For UN chem weapons mission, 15 Pinoy sailors are honored for ‘courage, competence’

Fifteen Filipino sailors were honored by the Norwegian government on Thursday for their participation in a dangerous mission to transport chemical weapons from war-torn Syria last year.

The decision to award Filipinos the operational medals were “rare and historic,” said Norwegian Ambassador to the Philippines Erik Forner.

He said this was the first time civilians were given the Norwegian military honors since World War II.

“With the greatest courage, competence and professionalism, the 15 seafarers ensured that hundreds of tons of chemical weapons were transported from Syria and safely destroyed,” Forner said in a ceremony attended by officials and diplomats led by Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert de Rosario.

The 15 Filipino awardees were among the 41 civilian crew members onboard the cargo ship MV Taiko on a mission to implement a United Nations Security Council’s resolution requiring the destruction of Syria’s chemical weapons.

Six other Filipinos who were part of the crew have received their medals in a ceremony in Norway last June.

Among the awardees on Thursday were Ted Jallorina, Izlwyn Marin, Charles Steven Olimba, Antonio Sidocon, Giegz Lawa, Niel Sumondong, Reynaldo Batiancela, Jake Talinting, Syldreg Guliman, Rolando Gonzales, Jayson Bonete, Rufino Pedregosa, Orlando Ramos, Genciano Cruz, and the only woman in the group, stewardess Karen Mae Rivera.

One the crew members, cook Ramos, died of cancer on Tuesday.

UN’s call for assistance

The eight-month operation from December 2013 to July 2014 was Norway’s response to the UN’s call for the assistance of the international community in the removal, transportation and destruction of the weapons following an attack in 2013 in the outskirts of Syrian capital Damascus that killed hundreds of civilians.

Tapping the shipping company Wilhelmsen, Norway responded to the call and provided the civilian cargo ship MV Taiko and two ships from the Norwegian Navy to act as escort vessels.

The mission took place in coordination with the UN, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and other concerned states.

Chemical weapons

By the end in July 2015, 700 tons of chemical weapons had been sent to several countries and destroyed.

“The mission is one of Norway’s most significant contribution to the international peace and security in recent years,” Forner said.

Cmdr. John Gunnar Refsnes of the Royal Norwegian Army recounted the dangers the MV Taiko team had faced during the mission.

The Norwegian vessel was exposed and vulnerable to danger and was often accompanied by the sound of missiles and mortars, especially during the early part of the operations in Syrian ports.

Refsnes recalled that one time, the MV Taiko crew were removing containers of chemical weapons from Syrian city Latakia and two rockets were fired.

“But the crew remained calm and continued doing their business,” he said after the ceremony.

But most of the time, the crew would wait until it is safe to carry on with the tasks. “We went back and forth 10 times until all the weapons had been loaded into the ship,” Refsnes said.

No second thoughts

In an interview, awardee Batiancela, the 47-year-old repairman of MV Taiko, said all the Filipino crew members of the vessel had no second thoughts about accepting the job.

“We knew there were risks. But for us it was an opportunity,” Batiancela, who hails from Antipolo, Rizal, said.

Refsnes said that as commander of the vessel, he had made sure that everyone would go back home alive and security and safety standards in shipping the weapons were met.

Rosario called the Filipino participation in the mission a “job well done.”

Refsnes praised the boldness of the Filipino sailors in Norway who as of the latest count have reached to 25,000.

“If I ever get a task like this again, I know where to look for my crew,” the Norwegian commander said.