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Legal issues hampered our interventions, says MEA as detained sailors are shifted to Nigeria

The Nigerian government was also requested to carry out the investigation by dispatching a team to either Equatorial Guinea or to India, ministry officials said. 

Legal issues hampered our interventions, states MEA as detained sailors shifted to Nigeria
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First Published Nov 12, 2022, 1:41 PM IST

The Ministry of External Affairs has stated that legal issues hampered diplomatic interventions in the detaining of Indian sailors in Equatorial Guinea. All 26 sailors of the Norwegian merchant ship MT Heroic Idun have been taken to Nigeria despite the efforts from Indian embassies and the ministry to prevent the move. 

The Nigerian government was also requested to carry out the investigation by dispatching a team to either Equatorial Guinea or India, MEA officials said. 

Also Read: In touch with 16 Indian sailors detained in Equatorial Guinea: MEA

Nigeria is maintaining its stand that the court should decide on the complaint of crude oil theft that has been made against the ship. The court's ruling is crucial in the petition filed by the shipping company against the violation of sailors' rights after nearly three months of detention.

The ship and the sailors were brought to Nigeria on Friday amidst high security. Of the 26 sailors aboard, sixteen are Indians. They will have to face trial in Nigeria for their alleged involvement in crude oil theft.
 
The ship has been detained in Equatorial Guinea since August 8. As the shipping company has approached the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea to free the vessel and its crew, it is expected to speed up court proceedings.

Apart from Indians, the crew consists of eight Sri Lankans, a Filipino and a Polish chief engineer. Of the 16 Indians, three are Keralites. The crew members stranded in the West African nation have been sharing videos and messages with their families ever since, revealing their misery and seeking immediate help.

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