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Thursday, June 29, 2006
Japan-bound ship yields stowaways
By Antonio M. Ajero and Ben O. Tesiorna
DAVAO CITY -- Three Bangladeshi nationals suspected to be stowaways were caught on board a banana refrigerated ship--the MV Atlantic Erica Voyage 156--bound for Japan this week.
Reports identified the Bangladeshis as Mid Nasiruddin, Masudur Rahman and Muhammad Akter Ujjuman, both of legal age, residing temporarily at Matina, Davao City.
The stowaways were reportedly discovered two hours after the boat left the Dole-Stanfilco wharf in Panabo City.
The three were discovered hiding in the engine room of the boat by a member of the ship's crew who was doing routine inspection.
Upon learning there were stowaways in the boat, the captain immediately decided to go back to Panabo, its port of origin, to turn over the illegal passengers to authorities.
It was not known how the three were able to board the ship amid the presence of boarding officers of three government agencies -- the Bureau of Immigration, Bureau of Customs, and Quarantine Bureau.
Officials of the three agencies have kept mum about the incident until this writing Wednesday.
However, insiders in the immigration bureau's Davao field office confirmed that the three Bangladeshis are indeed in their custody.
Authorities are reportedly investigating claims the Bangladeshis paid $5,000 each to a certain Frank, their Filipino contact.
Immigration bureau informants said the Philippines had been used as transit point of human smuggling to Japan for a number of years now.
Earlier, some residents of Luzon were caught on board Japan-bound banana ships, particularly those departing from Davao ports.
At one instance, four Luzon stowaways were caught on board a ship from the port of Maco. One of them died due to exhaustion. At the time, the reported fee paid by each stowaway is P250,000. (Sun.Star Davao/Sunnex)
(June 29, 2006 issue)
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