Russian seamen kept under arrest in China repatriated to Russia.

2/3 Tass 129

VLADIVOSTOK, March 2 (Itar-Tass) - The crew of fifteen Russian seamen
from the Snowmass refrigerator ship kept under arrest in China have been
repatriated to Russia's Far East, a Russian seamen trade union leader told
Itar-Tass on Tuesday.

According to Nikolai Sukhanov, chairman of the Russian seamen trade
union's Far Eastern branch, the repatriation was sponsored by the Chinese
side, which granted a thousand yuans per person. The ship was put up for
sale in the port of Roushan, and after it is sold the money will go to
repay delayed wages to the Snowmass crew.
The crew was arrested for short delivery and spoilage of squids that
were to be supplied to a Chinese company. On February 27, 2009 Snowmass
left Montevideo to be loaded with fish and arrived in China's Roushan only
on November 29, 2009 due to a number of emergency shutdowns of the engine
and other ship's mechanisms, which resulted in spoilage of the cargo.
Although before the trip the Snowmass captain had warned the ship's owner,
the Kaliningrad-based company Smart, that the ship needed repairs.
After the arrest, the crew members were cut adrift - there was no fuel
and electricity in the ship, the seamen run out of food and had to make
fire on the ship's deck to keep themselves warm. On February 12, 2010, the
ship's captain sent a SOS signal. The crew threatened to scuttle the ship
if they were not repatriated to Russia.
Now, the Snowmass crew is planning to lodge lawsuits against the ship'
s owner to cover moral damage.
-0-ras/gor