continued from P.4

36

A Proposal for Constructing a Volunteer Ship Network for DisasterOur proposed Volunteer Ship Network
would take advantage of improving
developments in satellite communications tomake communications more effective.
Actually, after the Great Tohoku earthquake,two satellites, the Kiku 8 and the Kizuna fromthe JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration
Agency), provided internet communication to
the damaged area. If this technology wereused by the Volunteer Ship Network,
problems in communication could be greatly
reduced.

shall take necessary measures with regard to theprevention of natural disasters, prevention ofdamage expansion in case of the occurrence of
natural disasters and recovery from disasters(hereinafter referred to as ‘Disaster
Prevention’), in order to protect national land as
well as life, body and property of the citizens
from disasters such as tsunamis, storm surges
and others.” But when a disaster occurs, there
are currently no ships to offer centralized
support to expeditionary ships. While Japan has
two Dredge and Oil Recovery Vessels, the kindof well-equipped disaster support ships I
5. Conclusion
propose can offer far better support. Although
It is stipulated in Clause 2, Article 21 (Securing the Japanese Self-Defense Forces have played a
the Safety and Security of the Oceans) in the big role during disasters, I believe it is“Basic Act on Ocean Policy” that, “The State
indispensable to construct a Volunteer Ship

Network to offer more effective support fromthe sea. To do so, constructing a
core-organization with leadership for the
Network should be made a high priority.
Disasters occur all over the world and arenearly impossible to predict. Water covers
70% of the Earth’s surface, so it almost goes
without saying that support from the sea is
key to a quicker recovery. We have to review
the support system for disasters andconstruct a supporting network that uses
well-equipped ships.

September
2011

Photograph taken on April 3, 2011 at Onagawa town, Miyagi prefecture＊This proposal got first prize at the “Day ofMarine Article Prize” held by the Japan Society of
Ocean Policy and The Japan Maritime Daily in
2011.

An International Hub
for WMU Sasakawa Fellows

Sonia Bautista Malaluan (Philippines, 1998)

Being a WMU Sasakawa Fellow is indeed a blessing. I have been
away from home for a one-year study program at the Lee Kuan
Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore,since July 2010, but it feels great to know that there are other
Fellows in the same country. Upon my arrival in Singapore, thefirst SMS I received was from Jerry Nibre (Philippines, 2003）,
another Filipino Sasakawa Fellow, asking if someone could meet
me at the airport. Under such care, I immediately felt at home ina place far away from home. I also noticed in the Fellows'
Directory that Kyaw Htut（Myanmar, 1998）from my batch at
WMU is working in Singapore as well, and I was provided with
the names and contact details of even more Fellows here by Mr.
Kudo. I sent them an email, but we never managed to get

together until Mr. Tomoya Shimizu（Japan, 2004）came to visit.
He organized the dinner/get-together on April 20, 2011, at Lao
Beijing Restaurant, Orchard Road. The Fellows present were:Duong Hoang Pham (Vietnam, 2005), Wai Lynn Htut
(Myanmar, 2004), Tomoya Shimizu, Kyaw Htut, Altan-od
Bazarragchaa (Mongolia, 2006), Ronald Bandalaria (Philippines,2005) and as always, “the only rose among the thorns,” me.

Chairman Sasakawa’s Blog in English
Information from the Secretariat

Please check out the regularly updated blog of Mr. Yohei Sasakawa,
Chairman of The Nippon Foundation, which is now available in English asof March 14 (Monday). “Yohei Sasakawa Blog: Chairman of The Nippon
Foundation – I hope you will enjoy my blog about what I do and think.”
You can see Chairman Sasakawa’s record of daily activities in Japan andaround the world.

Editor’s note

The new academic year at WMU might have just started when you
receive this Newsletter. I believe our new Sasakawa Sisters andBrothers are now full of happiness in their new life at Malmö. I
am writing this note on May 30th, after a sending-off party for two
new Fellows, Mr. Urano and Mr. Nakatsuyama. They are now the
19th and 20th members of the Japan Chapter of Sasakawa
Fellows, since the first Japanese Fellows graduated in 2002. We
told them that all of us alumni would be glad to help them withany difficulty, be it in their studies or daily life at Malmö. But inreality, I hope that they don’t ask for our support, but instead go totheir colleagues to try to solve whatever problems they may have.
They will make lots of new friends. Everyone will have different- Supporting affected people with your help -http://blog.canpan.info/yoheisasakawa/

cultural backgrounds, expertise, qualifications and personalconnections. And their advice will be much more precious andindispensable during their 22 months there, and even after
graduation. Remembering my time at Malmö, I received lots ofsupport from my friends when I faced any problems, such as
putting plaster on my leg, or confusing the pronunciation of “L”
and “R” (How can we tell the difference between “pirates” and“pilots”?), not to mention lots of exams and assignments. And ofcourse, if anyone does need my help, I will be delighted to give it.

Mr. Kunihiko Kitabayashi, Mr. Tomoya Shimizu

Connectedness

Tomoya Shimizu

General Manager of International Office
The Japan Association of Marine Safety (JAMS)At

14:46 on Friday, March 11,2011,
anunprecedented
magnitude 9.0 earthquake hit
northeastern Japan, and the accompanying
tsunami resulted in the destruction of ahuge area of the country. As of the end ofJuly, there were over 15,000 lives lost, and
5,000 missing persons registered with thepolice department. This was the worst everrecorded natural disaster in Japan.
Countless people lost family and friends,
while their “sweet homes” were washedaway along with their precious memories.
Many lost their jobs as well.

People were determined to rise up fromthe untold devastation and rebuild theirlives, with personal, material, andmonetary assistance from businesses,
volunteer groups and organizations fromall over Japan and the rest of the world. The
Nippon Foundation lost no time in raising

donations over the internet through ourown CANPAN project. Chairman Yohei
Sasakawa stood by the roadside in the rainwith a donation box to collect goodwill
money. This was in March, with winterstill lingering on.
The Nippon Foundation also establishedthe Great East Japan Earthquake Relief
Activities, to provide funds to NPOs andvolunteer organizations engaged inemergency support. At the beginning ofApril it provided condolences and financial
support to survivors for each family
member lost or missing. Because public
donations must be distributed equitably, it
often takes a long time before such funds
can reach those really in need. However,
The Nippon Foundation sent its staff
members to the affected areas within amonth after the disaster, so it was in aposition to expedite giving financial

support to the victims to cover their daily
expenses and to be able to have hope forthe future.
To quote the words of Chairman
Sasakawa from Ship & Ocean Newsletter
No. 263, “People who do not live indisaster-affected areas tend to lose concern
for the affected people once the emergency
support immediately following a disaster ismore or less finished. However, until theaffected people resume their erstwhile life,
we cannot say that the reconstruction has
been completed. The most important thingis to consider and plan for reconstruction,
taking utmost care for the continuity ofspiritual and material lives of the affected
people. If the pride in their past and theirhometown are to be preserved, it isnecessary to ensure ‘connectedness’ offamilies and communities into the future. I
believe that the sea and the ocean can playUnexpected Involvement Caused by the DisasterIn TokyoTomonori Okamura(Japan, 2002)

F
Chairman Sasakawa personally presenting a monetary gift of sympathy
in Ishinomaki City

