Hong Kong Shipowners Association (HKSAO) chairman Bjorn Hojgaard has blamed a “few rotten apples” for the decision by several Asian nations to restrict crew changes.
In a letter published in the South China Morning Post on Wednesday, he and Hong Kong Liner Shipping Association chairman Roberto Giannetta stressed the vital role seafarers played as key workers.
“Like other ‘key workers’, seafarers are essential for the global community to fight this battle against the virus,” they wrote.
“Without these heroes at sea, world trade would come to a halt. If any of them are unfortunately infected, they deserve support, not bias.”
Hojgaard and Giannetta said those “rotten apples” had “brought disrepute to their peers and the industry”, which has been working hard to ensure smooth operation of the world's supply chain during a difficult time.
“We are extremely disappointed with this,” they said.
“We have urged international and local unions to remind their members to strictly follow all rules, protocols and precautionary measures set by port authorities and shipping companies to protect public health. We have also suggested the government impose penalties on any parties who break the rules.”
Hojgaard and Giannetta wrote that the two associations had advised their members to take “appropriate measures” when unrestricted crew changes were allowed from early June, including requiring all seafarers to test negative for Covid-19 before coming to Hong Kong.
“We also recommended other possible precautionary measures to the government. These included requiring all seafarers to test negative again on their arrival in Hong Kong and imposing penalties on companies and individuals breaking the rules,” the letter added.
“On 20 July, in view of the fast-changing situation in Hong Kong, our two associations asked all their members to reschedule or postpone crew changes for at least three weeks.”
On Monday, TradeWinds reported that Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia announced over the weekend that they would be tightening their immigration policies in moves that would make it harder to conduct crew changes in their ports.
Officials in all three jurisdictions said enhancing crew-change safety measures would “further reduce the risk of importing Covid-19 cases”.
Hong Kong’s tightening of crew changeovers comes as the special administrative region struggles with a resurgence of the coronavirus.
From 29 July, authorities there will not allow vessels to call at its port expressly to conduct a crew change. However, ships carrying out cargo operations will not be affected.
