BIMCO targets seafarer abandonment and criminalization

BIMCO targets seafarer abandonment and criminalization
By Carmela I. Huelar and Yashika F. Torib June 10, 2026 https://www.manilatimes.net/2026/06/10/business/maritime/bimco-targets-s...

ATHENS — While the international maritime elite gathered at the Athens Metropolitan Expo for Posidonia 2026 to discuss green technology and multibillion-dollar investments, a quiet, devastating reminder of the industry’s human cost hung heavily in the air. Speaking at the start of a high-level panel discussion at the exhibition on Wednesday, June 3, David Loosley, secretary general and CEO of the Baltic and International Maritime Council (Bimco), warned that the dual crises of seafarer abandonment and unjust criminalization are rapidly worsening under the shadow of intensifying global conflicts.

Loosley noted that while recent geopolitical escalations — including the Middle East conflict, which has left roughly 20,000 seafarers under severe mental strain and stranded aboard ships in the Persian Gulf region — have finally pushed maritime news onto the front pages of mainstream media, global attention remains dangerously misplaced.

“When shipping makes the headlines, it’s usually because something has gone wrong, and too often what gets lost behind the headlines is the human dimension — the people,” Loosley said. He emphasized an urgent need to redirect the global spotlight away from mere supply chain disruptions and square onto the immediate plight of maritime workers, who face systemic risks of abandonment and legal scapegoating.

The scope of the crisis is laid bare by recent maritime data, which reveals that seafarer abandonment hit an unprecedented record of 6,223 seafarers abandoned across 410 ships globally in a single year, with the Middle East emerging as the worst-affected region.

The premiere of Bimco’s poignant campaign film, “Unseen at Sea,” at one of the world’s largest shipping events marked a watershed moment — a public acknowledgment that the systemic criminalization of seafarers can no longer be swept under the rug.

“Behind every voyage is a human being,” the campaign highlights. “Yet, when things go wrong at sea, the seafaring community is too often treated not as the backbone of global trade, but as the first line of scapegoats.”

The fact that this campaign took center stage in Athens before thousands of international shipowners and maritime leaders prove that the fight for seafarers’ rights is gaining high-level attention.

However, as global shipowners nodded in agreement in Athens, thousands of miles away in Manila, the painful gap between corporate awareness and diplomatic results remain exposed.