Chairman Sasakawa on the street asking for donations

that role as an intermediary.” The tsunami
struck regions where people lived in close
connection to the sea. Chairman Sasakawa
understands that he must be instrumental
in helping the affected people recover theirrespective “hometowns” through themedium of the sea. He spoke passionately
about The Nippon Foundation continuing
to provide the necessary support.
Some of the reconstruction support
activities related to the sea initiated by The
Nippon Foundation are as follows:1)
Maintenance and repair base forsmall boats destroyed by the tsunami andearthquake. Temporary maintenance andrepair work was established without delay.
To date (as of the end of August 2011) 215
boats have been restored and salvaged at 8
repair docks.
2)
Surveys and investigations totake stock of the disaster-damaged coastal
fishing areas. (10 main bay areas andfishing grounds were photographed byvideo using marine robots, and the results
were shared with local leaders of thefishing industry to support their efforts inreopening fishing and marine culture
activities.)3)
Support provided to Maritime
and Fisheries high schools. (Providing
training boats and other necessary
assistance to restore and reconstruct theeducational environment.)
4)
Support provided to disaster
stricken ship-building and related businessand trade operators. This includes
providing and setting-up necessary
equipment and facilities to be shared
among traders for ship-building andmaintenance in 5 regions.
5)
Loans offered to operators who
have lost fishing boats. (This support
program includes setting up an emergency
loan system for operators whose fishingboats have been lost or damaged andwho need to re-build or repair them. The
maximum loan, interest free, is 100 million
yen for each operator, payable in 15 years.
The total fund allocated is 10 billion yen.)
Lastly, our own Foundation, like ourpartner organization, The Nippon
Foundation, has also successfully collected
street donations, made telephone calls andsent e-mails to solicit monetary support onbehalf of the affected people.
World Maritime University (WMU)
students, graduates and all affiliated people
have pitched in to give their share of
support. In addition to financial assistance,
we have received over 200 heartfelt
messages of moral support. When weshared this with Chairman Sasakawa he
was obviously very pleased and said: “I amdeeply grateful to all Sasakawa Fellows fortheir goodwill. The precious donations I
have received from you will all be used toRepairs works of damaged small finishingboats have started

support the disaster-stricken areas, andthe accounting will be posted on thewebsite for you to check. You have shownin this time of difficulty the strength of theconnectedness of Sasakawa Fellows. I lookforward to hearing that you will further
strengthen the network among all of you.”We, too, on behalf of OPRF, would liketo express our gratitude to all of you forgenerously giving your support.
Last but not least, we express ourheartfelt sympathy to all who have been
affected by this disaster.

Reconstruction means recovering “hometowns”

2irst of all, I would like to sincerely thank ourreaders of Friends of WMU and all
Sasakawa Fellows around the world for yourwarm and caring support. Let me now share withyou some of my experiences since the disaster.
On that day, I was in a subway in Tokyo on abusiness trip. The emergency breake was triggered
and the train stopped automatically. Immediately
after, there was a violent shaking for 4 to 5 minutes.
We all surfaced to walk back to our offices as train
operation was limited to nearby stations. The streets
were filled with an unbelievable number of people.
High-rise buildings were swaying as the earthquake
had long cycles of oscillation. People packed theparks and roads until there was no place to evenmove one’s feet. Some ceilings and external walls ofbuildings were caving in.
I returned to my office wading through a sea of
people. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure,
Transport and Tourism has an Emergency Control
Center equipped with state-of-the-art IT
technology, to collect all information regarding
damage and to make contingency plans in times ofgreat disaster. There, a meeting of the
Headquarters for Emergency Disaster Response

In Sendai

was called. All personnel gave their all todetermine the extent of the damage and to establish
emergency measures. Then the news of theonslaught of a huge tsunami and the catastrophic
damage caused by it reached us.
Information gathering and emergency response
require around-the-clock attention. As a liaison
officer of the Maritime Bureau, I reported to the
Headquarters for Emergency Disaster Response
and sent out necessary information to maritime
related persons and organizations. As we received
news regarding the damage to facilities the safety ofmaritime and shipbuilding contacts, and their
whereabouts, I was working with available staff tosupport and assist vessels transporting emergency
goods to the victims by taking necessary measures
to rehabilitate passenger shipping routes.
After the Fukushima nuclear power plant
accident occurred, we worked hard to assess theimpact on navigation in near by coastal areas, and todeal with the refusal of some vessels to port call due
to rumors of radiation pollution. We monitored
radiation, provided related information at sea andnearby ports, and prepared guidelines formeasuring the radiation of freight goods. We

issued inspection certificates and worked as agreat team to send out information as things
happened on the ground. I was involved incompiling post accident information on Japanese
shipping and ports at the Security and Emergency
Management Office where I work. We requested,and IMO kindly printed our news in Circular letterNo. 3179. Please refer to our web page at the
Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport andTourism for radiation information regarding ports
and maritime traffic.
http://www.mlit.go.jp/en/maritime/mariti
me_fr1_ 000007.html
There will be many measures put in place for thereconstruction. May I ask our friends around theworld to please keep us in your prayers?
Thank you.

Yasko Suzuki(Japan, 2003)

It

was just an ordinary afternoon and I was
preparing to visit a ship in Sendai port for a
PSC inspection when the March 11
earthquake hit Japan. At the beginning, it was a
relatively big but still a kind of normal range
earthquake, like the ones we had been having sincea week before.
All of us at the office thought it would soon stop,
but it didn’t. It lasted for some 50 seconds and justwhen we started to think it couldn’t go on much
longer, it suddenly shook even harder. Lights went
off and emergency lights turned on, and I realised
something I’ve never experienced before was
happening.
Massive shaking caused everything to fall downfrom desks, shelves and cabinets, and there weresounds of the locker smacking into the wall behindit, desk drawers opening and shutting...
After first quake finally calmed down, I crawled
out from under my desk and saw PC displays
hanging from desks and the whole floors wascovered with documents, stationary items, broken
glass, shelves and partitions. We had to walk on
those documents to evacuate from the officebuilding.
An ordinary day turned into an unforgettableday. While on my way back home which is ininland, scared of after quakes but still safe, the hugetsunami was hitting coastal areas and taking many
lives. It snowed, while everything else – including
heating – stopped. Four out of five coastal branch
offices were flooded. People waited for a help on
the top floors of a building surrounded by water.
Fortunately enough, none of the staff of my office
were hurt, but unfortunately, some lost family
members, and more lost entire hometowns. The
situation was just as you might have seen on TV.
Six months have passed since then, and the
Sendai city-centre has mostly recovered.
However, devastation caused by tsunami can still
be seen in rural areas. Coastal areas have beencleared of wreckage, but there’s nothing left. New
construction has been suspended for fear of future
quakes, and many people are still in refugee
centres or temporary housing, as they lost homes
and jobs - everything. Even one of the ministrybranch offices has no landline yet. Recovery is stilla long way away.

3

Under these tough conditions, I am encouragedby the comments and support offered by WMU
friends. Even though I can’t speak on behalf of thevictims, if I could, I would express our appreciation
to all of the kind and generous readers of Friends of
WMU, Japan, especially for those young students
who stood up for the earthquake and tsunami
campaign, and those who offered words of comfort.
I would also like to thank those countries which
offered support and comments that can be read at
the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs website.
I’m sure you will see your country is one of them.
We all appreciate every support, just most of us
don’t have channel to tell you.
Long cold winter will come soon to northern
Japan. Let me ask your continued support to thetsunami victims who still suffers in evacuation
centres.
Death toll: 15,799 Missing: 4,053
as of September 20, 2011
http://www.nippon-foundation.or.jp/eng/
domestic/DisasterInformation.html

Unexpected Involvement Caused by the DisasterIn TokyoTomonori Okamura(Japan, 2002)

F
Chairman Sasakawa personally presenting a monetary gift of sympathy
in Ishinomaki City

