Abandoned for four years aboard a freighter, a sailor finally regains his freedom

Its unforeseen stop has turned into a nightmare that lasted almost four years.Mohammed Aisha's ordeal ended last week, says the BBC which had already devoted a video on April 6, to this man abandoned by all.

Coincé à bord du MV Aman, un navire marchand, ce marin syrien a pu retrouver sa liberté, et, ramené par avion dans son pays, il a pu revoir ses proches avec « beaucoup d’émotion ».

He had embarked in May 2017, but his cargo, beating Bahrainian pavilion, had been forced to anchor two months later, off the Egyptian coast, near the port of Adabiya.The ship was seized by the authorities because of obsolete security equipment and expired certificates.

The case could easily have resolved, but the Lebanese shipowner did not pay fuel and the owners at the Barheïn were in financial difficulty.

Appointed cargo manager

The container ship and its sailors were therefore abandoned and in the absence of the Egyptian captain of the ship who was already on the ground, a local court said Mohammed Aisha, who was the second of the boat, legal guardian of the MV Aman.

A decision that the sailor, deprived of salary and passport, signed without taking the full measure immediately.He understood his ordeal when he saw the other crew members leaving one by one in 2019 and that he found himself stuck, alone, to have to monitor the deserted ship, without electricity or sanitary, continues the television channelBritish.

Two options had been advanced recently to release it: either the sailor was replaced or the boat was bought. Mais la compagnie Tylos Shipping and Marine Services, propriétaire du cargo, qui a affirmé à la BBC avoir tenté de régler le problème, a indiqué qu’elle ne pouvait pas « forcer un juge à retirer la responsabilité légale du navire à Mohammed Aisha » et qu’elle n’avait « trouvé personne pour le remplacer ».

At the forefront when blocking the Ever Given

The wait on the cargo, which was finally auctioned last March, therefore lasted four years.Four long years for the abandoned sailor with the sole occupation of watching the ships enter and get out of the Suez Canal, nearby.

Mohammed Aisha regularly saw his brother, Marin too, was even a privileged witness of chaos caused by the Ever Given blocked across this very busy sea route last month.

At night, things were different. Il a raconté qu’une fois le soleil couché, le navire ressemblait à une tombe, car « on ne voit rien et on n’entend rien ».He feared for his life in March 2020, when a storm torn the MV Aman from his anchoring.

The ship then derived from eight kilometers, to finally run up a few hundred meters from the shore. Un événement qui a permis à Mohammed Aisha de sortir un peu de « sa prison ».

Other abandoned ships

The sailor could win the shore at swimming every two or three days, to buy food but also recharge his phone.

A precious tool that allowed him to stay in touch with his family all this time and to hold on. Car durant cette odyssée sans fin, le Syrien, qui a appris le décès de sa mère, a avoué au média britannique « avoir sérieusement pensé mettre fin à ses jours ».

As incredible as it may seem, Mohammed Aisha is unfortunately not the only one to live this hell.The abandonment of sailors are frequent and increasing, specifies the BBC.

« Selon l’Organisation internationale du travail, il existe plus de 250 cas actifs dans le monde où des équipages sont tout simplement abandonnés à leur sort. » Celle-ci dénombre 85 nouveaux cas signalés en 2020, soit deux fois plus que l’année précédente.

Read also: five sailors trapped aboard their oil tankers for almost four years

The need for a debate on these tragic stories

This tragic history has moved the International Federation of Transport Workers, which took care of the Syrian case in December.

Un de ses représentants a déclaré que « ce cas devait servir à ouvrir un débat sérieux pour empêcher ces abus à l’encontre des marins sur les navires ». Un débat qui « doit impliquer les armateurs, les autorités portuaires et maritimes et les États du pavillon ».