N. Korean vessel carried cargo for PH importers

SUBIC BAY FREEPORT—The suspected North Korean cargo ship impounded by the Philippines on Saturday had docked here earlier to unload cargo for local importers, a port official said on Sunday.

Citing port records, lawyer Randy Escolango, deputy administrator for legal affairs of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA), said the MV Jin Teng docked at the free port last December to unload a cargo of corn from Indonesia.

The 4,355-ton general cargo ship returned on Thursday to unload a cargo of palm kernel expeller, Escolango said. Palm kernel expeller is a by-product of palm oil production and has many uses, including ingredient for farm animal feed.

Escolango said the palm kernel expeller was consigned to five Filipino exporters whom he did not identify.

The Philippine Coast Guard impounded the vessel on Saturday on orders from the Department of Foreign Affairs to enforce a new round of UN sanctions against North Korea in response to its Jan. 6 nuclear test and recent missile launch.

It was unclear how the seizure would affect the cargo, which was being unloaded for storage in a local warehouse.

It appears that the MV Jin Teng has been operating into Subic for some time without any incident.

Cargo handlers at the dock expressed surprise on Sunday at the different reception the MV Jin Teng got this time.

The ship’s crew appeared shock, according to Ku Bon-kuk, the Bangkok bureau correspondent of Korean Broadcasting System who joined local journalists at the dock on Sunday.

Ku screamed out questions to three crew members, who yelled back replies from the deck of the ship.

“They are unhappy and confused. They are not allowed to leave the ship. And they have been told they may be deported,” Ku said.

MV Jin Teng. The North Korean vessel M/V Jin Teng remains docked at the Naval Supply Depot inside the Subic Bay Freeport.The vessel arrived in Subic Bay on Thursday (March 3) and barred by the government from leaving the Philippine shores. Government officials said its 21 crew will also be deported following the recent UN’s toughest sanctions issued against North Korea’s provocative nuclear tests and rocket launches which pose clear threats to international peace and stability.
(Allan Macatuno)

According to Escolango, the MV Jin Teng is based in Shandong province, China, but flew the flag of Sierra Leone, a West African country.

Cmdr. Joel Garcia, director of the National Coast Watch Center, said the MV Jin Teng could be using a foreign flag to hide its North Korean ownership and cover illegal activities such as weapons smuggling.

He said the vessel picked up its cargo at Palembang, Indonesia, and made a technical stop at a port in southern Philippines before proceeding to Subic.

The ship arrived in Subic on Feb. 28 and berthed on Thursday night, just hours after the UN Security Council unanimously passed the new round of sanctions against North Korea.