Chairman Sasakawa on the street asking for donations

that role as an intermediary.” The tsunami
struck regions where people lived in close
connection to the sea. Chairman Sasakawa
understands that he must be instrumental
in helping the affected people recover theirrespective “hometowns” through themedium of the sea. He spoke passionately
about The Nippon Foundation continuing
to provide the necessary support.
Some of the reconstruction support
activities related to the sea initiated by The
Nippon Foundation are as follows:1)
Maintenance and repair base forsmall boats destroyed by the tsunami andearthquake. Temporary maintenance andrepair work was established without delay.
To date (as of the end of August 2011) 215
boats have been restored and salvaged at 8
repair docks.
2)
Surveys and investigations totake stock of the disaster-damaged coastal
fishing areas. (10 main bay areas andfishing grounds were photographed byvideo using marine robots, and the results
were shared with local leaders of thefishing industry to support their efforts inreopening fishing and marine culture
activities.)3)
Support provided to Maritime
and Fisheries high schools. (Providing
training boats and other necessary
assistance to restore and reconstruct theeducational environment.)
4)
Support provided to disaster
stricken ship-building and related businessand trade operators. This includes
providing and setting-up necessary
equipment and facilities to be shared
among traders for ship-building andmaintenance in 5 regions.
5)
Loans offered to operators who
have lost fishing boats. (This support
program includes setting up an emergency
loan system for operators whose fishingboats have been lost or damaged andwho need to re-build or repair them. The
maximum loan, interest free, is 100 million
yen for each operator, payable in 15 years.
The total fund allocated is 10 billion yen.)
Lastly, our own Foundation, like ourpartner organization, The Nippon
Foundation, has also successfully collected
street donations, made telephone calls andsent e-mails to solicit monetary support onbehalf of the affected people.
World Maritime University (WMU)
students, graduates and all affiliated people
have pitched in to give their share of
support. In addition to financial assistance,
we have received over 200 heartfelt
messages of moral support. When weshared this with Chairman Sasakawa he
was obviously very pleased and said: “I amdeeply grateful to all Sasakawa Fellows fortheir goodwill. The precious donations I
have received from you will all be used toRepairs works of damaged small finishingboats have started

support the disaster-stricken areas, andthe accounting will be posted on thewebsite for you to check. You have shownin this time of difficulty the strength of theconnectedness of Sasakawa Fellows. I lookforward to hearing that you will further
strengthen the network among all of you.”We, too, on behalf of OPRF, would liketo express our gratitude to all of you forgenerously giving your support.
Last but not least, we express ourheartfelt sympathy to all who have been
affected by this disaster.

Reconstruction means recovering “hometowns”

2irst of all, I would like to sincerely thank ourreaders of Friends of WMU and all
Sasakawa Fellows around the world for yourwarm and caring support. Let me now share withyou some of my experiences since the disaster.
On that day, I was in a subway in Tokyo on abusiness trip. The emergency breake was triggered
and the train stopped automatically. Immediately
after, there was a violent shaking for 4 to 5 minutes.
We all surfaced to walk back to our offices as train
operation was limited to nearby stations. The streets
were filled with an unbelievable number of people.
High-rise buildings were swaying as the earthquake
had long cycles of oscillation. People packed theparks and roads until there was no place to evenmove one’s feet. Some ceilings and external walls ofbuildings were caving in.
I returned to my office wading through a sea of
people. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure,
Transport and Tourism has an Emergency Control
Center equipped with state-of-the-art IT
technology, to collect all information regarding
damage and to make contingency plans in times ofgreat disaster. There, a meeting of the
Headquarters for Emergency Disaster Response

In Sendai

was called. All personnel gave their all todetermine the extent of the damage and to establish
emergency measures. Then the news of theonslaught of a huge tsunami and the catastrophic
damage caused by it reached us.
Information gathering and emergency response
require around-the-clock attention. As a liaison
officer of the Maritime Bureau, I reported to the
Headquarters for Emergency Disaster Response
and sent out necessary information to maritime
related persons and organizations. As we received
news regarding the damage to facilities the safety ofmaritime and shipbuilding contacts, and their
whereabouts, I was working with available staff tosupport and assist vessels transporting emergency
goods to the victims by taking necessary measures
to rehabilitate passenger shipping routes.
After the Fukushima nuclear power plant
accident occurred, we worked hard to assess theimpact on navigation in near by coastal areas, and todeal with the refusal of some vessels to port call due
to rumors of radiation pollution. We monitored
radiation, provided related information at sea andnearby ports, and prepared guidelines formeasuring the radiation of freight goods. We

issued inspection certificates and worked as agreat team to send out information as things
happened on the ground. I was involved incompiling post accident information on Japanese
shipping and ports at the Security and Emergency
Management Office where I work. We requested,and IMO kindly printed our news in Circular letterNo. 3179. Please refer to our web page at the
Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport andTourism for radiation information regarding ports
and maritime traffic.
http://www.mlit.go.jp/en/maritime/mariti
me_fr1_ 000007.html
There will be many measures put in place for thereconstruction. May I ask our friends around theworld to please keep us in your prayers?
Thank you.

Yasko Suzuki(Japan, 2003)

It

was just an ordinary afternoon and I was
preparing to visit a ship in Sendai port for a
PSC inspection when the March 11
earthquake hit Japan. At the beginning, it was a
relatively big but still a kind of normal range
earthquake, like the ones we had been having sincea week before.
All of us at the office thought it would soon stop,
but it didn’t. It lasted for some 50 seconds and justwhen we started to think it couldn’t go on much
longer, it suddenly shook even harder. Lights went
off and emergency lights turned on, and I realised
something I’ve never experienced before was
happening.
Massive shaking caused everything to fall downfrom desks, shelves and cabinets, and there weresounds of the locker smacking into the wall behindit, desk drawers opening and shutting...
After first quake finally calmed down, I crawled
out from under my desk and saw PC displays
hanging from desks and the whole floors wascovered with documents, stationary items, broken
glass, shelves and partitions. We had to walk on
those documents to evacuate from the officebuilding.
An ordinary day turned into an unforgettableday. While on my way back home which is ininland, scared of after quakes but still safe, the hugetsunami was hitting coastal areas and taking many
lives. It snowed, while everything else – including
heating – stopped. Four out of five coastal branch
offices were flooded. People waited for a help on
the top floors of a building surrounded by water.
Fortunately enough, none of the staff of my office
were hurt, but unfortunately, some lost family
members, and more lost entire hometowns. The
situation was just as you might have seen on TV.
Six months have passed since then, and the
Sendai city-centre has mostly recovered.
However, devastation caused by tsunami can still
be seen in rural areas. Coastal areas have beencleared of wreckage, but there’s nothing left. New
construction has been suspended for fear of future
quakes, and many people are still in refugee
centres or temporary housing, as they lost homes
and jobs - everything. Even one of the ministrybranch offices has no landline yet. Recovery is stilla long way away.

3

Under these tough conditions, I am encouragedby the comments and support offered by WMU
friends. Even though I can’t speak on behalf of thevictims, if I could, I would express our appreciation
to all of the kind and generous readers of Friends of
WMU, Japan, especially for those young students
who stood up for the earthquake and tsunami
campaign, and those who offered words of comfort.
I would also like to thank those countries which
offered support and comments that can be read at
the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs website.
I’m sure you will see your country is one of them.
We all appreciate every support, just most of us
don’t have channel to tell you.
Long cold winter will come soon to northern
Japan. Let me ask your continued support to thetsunami victims who still suffers in evacuation
centres.
Death toll: 15,799 Missing: 4,053
as of September 20, 2011
http://www.nippon-foundation.or.jp/eng/
domestic/DisasterInformation.html

A Proposal for Constructing a Volunteer Ship Network for Disaster
Control of Gas Emissions from Ships andTransfer of Invasive Aquatic Species by Ships

Momoko Morishige

International Maritime Research Center
Graduate School of Maritime Sciences, Kobe University

Kunihiko Kitabayashi
Japan Shipbuilding Research Association (JSTRA)Image of North American ECA

