“Crucial bridges between nations”: Catholic Bishop Hails Workers at Sea, Calls for Justice for Seafarers in Kenya

Nairobi, 15 July, 2025 / 9:28 PM

The Chairman of the Commission for Refugees, Migrants, and Seafarers at the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB) has called on the Kenya Maritime Authority to ensure that seafarers and fishers in Kenya are treated with the dignity they deserve.

In a Sunday, July 13 statement, which he read out at St. Joseph Catholic Church Milimani of the Catholic Archdiocese of Kisumu, Bishop Peter Makau Munguti emphasized the importance of seafarers, noting that they carry not just cargo but a spirit of unity and mutual understanding.

Bishop Makau underlined the need to protect the rights and dignity of the sea farers as enshrined in platforms such as Stella Maris and International Fund for Fishing Safety (IFFS), with the latter being responsible for supporting initiatives that improve safety and health in fishing communities.

“Our Kenyan seafarers are crucial bridges between nations. As you navigate the waters that connect Africa to the rest of the world, you carry not just cargo, but also the spirit of unity and mutual understanding,” Bishop Makau said on the second Sunday of July, celebrated as the Sea Sunday.

The Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Isiolo urged the maritime workers to be prophets of peace, fostering connections even between lands that he said may seem divided in a world full of challenges.

“The sea itself, with its immense beauty and power, calls for our conversion. It reminds us of God's magnificent creation and our responsibility to care for it,” he said on the day of the event celebrated this year on the theme, “Being There When a Storm Hits.”

He urged the people of God to “strive to be stewards of the oceans, of the rivers, of the lakes, ensuring their health for future generations, just as we look for justice and dignity for all who sail upon them.”

Bishop Makau, who has been at the helm of the leadership of the Catholic Diocese of Isiolo since last, reflected on the message of the prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, Michael Felix Cardinal Czerny who said, “You are truly pilgrims of hope and prophets of peace.”

The member of the Institute of Consolata Missionaries said that when seafarers and  fishers perform their duties, they not only carry a net but also the hope of both their households and the needs of a nation.

“Your hard work shows that everyone wants to be treated with respect, but your journeys often bring tough times, like feeling alone or being treated unjustly,” the Bishop said, and reminded the people of God in Kenya of the “forgotten rights” of those who work in water bodies such as the sea , lake, and rivers.

Bishop Makau expressed his solidarity with the 14 seafarers from Somalia, Kenya, and Indonesia  who work with the FV Ra-Horakhty vessel and are currently abandoned in Mombasa.

The 14 are said to be to be facing severe hardship after months without pay, expired contracts, and no valid documents to leave. 

The Indonesian, Korean, and Vietnamese crews are stranded without food, water, or diesel, relying on emergency aid from Stella Maris.

“The church's heart goes out to you. Your struggles are seen, your voices are heard, and your plight weighs heavy on us,” the Catholic Bishop said in his address to the 14 and added, “This abandonment is a devastating storm you are enduring, stranded far from home, separated from your families, and facing a dire humanitarian situation such as lack of food and water, provision on board, and the infringement of your labor rights by being deprived of your rightful wages.”