Bishop Paul White has been appointed as the new Liaison Bishop to the Australian Council of the Mission to Seafarers. The biennial conference will be held in Tasmania in October 2011, where attendees will benefit from a trauma counseling course led by guest Dr. Marion Gibson, who has experience assisting victims of piracy. Piracy continues to escalate risks for seafarers, with increasing reports of torture and murder. The newsletter provides news and updates from seafarers' centers around Australia.

1. GLAD
TIDINGS Issue: 08
EDITORIAL
By Colin Brown
National Co-ordinator
Bishop Paul White
Good day from a wintery south coast It has been announced that Bishop Paul White from Melbourne
has been appointed as a Liaison bishop to the Australian Council
of New South Wales. This is our first of the Mission to Seafarers and we extend to Paul a very warm
welcome. It is expected that Paul will serve as Liaison bishop for the
newsletter for this year and is packed East and Garry Weatherill as Liaison bishop for the West. For the
past eighteen months Garry has been Charles Atlas like, in acting
with information on maritime events, and as bishop for both the East and West coasts and also applauds
Paul’s appointment.
stories of what is happening in our twenty
We are extremely fortunate that Bishop Paul has a great
five seafarers’ centres around Australia. understanding of the nuts and bolts of our ministry, and for some
years had a close association with our mission centre in Geelong.
We wish him well and know that he will derive great personal
satisfaction from overseeing the care of those thousands of
international seafarers who visit us annually.
BIENNIAL CONFERENCE
Our biennial conference will be held over Happily, the Revd Tom Heffer our Secretary
17 to 21 October this year, at Beauty General is travelling from London to join
Point, not far from Launceston, Tasmania. us in Tasmania. Of course, Tom is always
Arthur Hinsley and Graham Miller have very welcome down under and we look
been working hard behind the scenes on forward to exposing him to some local
conference planning and details. Invitations hospitality, and sharing with him our hopes
have been sent to all centres with the and plans for the Australian ministry- which
necessary conference information. Please not insignificantly constitutes more than one
ring Arthur or Graham if you need to tenth of the Mission to Seafarers’ worldwide
discuss anything, and do not forget to make presence and effort.
travel arrangements as early as possible to
get the best prices.

2. GLAD
TIDINGS Issue: 08
DOCTOR MARION GIBSON
– CONFERENCE GUEST
Dr Marion Gibson
“ ...escalating risks to innocent seafarers posed
by piracy, including the very disturbing trend of
seafarers no longer simply being taken hostage but
“
Travelling with Tom will be a very special conference guest Dr
in addition being tortured and murdered
Marion Gibson. Marion who is based in Northern Ireland is
highly credentialed and experienced in the field of psychosocial
impact of trauma of people- working internationally with the victims
and families of those suffering from post traumatic incidents. In
recent years Marion has had significant exposure to the victims of
trauma at sea including piracy. She will be running a fourteen hour
course on counselling skills to trauma victims (within the conference
programme) that all conference participants should derive great
benefit from, and that will lead to certification.
We are seeing an increasing number of seafarers who have had
first hand encounters with pirates. Our Bunbury centre recently
was visited by a crew member who has worked on three different
ships that have been attacked by pirates in the past two years!
The poor fellow was keen to remain anonymous as he feared that
he would be seen as “a jinx” to crews he might join in the future.
Let’s hope that his luck changes soon- or more specifically that the
United Nations, governments and ship owners around the world
radically ramp up their collective efforts to eradicate this horrendous UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon has warned that “piracy seems
phenomenon. to be outpacing the efforts of the international community to stem
it.” He was speaking at the launch of the International Maritime
Our Secretary General and central office staff London have been Organization’s action plan to promote this year’s World Maritime
very active in publicly highlighting the escalating risks to innocent Day theme: “Piracy: orchestrating the response”.
seafarers posed by piracy, including the very disturbing trend of
seafarers no longer simply being taken hostage but in addition Also speaking at the launch, ITF general secretary David Cockcroft
being tortured and murdered (and in some instances pirates calously said many crew members were at breaking point because of the
involving the victim’s family in the drama). stress of passing through the waters off the coast of Somalia.

3. GLAD
TIDINGS Issue: 08
The Mission to Seafarers’ secretary general has also voiced concern
about the escalating violence in the latest edition of the Flying Angel
News- “It is all very well to discuss an orchestrated response, but
the global community needs to prioritise this problem immediately
and stop talking about it”. Tom Heffer went on to add that “crews
are crying out for better protection as reports of pirate torture and
brutality continue to rise. Our chaplains are on the frontline of
providing assistance to seafarers, as well as comforting families
when their loved ones are taken; so we know the terrible fear and
anxiety they are living with on a daily basis. It is scandalous that the
international community is allowing this to continue.”
The hapless- three times attacked- seafarer visiting our Bunbury
centre a little while ago, would surely say “Amen” to Tom’s
challenge. As would the seafarer’s long suffering family.
For a copy of Tom Heffer’s excellent and hard hitting address,
“Fight Piracy: A Message from the Secretary General visit
www.missiontoseafarers.org/news/77/fight-piracy-a-message-
from-the-secretary-general
“ Our chaplains are on the frontline of providing
assistance to seafarers, as well as comforting
families when their loved ones are taken...
“
TO READ THE COMPLETE NEWSLETTER
(parts B to E) go to: www.mts.org.au
PART B PART C
National news: News from our East coast centres:
• AMSA Asia-Pacific Regional conference on MLC 2006 • Eden centre up and running
• Mission to Seafarers National Coordinator’s address to • Townsville remembers
the conference • Gladstone’s news
• Moving closer to ratification of the Maritime Labour Convention • Hobart’s history honoured
• Australian Council’s negotiations with Government for • Port Kembla’s changing of the guard
funding assistance • Congratulations Newcastle - more specifically Garry,
• AMSA National Seafarers’ Welfare Advisory Committee Paula & Charlotte
• Parliamentary submission by the Australian Council • Brisbane’s compassion

4. GLAD
TIDINGS Issue: 08
PART D PART E
News from our West coast centres: News from middle earth:
• Esperance welcomes Col. • Wallaroo makes its mark
• Norm Stevens and Bill Ross receive well deserved honours • Portland proudly announces its independence
• Dampier’s chaplain runs course at Port Hedland • Port Pirie’s plans for a face lift
• Bunbury commissions a new chaplain • Geelong centre- a big hit on U Tube
• Fremantle- a true Flying Angel
Coming events:
• Sea Sunday celebrations on 10 July, 2011
• A ship visiting course for Newcastle from 9-10 August, 2011
• National conference in Tasmania from 17-21 October, 2011
• MtS Consultative Forum, London from 23-28 August, 2011
• ICMA World Conference, Hamburg from 19-23 August, 2011
• Proposed ship visiting course at a South Australian port in 2011.
God bless and keep the faith
Colin Brown
National Coordinator