Stranded

They were treated little better than the caged livestock the ageing vessel was shipping between Australia and the Middle East. When the 32-year-old Kuwait-registered Mawashi Al Gasseem was arrested in Port Adelaide last August the mostly Filipino crew had received little or none of their meagre $200 a month wages and no provisions for months.

Indian fitter Joseph Ignatius said he received his first weeks' wages in January 2005 then nothing. His wife and daughter were struggling to survive. Many families took out high interest loans back home to support themselves.

The ships Saudi operators Almawashi Almukairish United Co provided the ship's master with no money for crew meals for months, leaving the crew to survive on rice and dry foods without fresh fruit or vegetables.

“It's like a floating gaol for us, I mean, we are just in a gaol,” Radio officer, James Louis told ABC TV. “The crew and officers are very worried. Their families are also very worried, and they are in great debt in their homeland because they have taken very heavy loans from the loan sharks, and till now they are not paid, some people are here for 15 months, 16 months.”

The crew took a stand, refusing to leave the ship until they were paid the nearly $600,000 in wages owed them. The International Transport Workers' Federation and local Maritime Union of Australia backed them, organising a lawyer and a caveat on the vessel so any sale or debt recovery would ensure they were paid. MUA members donated $500 to crewmembers to ring their families - some of whom they hadn't seen for more than a year. The Federal Court appointed a marshal to ensure the crew had food and provisions while the case was being heard.

But legal action can be painfully slow.

“Your family, your wife, your children, everybody is expecting you at home,” said Mohammad Hoda. “But you are here, because there is no solution for that, every day it is getting delayed and delayed.”

Now after 10 long months imprisoned on their ship, they are going home. Thanks to the ITF and the MUA the crew finally won justice, a million dollar payout, and repatriation back to their families.

The ITF made sure the 69 crew members were paid out before any other debtors, including the bunkering company that originally arrested the ship. The lawyers were also paid from the proceeds of the ships' sale at no cost to the crew.

“Clem and Ray did most of the legwork for the ITF and the lawyers,” said SA Branch Secretary Jamie Newlyn. “They need a pat on the back for that. It wasn't a flag of convenience, but the crew were struggling. So the ITF, the Catholic Mission and the union all got involved to make sure they were looked after.”

“Shipping's pretty notorious round the world,” said Ray Nolan. “They hadn't paid their crew, hadn't fed them, they'd just abandoned them. They didn't care about them at all. They gave no undertaking in the court to say that they would help them. The boys were devastated.”

“The ship had been at anchor five to six months,” said Clem. “The guys on board were in a bad way. They had no money. Their families couldn't pay the rent and were being forced out of their homes. Their kids couldn't go to school because they couldn't pay the fees. We helped get money together from CSX (Dubai Ports)and other companies and the local Filipino community. Wharfies and seafarers put in too.

“This is a significant victory for the crew,” Assistant ITF Coordinator Matt Purcell told Radio Adelaide. “The Filipino community in Adelaide, the Maritime Union of Australia, the Stella Maris, as well as the ITF, including volunteers Clem and Ray, all played a part in assisting in this great outcome."

The Mawashi now has new owners and an ITF agreement covering the crew on double the pay.