RI to ratify ILO Convention

JAKARTA: The government is expected to ratify the Convention on Seafarers Identity Documents in the near future in a bid to protect the rights of Indonesian seafarers to job opportunities in foreign shipping fleets.

A national workshop concerning the International Labor Organization (ILO) convention will be conducted next week in conjunction with the government's plan to ratify it, according to a statement from the organization.

The workshop will be organized by the ILO, in cooperation with with the government, the Consortium of Indonesian Manning Agencies (CIMA), the Indonesian National Shipowners Association (INSA) and the Indonesian Seafarers' Union.

A number of government representatives as well as employers and workers organizations will discuss the provisions of the convention and the implications of its implementation here.

Indonesia is among the countries that provide the largest number of seafarers to the world's merchant marines. There are around 130,000 Indonesian seamen working overseas. -- JP