The International Maritime Organization (IMO) again will recognize June 25 as the “Day of the Seafarer.”
In announcing the annual event, the IMO is urging the citizens of the world to reflect on everything that is provided to them by mariners. It is asking people to take to social media to show their appreciation for the men and women who sail on merchant vessels.
As noted in the IMO announcement, “At the heart of this year’s campaign is the simple sentence ‘Seafarers brought me….’ The IMO is inviting everyone to complete the sentence with a word of their choice and post it on social media, adding the hashtag #thankyouseafarers. The missing word can be anything that came by sea: from the cars people drive, the food people eat, the clothes people wear, the gadgets they use or the furniture they sit on.”
In launching the first Day of the Seafarer in 2010, the IMO hoped to increase awareness among the general public of the indispensable services rendered by mariners to international seaborne trade, the world economy and society at large; to send a clear message to mariners that their services are recognized and appreciated; that the public understands the extraordinary conditions and circumstances of the profession; and to redouble efforts at the regulatory level to create a better, safer and more secure world in which seafarers can operate.
The IMO was created as an organization within the United Nations. It lists 170 countries – including the United States and Canada – as members.