In the literature of maritime piracy, the economic cost is given due emphasis at the expense of a more irretrievable loss: The Seafarer.

This qualitative study was conducted to address this gap with the goal of surfacing the voices of Filipino seafarers who experienced the trauma and violence of piracy at sea.  In so doing, it desires that these unheard-of voices reach the ears of policymakers so that a more sensitive and humane maritime legal system be provided and enforced.

The number of Filipino seafarers grows yearly, and every vessel, statistics disclose, has a Filipino seafarer aboard.  An account of their piracy experiences such as what this project affords will enable a deeper understanding of how a life of attack and abuse in the rough seas feels like, how Filipino seafarers cope with the distress caused by piracy, and how these affect every aspect of their lives.  The study affirms the resiliency of the Filipino, that is, seafarers persevere with their lives even in the face of toil and hardships. However, this cannot be a reason to let the status quo remain the norm in the world’s fleet.

If there is one thing that these stories should accomplish, it is to change the reader, to turn their listening ears, to turn their minds and hearts to the core of the bigger story’: the human cost of piracy at sea.