Sri Lankan vessel crew threatened us, took our money: Hivvaru boat captain

The captain of Hivvaru boat has said that the survivors of Hivvaru boat were threatened with knives and robbed by the people on-board the Sri Lankan vessel that saved them.

Sri Lankan fishing vessel ‘Lakisha’ saved the eight survivors of Hivvaru boat nine days after the boat went missing, while they were floating in the sea in a dinghy after their boat sank.

Their ‘real’ stories about how they were treated have not been told until now. People believe that everything went smoothly; however, a conversation with the boat captain has revealed a different side of the story.

Captain of Hivvaru boat Abdullah Nasru, 22, said that the Sri Lankans treated them well at first when they found out that they were Maldivians. The Sri Lankan boat crew gave them food and first aid, and in return, they gave each member of the boat crew $2 and the captain $30.

When he requested to communicate with Maldives Coast Guard, he was transferred to a Sri Lankan fishing vessel called ‘Oga’. Nasru gave his money to his Maldivian friend before swimming to Oga, which was the only way to go on-board that vessel.

Nasru said that by the time he returned, everything had changed.

“We had some money that was given to one of our boat crew by Shahabuddheen, the Bangladeshi who passed away. People of Lakisha found out about this. Before I went to Oga, I asked them to hide the money. Later the Sri Lankan boat crew found out that we had Rufiya as well as Dollars. They threatened us with knives and seized $120. I found out about this only after I returned to Lakisha. I got very angry,” Nasru said.

Nasru said that as the situation escalated, he threw some money into the sea.

“In my anger I threw a lot of money into the sea,” he said.

After that, he returned to Oga and managed to contact the Coast Guard via the communication set. He said that amidst the fear and danger, he regained hope after speaking with the Coast Guard.

“The Coast Guard said, don’t worry. We are on our way to save you, and we will come prepared. We will save you no matter what,” he said.

Nasru said that he was held captive on Oga when the crew suspected that he had relayed information on how he had been treated to the Coast Guard. He requested to return to Lakisha, but was told that he would not be allowed to go anywhere until the Coast Guard arrived.

Then, they moved Oga away from Lakisha to prevent communication between the people on the two boats.

“They accused us of planning to sink their boat when the Coast Guard arrives,” he said.

Thus, they took out their knives and prepared themselves for danger.

“But I didn’t tell the Coast Guard about the knives. Because there are Maldivian fishing vessels in the area, and because it was possible that the Sri Lankan boat crew understood Dhivehi, I used code to communicate with Coast Guard. The Coast Guard replied that they understood what I said, and asked me not to worry,” he said.

Nasru was separated from the rest of the crew of Hivvaru boat. He asked the people of Oga several times to allow him to return to Lakisha.

“I was worried that I may not be saved, because I had told the Coast Guard to go to the Sri Lankan boat. I wanted them to save more people, and not worry about me. I was thinking about others,” he said with tears in his eyes.

Nasru said that none of the Maldivians were harmed by the Sri Lankan boat crew. He said that what they wanted was reimbursement for their expenses on the Maldivians, and that this was revealed during their discussions with the Coast Guard.

They released Nasru and also returned the money they took from the Maldivians when the Coast Guard provided them diesel, rice, sugar and flour.

“They were given things worth a lot more than the money they spent on us,” Nasru said.

The Coast Guard reached the Sri Lankan fishing vessel two days after it departed from Male’. They saved the Maldivians, and transported them from the fishing vessel, which was 370 miles away, back to Maldives within 10 hours.

All the survivors were brought to Gan last night. They were treated at Hithadhoo Hospital before being handed over to their families.

It has not been possible to contact MNDF to ask about Nasru’s story.

MNDF Spokesperson Colonel Abdul Raheem said when contacted, “Something like that [such as providing diesel and food] could have taken place.” He said that the operation was carried out with the cooperation of the crew on-board the Sri Lankan vessels, and that he will confirm details later.