MANILA, Philippines — In the spirit of “humanitarian” consideration, the management of a commercial ship involved in a fatal West Philippine Sea collision should provide assistance to the aggrieved fisherfolk and their families right away.
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Senator Robinhood Padilla made the appeal to the representative of the foreign oil tanker during the hearing of the Senate’s Special Committee on Philippine Maritime and Admiralty Zones on the October 2 collision.
Three crew members of FFB Dearyn were killed, while one sustained minor injuries following the collision of their fishing boat with Pacific Anna, a crude oil tanker registered under the Marshall Islands.
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Eleven fishermen survived the ordeal.
“For humanitarian purposes ika nga (as they say), if we could consider, because these are very poor fishermen,” Padilla said during the hearing.
“I hope we could consider giving them compensation right away,” he added.
READ: Fisher says collision of their boat with commercial ship an accident
Capt. Abhishek Sinha, the training director of the manning agency for Pacific Anna, said the firm will abide by the findings.
But Padilla enjoined the firm not to wait for the findings before extending due assistance.
“I hope we will not wait for the findings because that will take years. What I am asking, brother, is for humanitarian reasons,” he said.
“If we wait for the court to decide, this will take years,” he further stressed.
Senator Francis Tolentino, who heads the special committee, echoed the pleas.
“I associate with the pleas coming from the senators,” he said.
Tolentino also urged the representative of Pacific Anna, as well as Capt. Leo Bolivar, Deputy Commissioner for the Maritime Affairs of the Republic of Marshall Islands, to sit down with the surviving fisherfolk who were also present at the hearing to “not just commiserate with the victims here but to arrive at more amicable solution sans what would happen in the legal sphere.”
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