2. Emission control of CO2 from ships

This convention aims at limiting thesession of Marine
The sixty-second
Environment Protection Committee At MEPC 62, a new legal framework on possibility of transfer of aquatic species with sea

emission control of carbon dioxide (CO2) from water ballast.
international maritime transport was introduced
At MEPC 62, as a new instrument for
to Annex VI of MARPOL 73/78, and this rule limiting the transfer of invasive aquatic species by
will enter into force on January 1, 2013.
ships, the “2011 Guidelines for the control andAccording to this, ships constructed on and management of ships' biofouling to minimize
after January 2013 shall comply with the the transfer of invasive aquatic species” were
Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI), adopted as MEPC Resolution 207(62). In these
1. Control of air pollution from ships
Regulations on gas emission control were first which is an index which shows the expected guidelines, several measures for minimizing the
introduced in 1997, in a form of a new Annex VI amount of CO2 emission per each transfer of invasive aquatic species by means ofto the “International Convention on Prevention transportation unit. In addition, Ship Energy ship structure design, hull surface coatings, andof Pollution from Ships” (MARPOL 73/78). Efficiency Management Plan (SEEMP) shall in-water cleaning are stipulated. Although these
are not legal instruments but voluntary
For these emissions, “Emission Control Areas be provided for each ship.
To complement the regulations, some guidelines, governments, operators, shipbuilders(ECA)” are designated in which emissions ofsulfur oxides (SOx), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and technical guidelines, such as EEDI calculating and other interested parties are encouraged toparticulate matters (PM) from ships can be methods are going to be developed in due course. use these guidelines to minimize the risk oftransferring invasive aquatic species from ships’
controlled more stringently than the global rules.
At MEPC 62, the areas of Puerto Rico 3. Contol of transfer of invasive aquatic biofouling, and also to report to the MEPC on
experience gained through the implementation.
(United States) and the Virgin Islands (United species by ships
MEPC 62 agreed to keep these guidelines
States) were newly designated as ECA. This In order to minimize the transfer of invasive
amendment will enter into force on January 1, aquatic species, the “Convention of under review in light of the experience gained,
2013, and new ECA will become effective a year Management of Ballast Water and Sediments” but the details of the review process are still
under consideration.
(BWM Convention) was adopted in 2004.
later.
(MEPC 62) of IMO was held from July 11 to
15, and several rules and guidelines on marine
environment protection were developed. In thisreport, gas emissions from vessels and control oftransportation of living species are focused on.

Figure: Volunteer Ship Network

1. Introduction
Because Japanese metropolises are mainly locatedin coastal areas, support from the sea during timesof disaster can be one of the most effective earlymeans of relief. For example, ships played a largerole in support efforts after the Great
Hanshin-Awaji earthquake in 1995, by carrying
supplies and medicine to damaged areas, as well as
removing casualties. After the Great Tohoku
earthquake on March 11, 2011, ships carried fueland food, and provided various services, such as
bathing facilities for the victims andaccommodations for the staff of the damaged
Fukushima nuclear power plants.
However, before a ship can provide support to adamaged area, many problems need to beconsidered to ensure safe navigation, includingchanges in a ship’s draft after a disaster, andhazardous, floating objects, to mention just a few.
Lessons from the Great Hanshin-Awaji
earthquake show that many disaster prevention
measures were not as effective as desired during
the Tohoku earthquake. Herein, I propose
constructing a Volunteer Ship Network, using
disaster support ships, to address navigation,communication, and other difficulties ships face inproviding immediate support following a disaster.
Examples of how ships played a role in support
efforts following the recent earthquake include: aprivate ferry company carried members of the
Self-Defense Forces and their vehicles; theinternational cruise ship Fuji Maru, chartered by
Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, stayed two days at various
ports, providing meals, baths, and free cell phones;
the module ship of NYK Lines carried 146 tons ofsupplies from Kobe to a damaged port, donatedfrom a Japan Business Federation relief goods
hotline; and the All Japan Seaman’s Union and
NPO Japanese Training Institute provided ships
as accommodations for the staff of the damaged
Fukushima nuclear power plant.

Frank exchange ofviews on the disasterwith Sasakawa Fellows
in Kobe University on
August 15, 2011.
(Ms. Morishige is at thefirst row, the second
from right.)

2. Disaster Support Ships
To counter difficulties ships face when giving
support in a disaster area, I propose that disastersupport ships be located throughout Japan andequipped with the following equipment andmachinery: 1) high-quality sonar; 2)
multiple-joint cranes; 3) hovercrafts; and 4) foodpreservation lockers.
Regarding 1), the waters of a disaster area areoften filled with a large amount of debris, whichchanges a ship’s draft, therefore a high-quality
sonar is essential to measure the forward depth.
After a large disaster, it can take days for theJapanese Coast Guard to complete an
investigation of water depth and issue newcharts, but this is too long to wait for ships tooffer immediate support. Our proposed disastersupport ships equipped with high-quality sonar
solve this problem. Regarding 2), multiple-joint
cranes can remove both floating debris thatblocks the ship’s route and deposited debris(found by the sonar) that prevents a safe draft.
Regarding 3), when quays are corrupted,
hovercrafts become essential when unloading
supplies. The disaster support ship would first
approach the damaged quay as closely as
possible, and then hovercrafts would be
employed. Regarding 4), long-term foodpreservation is needed when there is no otherway to preserve it in the damaged area.

4

3. Volunteer Ship Network
After the Great Hanshin-Awaji earthquake,
our laboratory proposed the idea of a Volunteer
Ship Network attached to NGOs andself-governing bodies (Figure). Once a disaster
happens, the Network collects and analyzes
information from on-site headquarters andother sources in the damaged area, anddistributes the information. Small andmiddle-sized ships carry goods, doctors, andrescue teams to and from the damaged area,
while large ships, including hospital ships,
provide accommodations for the evacuees andaid workers, and act as a headquarters for the
Network. These ships go back and forth andcontinue supporting the expedition asnecessary.
Although many NGOs already hadorganized networks at the time of the Great
Tohoku earthquake, many networks did notfunction effectively due to difficulties collecting
information. Because it was difficult to find out
the 5W1H (What, Where, Why, When, Who,How) immediately after the disaster, food orgoods were not distributed quickly enough.
Even when disaster support networks exist,
they cannot be effective without good
information
gathering,
analysis
anddistribution.
continued on P.8

Remembrance of IMO Council with WMU Graduates
Ozlem Mulun (Turkey, 2007)

Session of the IMO Council was graduation, I was very happy to see some of my
The 106th
held from June 27 - July 1, 2011 in friends from WMU and have a chance to talk Secretary-General of IMO. Afterwards, thewhich

London. This meeting was different from others
due to the election of the Secretary-General.
Sasakawa Fellows Wisnu Handoko (Indonesia,2007) and I (Turkey, 2007), and Young Chan
Lee, Ji-Hoon Suk (South Korea, 2008) and Lui
Delos Santos (Philippines, 2008), as WMU
graduates, were at the Council Meeting andwitnessed the election. It was a tremendous
experience for all of us. Four years afterand lunch together.
During the election, which took place on June
28th, 40 Council Members voted in order toselect the new Secretary-General. Six countries,
Japan, USA, Spain, South Korea, Philippines
and Cyprus nominated their candidates tocontest for the post. By the end of the first round,
Mr. Koji Sekimizu of Japan had 19 votes, and in
the second round was able to garner 23 votes,

5

allowed

him

to

be

electedTurkish delegation (including me) went up tocongratulate Mr. Sekimizu on his success andexpressed their beliefs that he will offer asignificant contribution to IMO and theinternational maritime community. With thisopportunity, I also send my congratulations to
the Japanese people and Mr. Sekimizu on his
election to the highest leadership position at
IMO.

A Proposal for Constructing a Volunteer Ship Network for Disaster
Control of Gas Emissions from Ships andTransfer of Invasive Aquatic Species by Ships

Momoko Morishige

International Maritime Research Center
Graduate School of Maritime Sciences, Kobe University

Kunihiko Kitabayashi
Japan Shipbuilding Research Association (JSTRA)Image of North American ECA

