STEVENSON ADDRESSES NATIONAL FORUM ON SEAFARERS' WELFARE IN AUSTRALIA

Douglas B. Stevenson, Director, Center for Seafarers' Rights (CSR) at the Seamen’s' Church Institute, journeyed to Australia, to participate in the National Forum on Seafarers' Rights which was held in Melbourne on the 22^nd and 23^rd of August. Mr. Stevenson, a widely recognized authority and spokesman on seafarers' rights, was invited by the Mission to Seafarers the and the Apostleship of the Sea as well as the Australia Department of Transportation and Regional Services, to address the forum on the subject of "Justice for Seafarers".

The Forum was an initiative of these two major Australian maritime ministries who organized the event in response to the August 1998 report of the Australian House of Representatives Standing Committee on Communications, Transport and Microeconomic Forum - Ship Safe: An Inquiry into the Australian Maritime Safety Authority.

In his opening remarks Mr. Stevenson stated that, "maritime safety, or protecting lives, property and environment is everyone's responsibility. In today's global economy, all of us depend on clean seas; all of us are affected by maritime casualties, and all of us must participate in making the seas safer and cleaner."

The CSR Director said that, "through science, technology and regulation ships have become increasingly safer". But he observed that, "maritime safety regulations have become so refined that the highest risks to safe waterborne commerce are not the ships themselves but the humans that operate them. Nevertheless, safety regulations still largely focus on technical solutions rather than the human element."

Yet he noted that vessel safety ultimately depends on its crew - "when such things as fatigue, anxiety, illness, humiliation, boredom and a complexity of other factors reduce seafarers' efficiency and effectiveness, then maritime safety is jeopardized", he said. "We should not think of protecting seafarers' rights simply in terms of charity…but understand that protecting traditional seafarers' rights is the best way to promote maritime safety."

Mr. Stevenson, then speaking from his experience as a lawyer, mentioned that, "by law, while seafarers are the most protected of all workers, they continue to be deprived of rights, continue to be exploited and continue to be abused. It is a challenge for us as world citizens to identify the sources of these problems and seek both national and international remedies to them."

He then enumerated a number of the major issues with the purpose of "intending to provoke discussion toward their possible solutions". Included among these issues are: access to justice, seafarers' legal priority and relationship with owners, medical care, repatriation, recruiting, criminal victimization, and lack of visiting assistance port facilities for seafarers.

In concluding his remarks the CSR Director stated, "when we recognize seafarers' significant role in maritime safety and ensure that they are well-provided for, not only are we protecting lives, property and the marine environment, but also we are doing something that we can feel good about".

Anyone wishing a copy of Mr. Stevenson's presentation should contact the SCI Center for Seafarers' Rights at 212 349 9090 ext 225 or e-mail the request to csr@seamenschurch.org.