SSG No 4 - Shipgaz

Master Mariner
or Master Criminal?
Mark Twain once wrote “sailing is like
being in jail, but with the added
opportunity of drowning”. Captain
Larsen has tried the correctness of
that statement the hard way, and
unfortunately, his encounter with the
American Department of Justice is not
an isolated experience.
❯
Over the past years, developments
show a trend where a criminal charge
against the individual seafarer has become
the prosecutor’s tool of choice in order to
attend to safety, security and environmental
issues. Accidents, especially those
involving oil spill, result in not only liability,
but also in criminal investigation. It is
widely accepted that any deliberate actions
that result in pollution, injury to life,
industry and the environment should be
taken seriously, but in many cases, a criminal
investigation is initiated even if an
error in navigation or management of the
vessel caused the incident. According to
those who advocate this, the aim is to discourage
others as well as punish the wrongdoer.
In his interview, captain Larsen criticizes
Birgitta Hed of the Swedish Club.
the owners of the Danica White for the
meagre assistance in his precarious situation,
and instead praises his union, the
Maritime Leaders, for all their efforts.
Since the P&I does not cover costs and
fines deriving from a criminal charge, an
experience like captain Larsen’s can be a
costly occurrence for all involved.
Birgitta Hed, Deputy Area Manager at
the Swedish Club, therefore stresses the
importance of a contingency plan for the
ship owner on how to handle criminal
investigations, so that all functions
involved – the owner, management and
crew – are aware of their rights and obligations
and how to avoid additional charges
of obstruction of justice.
Rewarding the whistle blower
A policy well known to all employees will
also serve another purpose. Birgitta Hed
relates to the American authorities’ campaign,
where a “whistle blower” is entitled
to a percentage of the fine imposed if they
tell their side of the story. A well informed
crew that feel the support of their employer
will less likely end up as a hostile witness
in a crime investigation, but instead work
with the company in improving routines
and preventing accidents.
A fully implemented Safety Management
System (SMS) is the backbone in loss
prevention at sea and can of course be
helpful in any investigation. However,
when prosecutors exploit the information
from incident reports to nail the crew or, as
in some cases, the shore based Designated
Person (DP), there may be a risk that the
already scarce reporting is curbed even
more. The focus shifts from lessons to be
learned to finding fault and a scapegoat;
the opposite of what International Safety
Management sought to achieve. There
have also been cases where people, on the
advice of their lawyers, entirely refuse to
speak to investigators of an incident, thus
comprising truth and transparency.
Birgitta Hed believes this trend is clearly
counterproductive and that it may result in
suppressed incident reporting, among other
things.
Similarly, Peter Jodin, who is Safety
Manager at Wallenius Marine, thinks that
people onboard will think both once and
twice before reporting accidents and near
misses. Wallenius Marine has not had an
We will not leave any
of our boys or girls behind.
incident like this yet but Captain Jodin
feels confident they know how to react
when and if it happens.
“We will not leave any of our boys or
girls behind”, says Peter Jodin.
If ever in the situation, Wallenius
Marine will set their P&I and local agent to
work to arrange with legal assistance. Even
if in the end the P&I will not cover the
charges, the person accused is innocent
until proven guilty and will get all necessary
assistance.
Written policy on the way
At Transatlantic, they are equally prepared
for the worst. A written policy is on its way
out to the ships and the issue was recently
discussed at a conference with the company’s
senior officers and engineers. The concept
is the same.
“Transatlantic will immediately contact
our insurance companies and use their
expertise to arrange for legal assistance and
to raise a possible bail”, says Lars Holmberg,
Technical Manager at Transatlantic.
Experience has shown that both guilty
and innocent seafarers are caught in criminal
investigations, often with great harm
done, both personally and economically,
before a decision is made. With today’s
shortage of quality seafarers, the trend to
criminalize the seafarer may possibly act as
a deterrent to those interested in a seagoing
career. Who wants to take up the
challenge of becoming the company’s DP
or accept the position as captain or chief
engineer, if the risk at stake involves
prison?
cecilia österman
SCANDINAVIAN SHIPPING GAZETTE • FEBRUARY 23, 2007 15