Back from Taiwan, Bishop lauds work of port chaplains
BISHOP Denis Brennan recently visited Taiwan to attend the Apostleship of the Sea Conference in his capacity as Bishop Promoter in Ireland for the Apostleship, with issues including human trafficking high on the agenda.
The Glasgow-founded Apostleship of the Sea serves seafarers from across the world, regardless of belief, nationality or race.
Since its foundation in 1920, The Apostleship of the Sea has set up service centers in many ports around the world for church workers and volunteers to inquire after the welfare of fishermen and offer much-needed assistance.
The 24th World Congress of the Apostleship of the Sea, attended by Bishop Brennan, had a theme of ‘Caught in the Net’, and was dedicated to themes relating to fishing and human trafficking, and aimed at those within the industry who find themselves ‘entangled in nets in which they experience difficulties and need rescuing’.
The themes considered expressed the care and attention of the Apostleship of the Sea not only to analyse natural resources, but also and above all human resources, in particular fishermen who find themselves working in inhumane conditions and who often fall into the hands of organised crime.
Fr Bruno Ciceri, Vatican delegate for the Apostleship of the Sea, official of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development and expert on these themes, was the chief organiser of the Conference.
In his opening address, Cardinal Peter Turkson, Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development at the Vatican, noted that 38 million people were engaged in fisheries worldwide, 90% of them working in small scale fisheries, largely in Asia and Africa.
‘Flags of convenience’ still make identifying ownership difficult, said the Cardinal.
‘Abuses are still present including cases in the fishing industry of forced labour and human trafficking. Exacerbating the problem is the practice of some fishing vessels being at sea for months or years, making it difficult for fishermen to report abuses,’ he said.
Cardinal Turkson said the work of the Congress was essential, both to better understand the lives of those who depend on the sea and to see how they can benefit from the evangelising work of the Apostleship of the Sea.
Delegates heard from Max Schmid of the Environmental Justice Foundation on the shocking effect of illegal fishing on fishermen including those not having work contracts, not feeling free to leave the vessel, cases of sexual and violent abuse and even executions at sea.
He lauded the work of AoS in ports around the world to secure justice for seafarers where fishermen had suffered abuse.
Speaking about the Conference on his return, Bishop Brennan paid tribute to the huge amount of work done daily across the world by port chaplains who are available to seafarers each day in all parts of the globe. He cited in particular the work being done tirelessly by Rose Kearney in Dublin, her fellow workers, chaplains and volunteers.
‘A smiling face, a helping hand, a listening ear, this is the ministry of many throughout the world to seafarers.
‘It is silent unseen work, but work that is vital for the welfare of so many who transport to us so much, who supply us with food and goods and who have needs themselves, from a simple word of encouragement to a need to speak of difficulties, fears or abuses,’ said Bishop Brennan.