2. Emission control of CO2 from ships

This convention aims at limiting thesession of Marine
The sixty-second
Environment Protection Committee At MEPC 62, a new legal framework on possibility of transfer of aquatic species with sea

emission control of carbon dioxide (CO2) from water ballast.
international maritime transport was introduced
At MEPC 62, as a new instrument for
to Annex VI of MARPOL 73/78, and this rule limiting the transfer of invasive aquatic species by
will enter into force on January 1, 2013.
ships, the “2011 Guidelines for the control andAccording to this, ships constructed on and management of ships' biofouling to minimize
after January 2013 shall comply with the the transfer of invasive aquatic species” were
Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI), adopted as MEPC Resolution 207(62). In these
1. Control of air pollution from ships
Regulations on gas emission control were first which is an index which shows the expected guidelines, several measures for minimizing the
introduced in 1997, in a form of a new Annex VI amount of CO2 emission per each transfer of invasive aquatic species by means ofto the “International Convention on Prevention transportation unit. In addition, Ship Energy ship structure design, hull surface coatings, andof Pollution from Ships” (MARPOL 73/78). Efficiency Management Plan (SEEMP) shall in-water cleaning are stipulated. Although these
are not legal instruments but voluntary
For these emissions, “Emission Control Areas be provided for each ship.
To complement the regulations, some guidelines, governments, operators, shipbuilders(ECA)” are designated in which emissions ofsulfur oxides (SOx), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and technical guidelines, such as EEDI calculating and other interested parties are encouraged toparticulate matters (PM) from ships can be methods are going to be developed in due course. use these guidelines to minimize the risk oftransferring invasive aquatic species from ships’
controlled more stringently than the global rules.
At MEPC 62, the areas of Puerto Rico 3. Contol of transfer of invasive aquatic biofouling, and also to report to the MEPC on
experience gained through the implementation.
(United States) and the Virgin Islands (United species by ships
MEPC 62 agreed to keep these guidelines
States) were newly designated as ECA. This In order to minimize the transfer of invasive
amendment will enter into force on January 1, aquatic species, the “Convention of under review in light of the experience gained,
2013, and new ECA will become effective a year Management of Ballast Water and Sediments” but the details of the review process are still
under consideration.
(BWM Convention) was adopted in 2004.
later.
(MEPC 62) of IMO was held from July 11 to
15, and several rules and guidelines on marine
environment protection were developed. In thisreport, gas emissions from vessels and control oftransportation of living species are focused on.

Figure: Volunteer Ship Network

1. Introduction
Because Japanese metropolises are mainly locatedin coastal areas, support from the sea during timesof disaster can be one of the most effective earlymeans of relief. For example, ships played a largerole in support efforts after the Great
Hanshin-Awaji earthquake in 1995, by carrying
supplies and medicine to damaged areas, as well as
removing casualties. After the Great Tohoku
earthquake on March 11, 2011, ships carried fueland food, and provided various services, such as
bathing facilities for the victims andaccommodations for the staff of the damaged
Fukushima nuclear power plants.
However, before a ship can provide support to adamaged area, many problems need to beconsidered to ensure safe navigation, includingchanges in a ship’s draft after a disaster, andhazardous, floating objects, to mention just a few.
Lessons from the Great Hanshin-Awaji
earthquake show that many disaster prevention
measures were not as effective as desired during
the Tohoku earthquake. Herein, I propose
constructing a Volunteer Ship Network, using
disaster support ships, to address navigation,communication, and other difficulties ships face inproviding immediate support following a disaster.
Examples of how ships played a role in support
efforts following the recent earthquake include: aprivate ferry company carried members of the
Self-Defense Forces and their vehicles; theinternational cruise ship Fuji Maru, chartered by
Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, stayed two days at various
ports, providing meals, baths, and free cell phones;
the module ship of NYK Lines carried 146 tons ofsupplies from Kobe to a damaged port, donatedfrom a Japan Business Federation relief goods
hotline; and the All Japan Seaman’s Union and
NPO Japanese Training Institute provided ships
as accommodations for the staff of the damaged
Fukushima nuclear power plant.

Frank exchange ofviews on the disasterwith Sasakawa Fellows
in Kobe University on
August 15, 2011.
(Ms. Morishige is at thefirst row, the second
from right.)

2. Disaster Support Ships
To counter difficulties ships face when giving
support in a disaster area, I propose that disastersupport ships be located throughout Japan andequipped with the following equipment andmachinery: 1) high-quality sonar; 2)
multiple-joint cranes; 3) hovercrafts; and 4) foodpreservation lockers.
Regarding 1), the waters of a disaster area areoften filled with a large amount of debris, whichchanges a ship’s draft, therefore a high-quality
sonar is essential to measure the forward depth.
After a large disaster, it can take days for theJapanese Coast Guard to complete an
investigation of water depth and issue newcharts, but this is too long to wait for ships tooffer immediate support. Our proposed disastersupport ships equipped with high-quality sonar
solve this problem. Regarding 2), multiple-joint
cranes can remove both floating debris thatblocks the ship’s route and deposited debris(found by the sonar) that prevents a safe draft.
Regarding 3), when quays are corrupted,
hovercrafts become essential when unloading
supplies. The disaster support ship would first
approach the damaged quay as closely as
possible, and then hovercrafts would be
employed. Regarding 4), long-term foodpreservation is needed when there is no otherway to preserve it in the damaged area.

4

3. Volunteer Ship Network
After the Great Hanshin-Awaji earthquake,
our laboratory proposed the idea of a Volunteer
Ship Network attached to NGOs andself-governing bodies (Figure). Once a disaster
happens, the Network collects and analyzes
information from on-site headquarters andother sources in the damaged area, anddistributes the information. Small andmiddle-sized ships carry goods, doctors, andrescue teams to and from the damaged area,
while large ships, including hospital ships,
provide accommodations for the evacuees andaid workers, and act as a headquarters for the
Network. These ships go back and forth andcontinue supporting the expedition asnecessary.
Although many NGOs already hadorganized networks at the time of the Great
Tohoku earthquake, many networks did notfunction effectively due to difficulties collecting
information. Because it was difficult to find out
the 5W1H (What, Where, Why, When, Who,How) immediately after the disaster, food orgoods were not distributed quickly enough.
Even when disaster support networks exist,
they cannot be effective without good
information
gathering,
analysis
anddistribution.
continued on P.8

Remembrance of IMO Council with WMU Graduates
Ozlem Mulun (Turkey, 2007)

Session of the IMO Council was graduation, I was very happy to see some of my
The 106th
held from June 27 - July 1, 2011 in friends from WMU and have a chance to talk Secretary-General of IMO. Afterwards, thewhich

London. This meeting was different from others
due to the election of the Secretary-General.
Sasakawa Fellows Wisnu Handoko (Indonesia,2007) and I (Turkey, 2007), and Young Chan
Lee, Ji-Hoon Suk (South Korea, 2008) and Lui
Delos Santos (Philippines, 2008), as WMU
graduates, were at the Council Meeting andwitnessed the election. It was a tremendous
experience for all of us. Four years afterand lunch together.
During the election, which took place on June
28th, 40 Council Members voted in order toselect the new Secretary-General. Six countries,
Japan, USA, Spain, South Korea, Philippines
and Cyprus nominated their candidates tocontest for the post. By the end of the first round,
Mr. Koji Sekimizu of Japan had 19 votes, and in
the second round was able to garner 23 votes,

5

allowed

him

to

be

electedTurkish delegation (including me) went up tocongratulate Mr. Sekimizu on his success andexpressed their beliefs that he will offer asignificant contribution to IMO and theinternational maritime community. With thisopportunity, I also send my congratulations to
the Japanese people and Mr. Sekimizu on his
election to the highest leadership position at
IMO.

Letters from WMU Sasakawa Fellows
From Bremen

Rodolfo R. Diawa (Philippines, 2006)

Tran, Nguyen Khoi (Vietnam, 2007)

In

2006 and 2007, I received a Sasakawa
scholarship to study Port Management
at WMU. It was a really wonderful time for me.
I had an opportunity to attend many interesting
lectures with leading professors in my
specialization, which provided me with a lot of
useful knowledge. I made many nice friends
from all over the world. And I will never forget
my wonderful trip to Japan, when I was able tovisit The Nippon Foundation and Mr. Yohei
Sasakawa.
After graduating from WMU, I wanted tocontinue my research related to the
optimization of the liner network. It was quite
challenging for me to seek both funding and asuitable institution in my subject. After
experiencing some unsuccessful attempts,
finally, in 2010, I got a scholarship to conduct

MARINA Sasakawa Fellows
Missed Mr. Masahiro Uesono

my doctoral research at the Institute of
Shipping Economics and Logistics (ISL) in
Bremen. ISL is among the leading centers in
the world in the affairs of Maritime Economics
and Logistics and is really an ideal place for mystudies. I must apply myself more than ever
now in order to become a world-class expert in
my specialization.
Bremen, where I am working and living, is innorthwestern Germany. The port city is not so
far from Malmö, around 7 hours by bus or 5hours by express train. It is a medium-sized citywith more than 500,000 citizens. I think it isslightly bigger and noisier than Malmö. The
city is the home of the famous football club
Werder Bremen and well-known German
factories such as Mercedes and Airbus. The oldcity is the most attractive area in Bremen with

Mr. Uesono

A statue of a donkey, a dog, a cat
and a rooster, the symbol of Bremen

many old streets, buildings, and churches, aswell as the picturesque river Weser.
In my mind, Malmö is always a special city,
like my hometown. Last December, I went
back there and thought to myself, “I am goinghome”. I am looking forward to another trip,
meeting my revered professors, seeing my
beloved school again, staying at the Henrik
Smith Hostel and walking along the small
streets. See you soon, Malmö.

