Families of sailors stranded in UAE seek help

  DUBAI – The families of sailors stranded on an abandoned ship off the coast of Umm Al Quwain have pleaded for financial help, according to a report on Monday (February 15). Five crew members remain on the tanker MT Iba, which has been abandoned since 2017 after the vessel’s proprietors ran into financial issues, The National reported. The tanker is owned by Alco Shipping of Sharjah. The sailors, who haven’t been paid since 2017, are unable to leave the vessel until their wages are settled. The crew are reportedly owed more than $200,000 in wages. Meanwhile, their families have pleaded for financial help, saying loans that they initially took out for agency fees and job placement are accumulating interest daily. Pawan Kumar, brother of Vinay Kumar, a second engineer on the ship, told The National that their family is under “really bad” financial strain after taking a hefty loan to pay agency fees. Pawan said the family is hoping his brother will be given his wages in order to pay for the loan interest as well as his brother’s children’s school fees. Husnain Ali, whose father Riasect is also a second engineer at the ship, said the family in Pakistan is struggling to pay for school fees as well as his mother’s cancer treatment. Husnain fears he may have to drop out of university if his father continues to have his salary unpaid. Husnain’s mother, Roubina, said that although a relative paid for her ovarian cancer treatment, the family had to take small loans from relatives and neighbours that now need to be repaid. Roubina said the family “is on the verge of destruction” due to their financial situation. The Federal Transport Authority in the UAE has reportedly taken up the crew’s case and is working on a resolution by the end of February. ICA/Expat Media
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