For seamen, it`s hell and high water

It has been a distressing 13 months for Gurpreet Kaur Chawla.

Her husband, Capt. Jasprit Chawla has been unable to leave Korea since the Hebei Spirit, the tanker he captained, was holed by a Samsung barge, causing the country`s worst-ever oil spill off Taean County, South Chungcheong Province.

Torn between home and husband, she has spent an exhausting year looking after their children in India, while supporting her spouse in Korea.

Since December that job has gotten even tougher.

In 2008 Lloyds List nominated Chawla for their "Shipmaster of the Year" award, for his actions during the oil spill. But on Dec. 10 last year a Korean court jailed him and his chief officer Syam Chetan for those very actions.

"The chief officer did not even get to say goodbye to his family," said Capt. Sharad Saldanha of V.Ships, the company that manages the tanker. "They got to meet the next day. But the families were not present in court, because none of us expected such a total U-turn of judgment. Not only us but the whole maritime community; all the international organizations are totally shocked."

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On Dec. 7, 2007 a crane barge broke free from one of the barges towing it and ran into the side of the Hebei Spirit, which was at anchor. The collision caused 10,800 tons of crude oil to flow into the sea, polluting much of Korea`s coastline.

The event was dubbed Korea`s worst-ever environmental disaster, while local tourism and fishing industries were severely damaged.

Environmental groups say it will take years to clean up the damage.

A lower court had cleared the two Indian seamen of wrongdoing in July, but then an appeals court sentenced Chawla to 18 months for negligence in avoiding the collision and for not doing enough to limit the spill. His first officer was sentenced to eight months.

The ruling has met with condemnation from the shipping community. The International Transport Workers Federation and other shipping bodies have both slammed the verdict, calling it a vindictive decision.

For the Chawla family, it has turned their lives upside down, especially in terms of their children`s schooling.

"(Ms. Chawla) was trying to teach (their kids) at home, but after Dec. 10 she has been extremely busy. She has not been able to do that, so his schoolwork is totally out of the window. He will probably lose this year of school, and if this goes on even two years of school," Saldanha said.

"They are trying to shift between both (school and Korea) but after the 10th, it has been very difficult and it has almost come to a complete halt, because she has no time to give them."

"Even to look after them," Mrs. Chawla said. "I don`t know today whether they are hungry or whether they have had their food."

Saldanha said the children have not been told that their father is in jail.

"We feel that because there`s so much happening that they probably know about it, but it`s difficult with the children," he said. "Especially since one of them is 7 and one of them is 4. The small one it is okay, but for the 7 year old it is quite traumatic.

"He`s actually quite confused as to what is happening."

"Many times he asks so many questions," Mrs. Chawla said. "He has many questions, like `where is papa?` `Why are you going early in the morning daily to meet him?`"

"Then he heard somebody saying that his father is in jail so he asked me `Mama, why is somebody telling me that papa is in jail?` Then he asks me `Mama, why is papa in jail?`"

It has affected the health of Chawla`s wider family, Mrs. Chawla said.

"He has old parents. He is the only son of his parents, and his grandmother has been bedridden for eight months and she is waiting to see him," she said.

Mrs. Chawla stressed her husband`s sense of duty to his family, saying that he only took what he needed of his salary and gave the rest to his parents.

"He is a very God-fearing, very pious man. And he has a great sense of duty. He believes in perfection of duties. Whether it is on board, whether it is towards the family -- towards the wife, towards the children or towards the parents -- he`s a very dutiful man. He`s a man of moral values, human values."

One thing that the Chawla has clung to is his Sikh faith.

"The captain is a very religious man. He gets up at 5:30 every morning to say his prayers. In fact, when he arrived in prison, his main concerns were getting his armlet, which is a religious thing, and his turban," Saldanha said.

He spends most of his day praying and reading religious books.

"He doesn`t want to read anything else -- he just wants to read religious books. He wants to know what is happening outside with this case and religious books. Other than that he is not interested in reading."

Unfortunately his faith has meant that he cannot eat the prison food, as no vegetarian options are available.

"Since the 10th of December, he`s been on rice and water. If you see him, you meet him every day, you can tell that his health is deteriorating. They tell me that doctors are seeing him every day but there is only so much someone can do on rice and water," Saldanha said.

Chawla has a small individual cell, with a TV with one channel -- in Korean. He is let out for one hour a day. This and visits are the only time he can speak with other people.

The two Indian seafarers are being held in the same detention center. Despite this they cannot speak to each other, as they are still involved in the same case.

"When you go to meet them they are always asking how the other one is doing," Saldanha said.

But he points out that conditions in the Cheongju Detention Center are much better than in Daejeon, where they were originally held. There was no heating in Daejeon and the cell was barely larger than a single bed.

Now there is heating and other conditions are slightly better. There is a television, too, but since the only channel available is in Korean, it acts as little more than moving wallpaper. The main difficulties are the isolation and the food.

"We understand this is the standard treatment in Korea," Saldanha said.

The prison allows visits of 20 minutes a day, except holidays. It`s a short period, but owing to the traveling time, the visit takes up most of the day.

Even face to face with her husband, the experience is a distant one.

"During the meeting there is a thick glass wall between Capt. Chawla and me and I have to speak to him through a microphone. I can`t touch him -- I can only see him," Mrs. Chawla said.

Mrs. Chawla plans to return to India later this month to support her children`s education. The mood at home is one of disappointment and frustration, but family members are trying to rally support for their cause.

The wife of Syam Chetan is due in Korea this week. His father, Commodore DR Syam is a high-ranking seaman and is working to raise awareness and support for the case.

Indian Embassy First Secretary Kirat Vaze said that he would work to improve conditions of the seamen. But he added that there were cultural differences that may be difficult to reconcile.

"I am charged with looking after the welfare of these two officers. I really am trying my best, but I do not really know whether my best is good enough because there are circumstances, like Mrs. Chawla has said to you, which may be culturally different," Vaze said. "But when we talk about a thing like food, I equate it with the basic human rights of a person. You have to give him something on which he can subsist. He cannot live on rice and water."

Indian unions are calling for a boycott of Korean goods. The NUSI has promised definitive action if the decision is not reversed. There is speculation that action could be a boycott of voyages here, which would be problematic for Korea`s economy. On a broader basis, some say that this could increase the cost of insuring sea voyages here, which would raise the cost of importing and exporting goods.

Trade organizations have said they would not oppose attempts by its members to boycott voyages to Korea.

"All the international workers federations have supported this. If I were a seafarer, I would not want to come to Korea knowing that I could go to jail for something which is not even my fault," Saldanha said.

"A fair trial must be given," Mrs. Chawla said. "We want justice only.

"To restore the faith in the judicial system of Korea, bail should be given to them as soon as possible. The whole world is watching."

By Paul Kerry



(paulkerry@heraldm.com)