Oneweek before his term ended as JICA
expert at MARINA, Mr. Masahiro
Uesono, in cooperation with MARINA,
organized a Boat-Building Technology
seminar, which was attended by participantsfrom government organizations, NGOs,
private individuals, and boat builders, on June23, 2011. The objective of the event was tofamiliarize and impart knowledge to theparticipants concerning the new approaches toboat construction, such as applying materials
made of resins or reinforcing wooden hulls withfiberglass.
During his term, many seminars, training
sessions, workshops and studies wereconducted for the benefit of the shipping
industry. One type of training considered very
important to the functions of MARINA andattended by its officials and employees was theGeographic Information System (GIS), which
categorized navigational areas in the Philippine
waters.
On June 10, 2011, the MARINA Sasakawa
Fellows shared a light moment with Mr.
Uesono, hosting a farewell lunch for him as away of thanking him for his undying support of
the activities undertaken by the Fellows. Withhim at Harbor View restaurant were Engr.
Rizal J. Victoria (Philippines, 2010), Engr.
Maria Teresa D. Mamisao (Philippines, 2006),

Louie D. De los Santos (Philippines, 2008),
Josephine O. Castillo (Philippines, 2010), andher assistant Grace A. Santos, and this writer.
Other Fellows were unfortunately not able tojoin us, due to their required attendance at atechnical workshop held outside Manila.
The little time shared with him was filledwith laughter and conversations related toanything about food, drink, and delicacies, but
ironically nothing relevant or related toshipping.
Finally, this article cannot end without giving
our heartfelt thanks to Mr. Eisuke Kudo,
Special Adviser of OPRF, for his support inmaking this occasion possible.

Our Job as a UNION…
Benjamin dela Cuesta(Philippines, 1998)

From Cardiff

Jean Ver P. Pia (Philippines, 2003)

I

am at present a first-year PhD research fellow
at the Cardiff University Seafarers
International Research Centre (SIRC),
sponsored for four years by The Nippon
Foundation of Japan along with two otherNippon fellow cohorts for 2010, Amewu Attah
of Ghana and Taurai Mlambo of South Africa.
Amewu, Taurai and I started our studies at theCardiff University School of Social Sciences on
October 4, 2010, for a Diploma in Social Science
Research Methods (SSRM), following the global
and political economy pathway. There are 20
other SIRC/Nippon PhD fellows who are invarious stages of their research. Cardiff University
is located in Wales, United Kingdom.
In support of the objective of The Nippon
Foundation to give highest priority to research on
seafarers’ lives, my PhD thesis topic will focus on
the perspective of Filipino seafarers concerning
the actual implementation of the terms andconditions of their employment contracts. As I
just completed my Diploma in SSRM, I am in
the early stages of thesis writing. Along with the

JSU Staff conducting lectures on thewelfare of their members on board

SIRC Director, Prof. Helen Sampson, my
supervisors, Prof. David R. Walters, Professor ofWork and Environment, and Dr. Dean Stroud,
Lecturer at the Cardiff University, have been
instrumental in giving me academic and pastoralcare, making my studies and stay at Cardiff moreenjoyable.
I graduated from the World Maritime
University (WMU) seven years ago, alsosponsored by the Sasakawa Foundation. The gap
in between my studies made the adjustment moredifficult, as I had to get used to comprehending
and critically analyzing countless journals, books
and articles. The challenge of writing six
3,000-word essays for the modules every semester
was a challenge that I welcomed head on, for I
really loved learning.
Also to be mentioned is my struggle with theEnglish language, both spoken and written.
Never having been exposed to the British accent,
I had to focus and concentrate during lectures fora better and clearer understanding. To cope with
my difficulty with academic writing, I enrolled in

6

English classes to be able to comprehend what
was expected of us in our coursework, and mostespecially in our thesis writing. I know that I havea long way to go in this respect.
In terms of the environment, the office spaceand generous amenities provided for us at the
SIRC is very conducive to studying. My
accommodations are likewise strategically locatedwhen it comes to sports and leisure activities, inorder to break the monotony of university life andto cope with the physical separation from families
and loved ones. I find the community in Cardiff
very safe, secure and friendly to international
students like me.
Looking back at my experience during the pastnine months, I realize that it is a continuous
learning experience that requires an indefatigablespirit, to be able to adjust not just to academic life,
but also to a different culture, environment andpeople. I have only good things to reportconcerning my Cardiff University life, and I lookforward to three more years of learning.

It

was in early 1896 when the Japan Seamen’s
Union (JSU) was established. The main
purpose was to provide the best possible working
conditions and to promote its members’ status,
whether Japanese nationals or non-domicile
members. The Union protects its members’
rights, as well as developing their full potential byenhancing technical competence, concern forsafety measures, and protecting the environment
onboard ships.
In order for JSU to fulfill these duties, they
employ the Filipino International Service Staff(ISS) with its large volume of Filipino
non-domicile members, in conjunction with the
Associated Marine Officers and Seamen’s Unionof the Philippines (AMOSUP), and thePhilippine Seafarer’s Union (PSU), under theumbrella of the Trade Union Congress of thePhilippines (TUCP), which is affiliated with theInternational Transport Workers’ Federation(ITF). The staff is composed of two regular andsix contractual employees. Most of them comefrom a Merchant Marine background, working
on international vessels. The staff provides useful
information to their non-domicile members,
such as monetary assistance, technical training,

Mariners Court Bus Service/Hotel Services,
and anything else that has to do with the welfareof the members in need of assistance.
However, the ISS staff mostly offers lectures tocrewmembers with respect to their agreements
under the International Bargaining Forum (IBF),
discussing issues concerning increases in wages,
overtime pay, retirement plans, food and seniority
allowances, and insurance claims to be received incases of accidents. Also, through visitations, they
are able to gather and collect information oncomplaints and grievances from crewmembers,
how they are treated by their senior officers, etc.
Likewise, they listen to crewmembers’
suggestions and recommendations for better
services from the union and local manningcompanies/principal owners, respectively.
These lectures also cover the particulars of eachagreement, with most of the member vessels
under the IBF JSU/AMOSUP-IMMAJ
Contract Bargaining Agreement, and others
under the IBF/JSU-PSU IMMAJ Collective
Agreement. Moreover, explaining to them theproper conduct required onboard ship and attheir respective companies helps keep a good
relationship with the manning companies and7owners.
JSU is a trade union that engages in foreignand domestic trade, fisheries and ports, withdifferent agreements for their 76,000 members,both non-domicile and Japanese nationals (basedon the July 2010 census). JSU also represents theInternational Transport Workers’ Federation(ITF) through its Japanese ITF Coordinator andInspectors based in selected areas, composed of
one ITF Coordinator and three ITF Inspectors.
Every quarter, the JSU/ITF staff conducts Flag ofConvenience (FOC) and Port of Convenience(POC) Campaigns to prevent ships fromregistering in countries other than the realcountries of ownership, by flagging ship owners
who don’t pay taxes and don’t follow the standard
regulations of employment, in regards to wages
and salaries.
In conclusion, JSU is a non-governmental
institution that helps its members fightcompanies and ship owners that pay low salaries
to their hired seafarers through the International
Bargaining Forum. This wage forum protects thestandard wage hike between the JSU as a union
and Companies and Owners.

