Chinese crew members on a Blue Planet Shipping bulker were denied repatriation in November, according tothe International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF), in what the union has called a case of "forced labour".
ITF and International Maritime Organization officials have said the case of the 82,100-dwt Archon (built 2018) is one of "abandonment", in the specific sense that pertains to seafarers' rights.
But the Marshall Islands flag state has maintained that it is not abandonment, but a case that should be handled through the IMO's Seafarer Crisis Action Team (Scat) for acute Covid-19 issues.
