MANILA: A party-list lawmaker said Tuesday a more holistic Magna Carta for all types of seafarers is necessary considering that the Philippines is a major supplier of maritime labor globally.
Marino Party-list Rep. Sandro Gonzalez said the House of Representatives panel-approved version of the proposed magna carta is holistic and responsive to the needs of Filipino seafarers, as he recognized the support the proposal is getting from the Marcos administration and the current Congress.
“The government cannot keep on providing band-aid solutions to each issue that arises in the seafaring industry. Having a single document that recognizes and protects the most essential rights of our Filipino seafarers is a necessity that we must work at the earliest opportunity,” Gonzalez said. “We deeply recognize the support that the Magna Carta is getting from the Marcos administration and it being part of the priority bills in the Congress.”
He noted that the measure stipulates the rights of the seafarers to just terms and conditions of work, against discrimination regardless of race, sex, religion, age, and political opinion, access to communication with their families during their free time and while on board, fair treatment during maritime accidents, proper hours of work and hours of rest, decent accommodations and recreational facilities on board, and free food and drinking water with appropriate quality, quantity, and nutritional value.
Other notable provisions include the recognition of the seafarers’ right to public consultation before any policy and rules will be implemented, to have a fair medical assessment and easily accessible assistance from the government, and the full payment of wages for seafarers who were abandoned by their shipowners, he said.
“It is still a long and tedious process as it leaves from the House Committee (on Committee on Overseas Workers Affairs) to our colleagues in the Congress, but we remain hopeful that this bill will be signed into a law this year,” Gonzalez said.
He, however, pushed for the adaptation of a provision regarding the “point of destination” as the repatriation location of a Filipino seafarer in place of the “point of hire” phrase provided in Section 29 of the substitute bill.
“MARINO will continue on putting at the forefront the rights and welfare of our Pinoy seamen. We will win the welfare of our Filipino seafarers this time. They deserve to be protected and taken care of by the government,” he said.
Source: Philippines News Agency