HRCP wants Pakistani crew stuck on ship in India brought home

Lahore: The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has called upon the government to immediately intervene to help five Pakistani crew members stuck on their ship at anchorage in India who have not been paid their salaries for months and only have food left for a few more days.

The Commission said in a statement on Wednesday, “HRCP wants to urgently draw the government’s attention to the plight of crew of a ship, MV Fatahur Rahman, which has been at Vishakhapatnam anchorage in India for over five months. During that period, the 24-member crew comprising five Pakistanis and 19 Bangladeshis stuck on the ship have not been paid their salaries and have been all but abandoned by their employer. The vessel is said to be owned by a Singapore-based company, which has an agent in Karachi and also one in Vishakhapatnam, India. HRCP has come to know that food onboard the ship is running so low that the lives of the crew members are at risk. It is outrageous that a company treats its employees in such shabby manner but it is even more shocking that it has gotten away with that for so many months.

The government of Pakistan must take immediate steps to bring the Pakistani crew members home and help them settle their affairs with the company that employs them. We request the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Pakistani high commissioner in New Delhi in particular to immediately intervene and end the crew members’ plight at the earliest.”