The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Friday urged Filipino seafarers to use their “right to refuse sailing” for their safety, considering the escalation of conflict in the Red Sea.
“This situation has worsened due in part to the conflict escalation in the Red Sea that poses a clear and present danger to all Filipino seafarers working in the area,” the DFA said in an advisory.
“The DFA therefore urges Filipino seafarers to exercise prudent choice and their ‘right to refuse sailing’ in the Red Sea,” it added.
Aside from seafarers, the DFA also advised all Philippine nationals to avoid the Red Sea altogether “unless absolutely necessary for their livelihood.”
On Thursday, an EU naval mission said that the crew of an oil tanker, including 23 Filipinos, have been rescued after an attack in the Red Sea off Yemen.
Greek-flagged Sounion caught fire and experienced engine power cut after several projectiles hit the tanker on Wednesday.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack but Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels have been waging a campaign against international shipping as part of their support for Gaza, where the death toll reached 40,000 amid Israelis strikes.
In June, the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) prohibited Filipino seafarers from boarding ships under the same owners of previously attacked vessels in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
That’s after a Filipino sailor was killed when Yemen’s Houthi rebels attacked a bulk cargo carrier. —VAL, GMA Integrated News
