MADURAI/KOCHI: Nine Indian fishermen who were allegedly harassed and not paid by their employer in Yemen for nearly a year have escaped that country by stealing their employer's boat and sailing for Kochi, a peril-filled voyage of than 3,000 km of open sea, according to the families of two of the fishermen.
The last telephonic contact with them was when their boat was somewhere near the Lakshadweep Islands on Wednesday, their families said, adding that they had started their journey on November 19. Thursday was the 10th day at sea for the nine men – seven from Tamil Nadu and two from Kerala.
Sources in the Coast Guard said on Thursday that the force had spotted a boat between Kalpeni Atoll and Kochi that was similar in description to the fishing boat of the nine Indian fishermen. Kalpeni is about 218 km (117 nautical miles) west of Kochi port.
Later, on Thursday night, a PIB source in Kichi said, "DHQ-4 of Coast Guard at Kochi has intimated that its aircraft, a CG Dornier, detected a boat similar to the one mentioned about 46 nautical miles (85 km) from Kalpeni island. Coast Guard ship ICGS Aryaman has been dispatched to investigate the same."
Earlier in the evening, a Coast Guard officer had said on condition of anonymity that they would be able to confirm whether the boat was the one carrying the nine fishermen "by midnight".
The fishermen from Tamil Nadu have been identified as J Vinston (47), S Albert Newton (35), A Eskalin (29), P Amal Vivek (33), J Shajan (24) and S Sahaya Jagan (28) of Kanyakumari district and P Sahaya Ravi Kumar of Tirunelveli district.
"This is the first such long escape bid made by Indian fishermen (sic)," South Asian Fishermen Fraternity (SAFF) general secretary Churchill told TOI. On Thursday, SAFF and the fishermen's families urged the government to save the men with the help of the Indian Navy and Coast Guard, and not detain them when they enter Indian waters in a foreign vessel without proper documents. They also urged them to provide the men with food and water.
The families expressed concern about their safety as they have been unable to contact the men since Wednesday.
Churchill said the fishermen flew to Yemen in two batches in December 2018. "They worked for Sultan, a Yemeni national, who cheated them by not providing them proper wages. They were treated like bonded labourers and forced to work on the sea without a break. On many days they got food only once a day," Churchill said, quoting what the fishermen had told their families.
Without proper pay – their share of the catch – they could not send money to their families here. "Their requests to Sultan to at least free them so that they could return home also went in vain," he said, adding that escaping in a stolen boat was a last-resort action. It is learnt that on November 19 the nine fishermen had been fishing in three different boats when they managed to steal one and set off to Kochi.
On the day of the escape, Shajan telephoned his mother, Sahayarani, who said that though she was worried about the risky journey, it was unavoidable. WhilRead More – Source
