Shore leave: Mariners feel like prisoners

By G Saravanan
Published in The New Indian Express on April 3, 2010:
Chennai, April 2:Even though the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) has declared 2010 as the ‘Year of the Seafarer,’ Indian seafarers, whether working on foreign going or coastal ships, are increasingly finding it difficult to go ashore in Indian ports as their shore leave, a legitimate due, was overlooked under the pretext of security.

Shore leave is a kind of permission to sailors to spend their time on dry land. In India, for lakhs of sailors, (including Indian seafarers) it has been restricted to just 12 hours a day, from 8 am to 8 pm. Urgent and medical emergencies (from sailors) require advance permission from Immigration authorities to leave their ship to visit land.

With the Indian government not in a mood to listen to the woes of sailors, especially on shore leave, mariners has now started feeling like prisoners in their own country.

On the occasion of the National Maritime Day, which is falling on Monday, they have planned to register their strongest ever protest against the government.

Reacting strongly to the issue, Capt.Vipan Kumar, said, “I have been a sailor for more than 30 years and never saw this kind of situation in my life. I landed on one ship in Mumbai port recently and was shocked to see that Indian seafarers were not given shore leave by port authority in the name of increased threat to Indian ports.” How can threat to Indian port become less if I am not allowed to go outside the port, he questioned.

Seafarers sail through seas in difficult circumstances and when they come back to Indian waters with a hope that they will be able to see their own kith and kin, they are denied access outside the port. Instead of beefing up their security and becoming vigilant, an easy route is taken by the government to stop seafarers from visiting their own country, many seafarers rue.

While 12-hour shore passes issued on a per day basis, by the time the pass is issued, it is often close to lunch time, and the seafarer has to return by 7 pm so as to enable the agent to return the pass to the authorities by 8 pm.

Capt. K G Ramakrishnan, another experienced sailor said, “The Indian seafarers are issued identities by their government and should not be seen as aliens. We need the same rights as a labour in the port who has access in and out at any time based on a port pass issued on the recommendation of a shore agency.”
Source: http://expressbuzz.com/cricket/shore-leave-mariners-feel-like-prisoners/162204.html