Letters from WMU Sasakawa Fellows
From Bremen

Rodolfo R. Diawa (Philippines, 2006)

Tran, Nguyen Khoi (Vietnam, 2007)

In

2006 and 2007, I received a Sasakawa
scholarship to study Port Management
at WMU. It was a really wonderful time for me.
I had an opportunity to attend many interesting
lectures with leading professors in my
specialization, which provided me with a lot of
useful knowledge. I made many nice friends
from all over the world. And I will never forget
my wonderful trip to Japan, when I was able tovisit The Nippon Foundation and Mr. Yohei
Sasakawa.
After graduating from WMU, I wanted tocontinue my research related to the
optimization of the liner network. It was quite
challenging for me to seek both funding and asuitable institution in my subject. After
experiencing some unsuccessful attempts,
finally, in 2010, I got a scholarship to conduct

MARINA Sasakawa Fellows
Missed Mr. Masahiro Uesono

my doctoral research at the Institute of
Shipping Economics and Logistics (ISL) in
Bremen. ISL is among the leading centers in
the world in the affairs of Maritime Economics
and Logistics and is really an ideal place for mystudies. I must apply myself more than ever
now in order to become a world-class expert in
my specialization.
Bremen, where I am working and living, is innorthwestern Germany. The port city is not so
far from Malmö, around 7 hours by bus or 5hours by express train. It is a medium-sized citywith more than 500,000 citizens. I think it isslightly bigger and noisier than Malmö. The
city is the home of the famous football club
Werder Bremen and well-known German
factories such as Mercedes and Airbus. The oldcity is the most attractive area in Bremen with

Mr. Uesono

A statue of a donkey, a dog, a cat
and a rooster, the symbol of Bremen

many old streets, buildings, and churches, aswell as the picturesque river Weser.
In my mind, Malmö is always a special city,
like my hometown. Last December, I went
back there and thought to myself, “I am goinghome”. I am looking forward to another trip,
meeting my revered professors, seeing my
beloved school again, staying at the Henrik
Smith Hostel and walking along the small
streets. See you soon, Malmö.

Oneweek before his term ended as JICA
expert at MARINA, Mr. Masahiro
Uesono, in cooperation with MARINA,
organized a Boat-Building Technology
seminar, which was attended by participantsfrom government organizations, NGOs,
private individuals, and boat builders, on June23, 2011. The objective of the event was tofamiliarize and impart knowledge to theparticipants concerning the new approaches toboat construction, such as applying materials
made of resins or reinforcing wooden hulls withfiberglass.
During his term, many seminars, training
sessions, workshops and studies wereconducted for the benefit of the shipping
industry. One type of training considered very
important to the functions of MARINA andattended by its officials and employees was theGeographic Information System (GIS), which
categorized navigational areas in the Philippine
waters.
On June 10, 2011, the MARINA Sasakawa
Fellows shared a light moment with Mr.
Uesono, hosting a farewell lunch for him as away of thanking him for his undying support of
the activities undertaken by the Fellows. Withhim at Harbor View restaurant were Engr.
Rizal J. Victoria (Philippines, 2010), Engr.
Maria Teresa D. Mamisao (Philippines, 2006),

Louie D. De los Santos (Philippines, 2008),
Josephine O. Castillo (Philippines, 2010), andher assistant Grace A. Santos, and this writer.
Other Fellows were unfortunately not able tojoin us, due to their required attendance at atechnical workshop held outside Manila.
The little time shared with him was filledwith laughter and conversations related toanything about food, drink, and delicacies, but
ironically nothing relevant or related toshipping.
Finally, this article cannot end without giving
our heartfelt thanks to Mr. Eisuke Kudo,
Special Adviser of OPRF, for his support inmaking this occasion possible.

Our Job as a UNION…
Benjamin dela Cuesta(Philippines, 1998)

From Cardiff

Jean Ver P. Pia (Philippines, 2003)

I

am at present a first-year PhD research fellow
at the Cardiff University Seafarers
International Research Centre (SIRC),
sponsored for four years by The Nippon
Foundation of Japan along with two otherNippon fellow cohorts for 2010, Amewu Attah
of Ghana and Taurai Mlambo of South Africa.
Amewu, Taurai and I started our studies at theCardiff University School of Social Sciences on
October 4, 2010, for a Diploma in Social Science
Research Methods (SSRM), following the global
and political economy pathway. There are 20
other SIRC/Nippon PhD fellows who are invarious stages of their research. Cardiff University
is located in Wales, United Kingdom.
In support of the objective of The Nippon
Foundation to give highest priority to research on
seafarers’ lives, my PhD thesis topic will focus on
the perspective of Filipino seafarers concerning
the actual implementation of the terms andconditions of their employment contracts. As I
just completed my Diploma in SSRM, I am in
the early stages of thesis writing. Along with the

JSU Staff conducting lectures on thewelfare of their members on board

SIRC Director, Prof. Helen Sampson, my
supervisors, Prof. David R. Walters, Professor ofWork and Environment, and Dr. Dean Stroud,
Lecturer at the Cardiff University, have been
instrumental in giving me academic and pastoralcare, making my studies and stay at Cardiff moreenjoyable.
I graduated from the World Maritime
University (WMU) seven years ago, alsosponsored by the Sasakawa Foundation. The gap
in between my studies made the adjustment moredifficult, as I had to get used to comprehending
and critically analyzing countless journals, books
and articles. The challenge of writing six
3,000-word essays for the modules every semester
was a challenge that I welcomed head on, for I
really loved learning.
Also to be mentioned is my struggle with theEnglish language, both spoken and written.
Never having been exposed to the British accent,
I had to focus and concentrate during lectures fora better and clearer understanding. To cope with
my difficulty with academic writing, I enrolled in

6

English classes to be able to comprehend what
was expected of us in our coursework, and mostespecially in our thesis writing. I know that I havea long way to go in this respect.
In terms of the environment, the office spaceand generous amenities provided for us at the
SIRC is very conducive to studying. My
accommodations are likewise strategically locatedwhen it comes to sports and leisure activities, inorder to break the monotony of university life andto cope with the physical separation from families
and loved ones. I find the community in Cardiff
very safe, secure and friendly to international
students like me.
Looking back at my experience during the pastnine months, I realize that it is a continuous
learning experience that requires an indefatigablespirit, to be able to adjust not just to academic life,
but also to a different culture, environment andpeople. I have only good things to reportconcerning my Cardiff University life, and I lookforward to three more years of learning.

It

was in early 1896 when the Japan Seamen’s
Union (JSU) was established. The main
purpose was to provide the best possible working
conditions and to promote its members’ status,
whether Japanese nationals or non-domicile
members. The Union protects its members’
rights, as well as developing their full potential byenhancing technical competence, concern forsafety measures, and protecting the environment
onboard ships.
In order for JSU to fulfill these duties, they
employ the Filipino International Service Staff(ISS) with its large volume of Filipino
non-domicile members, in conjunction with the
Associated Marine Officers and Seamen’s Unionof the Philippines (AMOSUP), and thePhilippine Seafarer’s Union (PSU), under theumbrella of the Trade Union Congress of thePhilippines (TUCP), which is affiliated with theInternational Transport Workers’ Federation(ITF). The staff is composed of two regular andsix contractual employees. Most of them comefrom a Merchant Marine background, working
on international vessels. The staff provides useful
information to their non-domicile members,
such as monetary assistance, technical training,

