The Plight of Ship Workers Celebrating Eid at Sea, Far from Family for Livelihood

Jakarta — The warmth of celebrating Eid with family is not a privilege afforded to everyone. For many workers in the maritime sector, Eid al-Fitr is often spent far from home, even in the middle of the sea.

This is the experience of Lajumani (50), a ship crew member (ABK) from Ambon who must return to work as Eid approaches this year.

The two-month leave he spent with his family has ended, so he must return to his workplace on an oil tanker operating in international waters with a route towards Singapore.

However, the journey to Batam was not as smooth as expected. He had to transit first with dozens of other travellers at Tanjung Priok Port.

This occurred because there is no direct ship service from Ambon to Batam, so passengers must stop first in Jakarta.

Juma arrived at Tanjung Priok Port on Sunday, 8 March 2026. Meanwhile, the ship that would take him to Batam would not be available until Saturday, 14 March 2026.

The crew member said he had to wait several days at the port due to miscommunication with his office.

“It’s not a case of taking a plane — it was also partly my mistake, a communication error. My office contacted me saying to take a plane, but I had already booked a ship ticket here. So the office told me to just wait until 14 March 2026, so that I can reach Singapore on the 15th,” he explained.

Despite having to stay overnight for several days, he said he did not feel he was losing out because the ship ticket price from Tanjung Priok Port to Batam was only around 312,000 rupiahs.

The father of two returned to sea about eight months ago, before eventually taking two months’ leave to return to his hometown in Ambon.

Now, he must sail again to Singapore even though Eid is just around the corner.

“Yes, of course I’ll be celebrating Eid on the ship. As a sailor, I think everyone will experience the same. Unless the ship is docked at the wharf, then we can disembark and pray,” he explained.

If the ship is at sea, Juma and his colleagues still perform Eid prayers aboard the vessel.