will not be easy to determine who is responsible and how much to pay.

In the midst of this complex legal context is the crew.

“There was no loss of life, oil spills, or criminal activity in the incident. This is only a civil case over the financial implications negotiated by Egyptian owners, charterers, insurers and authorities, ”said the representative of the Indian Boaters’ Union.

“It looks like the Indian crew aboard the Ever Given will have to prepare for a lengthy arrest,” Captain Sanjay Prashar told The Times of India.

The Positive Side, ITF investigation found no breach of staff contracts ship and that all received their March wages.

This is why for the moment it is not considered a case of abandonment like that suffered by Mohammed Aisha, the keeper of an abandoned ship on the southern coast of Egypt from where he can leave unless the shipowner cannot find a replacement or the ship is sold.

In Egypt, officers on board ships are sometimes detained, according to the International Federation of Transport Workers they find themselves under a status equivalent to house arrest, sometimes for years.

In fact, this is not the first time that a ship’s crew has been trapped against their will.

In June 1967, 15 ships crossing the canal they were left in the crossfire between Israel and the bloc formed by Egypt, Syria and Jordan during the Six Day War.

During the resolution of the conflict, the boats anchored in Great Amer Lake so as not to be identified as targets.

The war ended on June 10, with the defeat of the three Arab countries. But Egypt maintained the blockade and the 14 ships could not leave. Thanks to diplomatic negotiations, some sailors left within two weeks, BBC Radio 4 host Peter Snow told the 2010 show The Yellow Fleet.

But the rest of the crew stayed for three months. A scenario, that of remaining on the ship, facing the crew of Ever Given.

“Seafarers will get legal and logistical support at local, national and international level in solidarity. They are not alone, ”they conclude from the Indian union.

BBC Mundo