'It's different this time': Veteran Filipino sailor refuses Strait of Hormuz voyage

'It's different this time': Veteran Filipino sailor refuses Strait of Hormuz voyage
Raymund Villanueva 17 Jul 2026 https://www.khaleejtimes.com/world/asia/its-different-this-time-veteran-...

The seaman said he would have accepted the risks when he was younger. Now, he must consider the safety of 22 other sailors under his supervision, including 13 kababayan (compatriots)

Filipino seaman Francis is a 30-year veteran of the seas. He started as a mess man in 1996 and has worked his way up to his current rank of bosun, the most senior rate and leader of the deck department on a ship.

Early this week, Francis informed his Russian captain that he did not wish to remain on board the Liberia-registered tanker as it was preparing to pass through the Strait of Hormuz en route from Singapore to Rotterdam. It was the first time in his three decades as a mariner that he had refused to sail a particular route.

“It’s different this time," he told Khaleej Times in an exclusive interview on Thursday, explaining: “I’ve passed through the Red Sea countless times already. But it is not just pirates that we have to be wary of nowadays. This time, ships are in danger from drones and missiles.”

Francis said online chats by mariners groups warn them of impending dangers in their intended routes. He pointed out that hostilities in the Middle East have resumed and belligerent groups in Yemen have threatened to target ships passing through the Red Sea in support of Iran’s constriction of the Strait of Hormuz as leverage.

The seaman said he would have shrugged off such dangers when he was younger, when he had fewer onboard responsibilities. But he now has to consider the well-being of 22 other sailors under his supervision, 13 of whom are compatriots while the rest are South Asians and Eastern Europeans.
Sailors' right to refuse

“It’s my job to point out that we have the option to disembark if the dangers are real. So far, only six of us have indicated our desire to leave the ship if the company insists on the shorter but dangerous route,” Francis said.

"First-time mariners indicated they want to complete their contracts despite the heightened dangers because they have loans to pay back home," he added, explaining: “It is very hard to land a contract aboard a ship. Young Filipino sailors really have no choice but blindly follow their company’s decision, however dangerous."

Lawyer Edwin dela Cruz, International Seafarers Action Center (ISAC) president, said the Philippine government must conduct an aggressive information campaign among Filipino sailors on their rights as the Middle East crisis shows no sign of permanently stopping. He said that even before the US-Israel war against Iran, “seafarers were already beset with problems. The war had aggravated the dire circumstances of the seafarers and their families.”

Dela Cruz said the government of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr has yet to provide comprehensive protection to Filipino seafarers affected by the war. "There have been no shelters, comprehensive repatriation to stranded seafarers, nor financial assistance to offloaded sailors due to the war," he noted.

"About 2,500 Filipino sailors on board many ships are currently unable to leave the Arabian Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz due to renewed military tensions and retaliatory strikes," migrant workers advocates added.

The Philippine Department of Migrant Workers (DMW), meanwhile, have assured the stranded crews’ salaries will continue to be remitted to their families in the Philippines.

Meanwhile, Francis said their ship has just left Dhaka and is en route to a Singaporean refinery. Before arriving in Singapore, they will be informed whether their ship would sail through Hormuz, the Red Sea, or would pass around South Africa instead.

“I only have a month left in my current contract. I am seriously considering disembarking if our security concerns are not addressed,” he said, adding he had consulted his wife about their situation.

“If this would spell the end of my maritime career, I think three decades at sea is long enough. My children are all grown up anyway,” Francis said.