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18 September, 2006
ICEM affiliate Federatia Sindicatelor Libere si Independente din Industria Petroliera (FSLI Petrom) informed the ICEM that the situation on the Orizont Oil rig in Iran has gone back to normal. As reported earlier, a dangerous situation had arisen on 22 August 2006, when Iranian gunboats fired at an oil rig and held 26 workers hostage, of which 19 were Romanian nationals, all affiliated to FSLI Petrom.
The attack was connected to a commercial dispute between GPS, the Romanian company that owns the oil rig, and a contracting firm from the United Arab Emirates, which, in turn, had subcontracted work to a subsidiary of the National Iranian Oil Company. More details can be found in the ICEM News release from 23 August 2006: Condemnation Towards Iran on Attacking Romanian Oil Rig.
According to FSLI Petrom, the crew shifts are now running normal again and workers on the rig are again free to communicate and move about. The 19 Romanian workers that were briefly held hostage have all been able to return home safely. Their replacements were issued with Iranian visas without any problem.
In their message to the ICEM, FSLI Petrom expresses its thanks for the solidarity by ICEM affiliates. The ICEM issued a circular to all its affiliates at the end of August, calling for solidarity messages. According to the union, the messages of support “encouraged and supported the prompt reactions of both the trade union and of the Romanian authorities in order to make this situation to go to normal.”