STOWAWAYS.

As defined by ‘Marine Insight’, the maritime educational body, stowaways are categorised in two groups:

Those who want to escape from one country to another in spite of not having proper documentation.or,

Those who just want to prove and brag about actualising a prank or rob people on ship

Of the former category, stowaways from Europe into the UK have been well-publicised but what is probably less known is that movements occur from any poorer nation into richer countries; Latin America into the US and Canada for example, as well as Africa and the Middle East to Australia and New Zealand.Anywhere, in fact, where the push/pull factors of migration involve inequalities of economics and politics.

Focusing upon the UK however, and the West of England P&I Club notes that a high number of stowaway cases from European ports have ‘exclusively involved stowaways from northern European ports to the UK.’

Such illegals, the Club notes, board in ports for trans-shipment to the UK and whilst it is not clear that British newspapers source such facts, the Home Office certainly reports that 2,935 illegals were successfully smuggled on ferries in 2016.

The International Ship & Port Security Code (2004), especially the Vessel Security Plan (VSP) addresses necessary communication at all times. It is this requirement of ISPS, plus the potential for companies to pay approximately $US30k for every stowaway found – this being fines, medical examinations, police escorts detention and repatriation – which arguably has slowed  the flood. Or has it?

For amongst  559 illegals found in Dover in 2012, one routine case was found on the vessel  ‘Dunkerque Seaways.’ When a crew-member was walking the car deck at five am just twenty minutes after sailing he observed a dishevelled figure – a suspected stowaway apparently lost. He rightly asked for some ID and when none was produced the crew-member radioed for assistance which soon arrived. With little spoken English the stowaway explained he had hidden under a trailer – or rather a series of trailers all the way from Afghanistan, through Iran, Turkey and thence into Europe – a story which could only be substantiated with a pitifully small sum of Turkish lira (about 28 pence), an old copy of a Bulgarian newspaper and little else.In his mid-twenties, the stowaway, filthy, ragged and genuinely pleased to be found, was probably in need of medical attention too after clinging under trailer chassis for thousands of kilometres.

Immediately he was taken to ship’s reception and given water and a hot drink, to await the Dover Harbour Police. His fate is not disclosed beyond him being processed at the Dover Immigration Centre; some are returned to France – if the country of embarkation – although few carry documentation making repatriation difficult. But what did the Dunkerque seafarers think of an interloper aboard their ship? Well, there is occasional resentment; sometimes indifference, but in this case there was a grudging respect for someone  defying the odds to escape injustice and probably worse in a war-torn country.

Which brings us to another scenario – this time in the Middle East – where lack of stowaway documentation caused a costly and complex outcome. In 1988, a container ship outward-bound from Kuwait to Singapore and Australian ports discovered two persons hiding in a deck locker.

Again the standard procedure of requesting ID from them followed but as the ship was at sea a hundred miles or so from land, it was assumed that the pair weren’t just sleepy dockers. One spoke some English and revealed that both were deserters from the Iranian army, had traveled through the desert by clandestine means, and were running away from the Iraq-Iran war. Again, documentation was non-existent and both men had nothing apart from the clothes they were wearing.

Communication was made to authorities and it was hoped that in about nine days time they would be landed in Singapore, a hope soon dashed as the immigration there resolutely forbade asylum. By this time the pair had agreed to work alongside the deck crew on planned maintenance, a job which to their credit, they undertook cheerfully and ably soon making themselves popular with the mostly Liverpool crew.

With typical British support for the underdog, Amir and Hassan were soon kitted out in surplus clothing and boots; ate the same good food as everyone else; improved their English with the help of books and magazines and were soon taught to play darts and dominoes in the crew bar. And neither gave any cause for concern apart from when and where they would be leaving the vessel, a dim prospect after Singapore’s refusal.

Upon arrival in Australia, they were again denied entrance which included them being detained on board in port – an additional cost for the company. The ship sailed from Australia bound for New Zealand, and the only glimpse Amir and Hassan had of that lush green country was from a closed porthole. Thereafter followed a longer sea voyage back to the Gulf and by this time neither Kuwait or Dubai would consider admittance. So it was thought that as no country would give asylum, the ship would be stuck with the pair for ever!

I left the vessel in July 1988 to return to the UK and at that point they were still working aboard and being fed. I arrived at Dubai airport and a news report stated that the Iranian army had been relentlessly smashed by the Iraqis and that peace talks were taking place. Subsequently I heard that the stowaways had been finally taken ashore in Kuwait, although whether they returned to an uncertain fate to Iran and the Ayatollah’s army I never did know.

Anyway, returning to Marine Insight’s claim that some stowaways board a ship in order to actualise a prank was difficult to assess in the following case:For in December 1978, the Blue Star container vessel Act 1 sailed from Liverpool bound for Melbourne and after transiting the locks and entering the Irish Sea, a crew-member was approached by a young Australian named Kevin who announced he had “come to give himself up.”Listening in attentive silence, the AB heard that the man had boarded in Liverpool concealing himself in a funnel space, going on to say that he’d been traveling around Europe and the UK but  eventually “had run out of money.”

Met by the purser and captain who took details and explained that the ship was now 27 days at sea and would not stopping en route he would have to stay aboard until Melbourne, which probably pleased Kevin until told he would have to work with the deck crew on essential cleaning, chipping and painting.

No doubt the skipper thought that there may have been a ‘prank’ element in his illicit boarding of the vessel as he asked the guy if he hadn’t considered borrowing air fare money from friends or family.

Kevin was reluctant to give his full motives however – merely sticking to his story that he hadn’t any money.  From a spare cabin, he was put to work with the deck crew in return for three square meals a day, but it is fair to say that he was not too popular. 

For most Australians are held in high regard by British merchant seamen who’ve visited that unique country: the Australian work ethic, good-humour and resilience especially come to mind.Unfortunately for all, Kevin wasn’t gifted with these qualities and after constantly hearing biased opinions on life in the UK compared to Australia –  UK weather and pay rates always came under criticism – the crew soon found him a tiresome freeloader. Especially concerning the ‘inferior and cheap wages in the UK’, such irony was lost on him as he worked for a zero rate of pay for the long voyage through sticky tropical days, followed by the cold and wet of the Southern Ocean.

On arrival in late-December, Kevin was taken downtown to the Melbourne magistrates: arraigned in court, he did meet the Blue Star company representative who was asked by the presiding magistrate how much a single passage aboard Act 1 would cost. The representative replied: “A$1020, sir.” The magistrate was told how Kevin had complied in being asked to do work with crew and perhaps pondering this as a mitigating factor, ordered him to pay Blue Star the A$1020, plus A$50 costs.

What wasn’t reported from court was why Kevin chose to stowaway – a poor little rich kid looking for adventure maybe? No-one really knew – perhaps it was just a prank, albeit a rather costly one for both him and Blue Star.

In conclusion and no matter what seafarers think of ISPS: the monitoring of CCTV; irksome security watches and the struggle with locks and pincodes, it is likely that had ISPS been mandatory then it would have prevented at least two of the boardings.