ITF vows to help Myanmarese sailors

ITF vows to help Myanmarese sailors

JAKARTA: The International Transportation Federation (ITF) has
pledged to step in and help the more than 1,200 Myanmarese
mariners who have been stranded in southeast Maluku regency for
almost 10 years.

Indonesian Mariners Union (KPI) chairman Hanafie Rustandi said
the ITF would discuss the issue at its annual Asia-Pacific
meeting here on Wednesday and Thursday.

"The issue is quite serious, and we have decided to bring it
to the two-day meeting to discuss further what solutions are
available for the Myanmarese mariners," he said on Tuesday after
accompanying senior ITF officials to make a courtesy call on
manpower minister Jacob Nuwa Wea.

He said during the one-hour meeting with the minister, ITF
secretary-general David Cockroft appealed to the Indonesian
government to accept the presence of the illegal Myanmarese and
help find a wise and humane solution to their plight. -- JP