MARINO Partylist lauds the House Committee on Overseas Workers Affairs following the approval of the proposed Magna Carta of Filipino Seafarers last February 9, 2023.
For more than 20 years, the Magna Carta remained a pending legislative matter in the Congress despite the increasing number of Filipino seafarers annually and their valuable contributions over the years, particularly to the improvement of the Philippine economy. On top of that, they are the most preferred globally.
“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,” MARINO Partylist Representative Sandro 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 added.
MARINO has consistently pushed to include the rights of the seafares to just terms and conditions of work, against discrimination regardless of race, sex, religion, age, and political opinion, access to communication to their families during their free time and while onboard, fair treatment during maritime accidents, proper hours of work and hours of rest, decent accommodations and recreational facilities onboard, and free food and drinking water with appropriate quality, quantity, and nutritional value.
Some other provisions that the Party-list has pushed for is 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.
“This substitute bill addresses the concern of having a more holistic Magna Carta for all types of seafarers. It is still a long and tedious process as it leaves from the House Committee to our colleagues in the Congress, but we remain hopeful that this bill will be signed into a law this year,” Rep. Gonzalez said.
MARINO remains firm in pressing for the adaptation of 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,” Rep. Gonzalez added. #### ####
