‘Pirates tortured us mentally and physically’

Prabhat Goyal, the captain of MV Stolt Valor said that the pirates tortured the crew members mentally and physically.

The ship was hijacked by Somali pirates on September 15 and the crew of 22 was kept hostage at the port of Eyl in Somalia for nearly two months until an undisclosed ransom was paid by the owners of the vessel.

The five sailors who arrived on Monday in the city are Naveed Burondkar, Isidore Fernandes, Alistair Fernandes, Omprakash Shukla and Santosh Patil. The others are expected to fly to their respective destinations from Muscat in the coming days, officials said.

“It was a tense time on board the ship and we had to manage somehow. I managed to speak to my family about four times during the captivity,” said Isidore, who was the head cook aboard the ship.

“I have sailed on five ships and even in the Gulf of Aden many times in the past, but this was the first time I had such a bad experience,” he said.

“All we had to do was to sit on the bridge of the ship the whole day. After we were hijacked I had to cook for the pirates for nine days but after that there was some food arranged,” Isidore said.

The crew survived on a diet of lentils and meat while being held hostage and there was just enough for all the crew, he said.

Alistair said they spent 24 hours of the day at gunpoint on the bridge of the ship and could not do anything without the permission of the captors.

“Even if we had to take a shower, only two of us at a time would be allowed to go for it and that also under their supervision. We had to take permission for everything,” said Alistair, who worked in the engine room of the ship.

Another sailor, Burondkar, said the pirates seemed desperate people who could do anything to ensure they received the ransom.

“Their only purpose was to get money and they seemed like they would do anything for it,” he said.

“There was no physical torture only mental torture of having to sit at gunpoint all the time,” Burondkar said.

The captain had warned them prior to sailing through the Gulf of Aden that there was a risk of piracy, but despite keeping watches on the deck they failed to prevent the ship from being captured, he said.

Burondkar, a resident of Murud in Maharashtra, said the Somali pirates, numbering about 30, were carrying Kalashnikov assault rifles and rocket propelled grenades (RPG).

Describing the incident, he said, “on the day of the hijack, the pirate ship fired an RPG at the ship but it fell 10 to 15 metres short and while continuously firing at us they boarded the ship.”

The pirates had a single negotiator who would talk to the ship’s owners and then inform the ship’s captain about the progress. The captain would then inform the crew about it, the sailors said.

The crew were sometimes allowed to make brief phone calls to their families which were often emotional, Alistair said.

“I used to cry sometimes when I spoke to my family. They would tell me that they were praying for me and I should do the same,” he said.

Burondkar said the pirates were constantly in touch with each other regarding other hijacked ships and there also seemed to be rivalries between the different pirate groups.

All three sailors said they presently have no plans to stop sailing and would take a break prior to returning to the seas again.

“I would want to take a break of six to seven months after which I would want to start sailing again. I am the only member of my family in this business,” Isidore said.

“These things don’t happen only on sea but also on land where you have terrorism. What has happened was a nightmare and I will go sailing again,” Burondkar said.

The sailors added that crew of other vessels like MV Delight, which has been hijacked by Somali pirates with seven Indians on board, should not lose hope.

“The sailors should keep hope that they will see their families one day. While we were being held hostage we would mutually encourage each other not to lose hope,” Burondkar said.

For relatives, the return of their loved ones was a reason to make up for lost festivities in the past two months.

“The last two months have been harrowing for the entire family. Even Eid was hardly celebrated, but now after we go home we will have to plan how to make up for it,” said Zakir, Burondkar’s younger brother.