Mariners Court Bus Service/Hotel Services,
and anything else that has to do with the welfareof the members in need of assistance.
However, the ISS staff mostly offers lectures tocrewmembers with respect to their agreements
under the International Bargaining Forum (IBF),
discussing issues concerning increases in wages,
overtime pay, retirement plans, food and seniority
allowances, and insurance claims to be received incases of accidents. Also, through visitations, they
are able to gather and collect information oncomplaints and grievances from crewmembers,
how they are treated by their senior officers, etc.
Likewise, they listen to crewmembers’
suggestions and recommendations for better
services from the union and local manningcompanies/principal owners, respectively.
These lectures also cover the particulars of eachagreement, with most of the member vessels
under the IBF JSU/AMOSUP-IMMAJ
Contract Bargaining Agreement, and others
under the IBF/JSU-PSU IMMAJ Collective
Agreement. Moreover, explaining to them theproper conduct required onboard ship and attheir respective companies helps keep a good
relationship with the manning companies and7owners.
JSU is a trade union that engages in foreignand domestic trade, fisheries and ports, withdifferent agreements for their 76,000 members,both non-domicile and Japanese nationals (basedon the July 2010 census). JSU also represents theInternational Transport Workers’ Federation(ITF) through its Japanese ITF Coordinator andInspectors based in selected areas, composed of
one ITF Coordinator and three ITF Inspectors.
Every quarter, the JSU/ITF staff conducts Flag ofConvenience (FOC) and Port of Convenience(POC) Campaigns to prevent ships fromregistering in countries other than the realcountries of ownership, by flagging ship owners
who don’t pay taxes and don’t follow the standard
regulations of employment, in regards to wages
and salaries.
In conclusion, JSU is a non-governmental
institution that helps its members fightcompanies and ship owners that pay low salaries
to their hired seafarers through the International
Bargaining Forum. This wage forum protects thestandard wage hike between the JSU as a union
and Companies and Owners.

continued from P.4

36

A Proposal for Constructing a Volunteer Ship Network for DisasterOur proposed Volunteer Ship Network
would take advantage of improving
developments in satellite communications tomake communications more effective.
Actually, after the Great Tohoku earthquake,two satellites, the Kiku 8 and the Kizuna fromthe JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration
Agency), provided internet communication to
the damaged area. If this technology wereused by the Volunteer Ship Network,
problems in communication could be greatly
reduced.

shall take necessary measures with regard to theprevention of natural disasters, prevention ofdamage expansion in case of the occurrence of
natural disasters and recovery from disasters(hereinafter referred to as ‘Disaster
Prevention’), in order to protect national land as
well as life, body and property of the citizens
from disasters such as tsunamis, storm surges
and others.” But when a disaster occurs, there
are currently no ships to offer centralized
support to expeditionary ships. While Japan has
two Dredge and Oil Recovery Vessels, the kindof well-equipped disaster support ships I
5. Conclusion
propose can offer far better support. Although
It is stipulated in Clause 2, Article 21 (Securing the Japanese Self-Defense Forces have played a
the Safety and Security of the Oceans) in the big role during disasters, I believe it is“Basic Act on Ocean Policy” that, “The State
indispensable to construct a Volunteer Ship

Network to offer more effective support fromthe sea. To do so, constructing a
core-organization with leadership for the
Network should be made a high priority.
Disasters occur all over the world and arenearly impossible to predict. Water covers
70% of the Earth’s surface, so it almost goes
without saying that support from the sea is
key to a quicker recovery. We have to review
the support system for disasters andconstruct a supporting network that uses
well-equipped ships.

September
2011

Photograph taken on April 3, 2011 at Onagawa town, Miyagi prefecture＊This proposal got first prize at the “Day ofMarine Article Prize” held by the Japan Society of
Ocean Policy and The Japan Maritime Daily in
2011.

An International Hub
for WMU Sasakawa Fellows

Sonia Bautista Malaluan (Philippines, 1998)

Being a WMU Sasakawa Fellow is indeed a blessing. I have been
away from home for a one-year study program at the Lee Kuan
Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore,since July 2010, but it feels great to know that there are other
Fellows in the same country. Upon my arrival in Singapore, thefirst SMS I received was from Jerry Nibre (Philippines, 2003）,
another Filipino Sasakawa Fellow, asking if someone could meet
me at the airport. Under such care, I immediately felt at home ina place far away from home. I also noticed in the Fellows'
Directory that Kyaw Htut（Myanmar, 1998）from my batch at
WMU is working in Singapore as well, and I was provided with
the names and contact details of even more Fellows here by Mr.
Kudo. I sent them an email, but we never managed to get

together until Mr. Tomoya Shimizu（Japan, 2004）came to visit.
He organized the dinner/get-together on April 20, 2011, at Lao
Beijing Restaurant, Orchard Road. The Fellows present were:Duong Hoang Pham (Vietnam, 2005), Wai Lynn Htut
(Myanmar, 2004), Tomoya Shimizu, Kyaw Htut, Altan-od
Bazarragchaa (Mongolia, 2006), Ronald Bandalaria (Philippines,2005) and as always, “the only rose among the thorns,” me.

Chairman Sasakawa’s Blog in English
Information from the Secretariat

Please check out the regularly updated blog of Mr. Yohei Sasakawa,
Chairman of The Nippon Foundation, which is now available in English asof March 14 (Monday). “Yohei Sasakawa Blog: Chairman of The Nippon
Foundation – I hope you will enjoy my blog about what I do and think.”
You can see Chairman Sasakawa’s record of daily activities in Japan andaround the world.

Editor’s note

The new academic year at WMU might have just started when you
receive this Newsletter. I believe our new Sasakawa Sisters andBrothers are now full of happiness in their new life at Malmö. I
am writing this note on May 30th, after a sending-off party for two
new Fellows, Mr. Urano and Mr. Nakatsuyama. They are now the
19th and 20th members of the Japan Chapter of Sasakawa
Fellows, since the first Japanese Fellows graduated in 2002. We
told them that all of us alumni would be glad to help them withany difficulty, be it in their studies or daily life at Malmö. But inreality, I hope that they don’t ask for our support, but instead go totheir colleagues to try to solve whatever problems they may have.
They will make lots of new friends. Everyone will have different- Supporting affected people with your help -http://blog.canpan.info/yoheisasakawa/

cultural backgrounds, expertise, qualifications and personalconnections. And their advice will be much more precious andindispensable during their 22 months there, and even after
graduation. Remembering my time at Malmö, I received lots ofsupport from my friends when I faced any problems, such as
putting plaster on my leg, or confusing the pronunciation of “L”
and “R” (How can we tell the difference between “pirates” and“pilots”?), not to mention lots of exams and assignments. And ofcourse, if anyone does need my help, I will be delighted to give it.

Mr. Kunihiko Kitabayashi, Mr. Tomoya Shimizu

Connectedness

Tomoya Shimizu

General Manager of International Office
The Japan Association of Marine Safety (JAMS)At

14:46 on Friday, March 11,2011,
anunprecedented
magnitude 9.0 earthquake hit
northeastern Japan, and the accompanying
tsunami resulted in the destruction of ahuge area of the country. As of the end ofJuly, there were over 15,000 lives lost, and
5,000 missing persons registered with thepolice department. This was the worst everrecorded natural disaster in Japan.
Countless people lost family and friends,
while their “sweet homes” were washedaway along with their precious memories.
Many lost their jobs as well.

People were determined to rise up fromthe untold devastation and rebuild theirlives, with personal, material, andmonetary assistance from businesses,
volunteer groups and organizations fromall over Japan and the rest of the world. The
Nippon Foundation lost no time in raising

donations over the internet through ourown CANPAN project. Chairman Yohei
Sasakawa stood by the roadside in the rainwith a donation box to collect goodwill
money. This was in March, with winterstill lingering on.
The Nippon Foundation also establishedthe Great East Japan Earthquake Relief
Activities, to provide funds to NPOs andvolunteer organizations engaged inemergency support. At the beginning ofApril it provided condolences and financial
support to survivors for each family
member lost or missing. Because public
donations must be distributed equitably, it
often takes a long time before such funds
can reach those really in need. However,
The Nippon Foundation sent its staff
members to the affected areas within amonth after the disaster, so it was in aposition to expedite giving financial

support to the victims to cover their daily
expenses and to be able to have hope forthe future.
To quote the words of Chairman
Sasakawa from Ship & Ocean Newsletter
No. 263, “People who do not live indisaster-affected areas tend to lose concern
for the affected people once the emergency
support immediately following a disaster ismore or less finished. However, until theaffected people resume their erstwhile life,
we cannot say that the reconstruction has
been completed. The most important thingis to consider and plan for reconstruction,
taking utmost care for the continuity ofspiritual and material lives of the affected
people. If the pride in their past and theirhometown are to be preserved, it isnecessary to ensure ‘connectedness’ offamilies and communities into the future. I
believe that the sea and the ocean can play