Sriracha, Thailand
 Without
trade unions or established welfare structures, seafarers
visiting the Thai port of Sriracha must rely on AOS if they
need help.
Apinya Tajit is a pastoral worker in the Sacred Heart
parish and also assistant director of the Stella Maris
Centre in the port of Sriracha on the Gulf of Thailand. Mrs
Tajit, who is known as Jam, faces many challenges in
offering pastoral care to visiting seafarers.
Seafarers’ problems
Rice is an important export commodity in Sriracha. Ships
loading rice are often in port for some 45 to 70 days. Crews
are of mixed nationality, a typical ship may have Iranian,
Pakistani, Indian, Ukrainian and Bangladeshi seafarers
onboard. Recently Jam has become concerned about the Iranian
seafarers who visit the port of Sriracha and who complain of
unfair treatment. There are cases of Iranian seafarers being
paid less than their similarly qualified colleagues of other
nationalities.
Another problem is the striking of deals between ships'
captains and agents over food supplies. Jam reports cases of
crews being given poor quality food and unclean water. In
the case of one particular ship, she says,
“the food was fit for monkeys, not human beings”
However the seafarers onboard were too afraid to
complain. The captain had told them that, if they did not
like it, they could leave the ship.
 There
are also concerns about safety in port. Jam often visits the
jetty to talk to seafarers. She reports seeing seafarers
having to jump from the jetty to service boats to return to
their ships because proper access facilities have not been
arranged.
Many of the seafarers who come to Sriracha do not know
about their human and labour rights. They are not usually
members of trade unions and do not know where to find help.
The situation is complicated because there is no seafarers’
union in Thailand. It is difficult for the ITF to intervene,
as it can in other countries, and there is no ITF inspector
in Sriracha. In addition, ships’ agents are sometimes
hostile, even falsely telling seafarers that there is no
Stella Maris Centre in Sriracha.
Visiting
The pastoral workers and volunteers at the Stella Maris
Centre work hard to make it a home away from home. But not
everyone can come to the centre. Fishers from Burma and
Cambodia are sometimes arrested for illegally entering Thai
waters. Jam visits them to offer pastoral care when they are
held at the police station or in prison.
AOS is currently supporting a Filipino seafarer in prison
in Bangkok. It is hoped that he will be released on the
King’s birthday, according to Thai custom. Jam is planning
to collect him and bring him back to the Sacred Heart Church
in Sriracha where he can be cared for while transport home
is arranged.
Jam also visits seafarers in hospital. Caring for sick
seafarers can be difficult. There have been cases of
captains being reluctant to let crew members seek medical
treatment as it may be expensive. Again, ships’ agents may
be hostile. Jam has even been chased out of hospital by an
agent. But she returns because seafarers need her. She
reports the case of a cadet suffering from dengue fever. In
hospital, he told her
“I miss my mother, I miss my brother, I don’t like the
seafaring life but I have no choice.”
Jam says,
“In this case, I have to be mother. I feed him and give
him his medicine even if I have to hide from the ship’s
agent.”
Jam is sustained by her faith. Mass is held regularly in
the seafarers’ centre and, where possible, onboard ship.
Photographs: (1) Seafarers enjoy hospitality at the
Stella Maris Centre, Sriracha. (2) Mass is celebrated at the
Stella Maris Centre, Sriracha
|