Abducted Pinoy seafarer in Cameroon released

A Filipino seafarer kidnapped by suspected Nigerian bandits in Cameroon early this month was released Thursday afternoon. In a news release, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Filipino seafarer Wilson Nisda and his Croatian co-worker were both released unharmed and are now in the custody of the crisis team created by their employer, a Belgian shipping company. Nisda and the Croatian were crew members aboard the Belgian vessel Amerigo Vespucci, which was conducting dredging operations in the Cameroon coast, when they were abducted on September 12. The DFA Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers' Affairs said it is coordinating with the local manning agency of the Belgian shipping company to arrange for the Filipino seafarer’s repatriation. Nisda’s release brings to 80 the number of Filipinos who are still being held captive on board ships hijacked by sea pirates, mostly in and around Africa. Based on DFA records, 45 vessels with a total of 542 Filipino seafarers onboard have been hijacked in the Gulf of Aden since 2006. To date, some 460 seafarers onboard 30-plus vessels have been released.—Jerrie M. Abella/JV, GMANews.TV