SWANSEA/OSLO (Dagbladet): Øystein Jørgensen is the harbor master in Swansea, the village as the Newspaper has featured in a number of articles about snøkrabbefiske.
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the Newspaper has linked several of the Latvian boats which have been at the harbour in Båtsfjord, to social dumping and possible human trafficking. But neither the mayor or the municipal employees havnesjefen have seen something to it.
Almost all of the Latvian, Lithuanian and Russian vessels that participated in the snøkrabbefisket with base in Swansea 2014-2016, have used the local firm Lanes Supply as skipsagent. It is powered by havnesjefens siblings, Frits and Herdis Jørgensen. While havnesjefen itself has a stake of 12 per cent.
SWANSEA: Frits Jørgensen and sister Herdis driver agency business for boats in Swansea under the name of Lanes Supply. The brother and havnesjefen, Øystein Jørgensen, owns 12 per cent of the company. Photo: Hans Arne Vedlog / Dagbladet Show more
– Agentselskapene is the link between the us and the shipping company, ” says the harbor master Jørgensen.
Havnesjefens agency has so much contact with skipsagentene, among other things, is billed port charges through the agent.
urban
the Company that are dominant in skipsagenttjenester in Swansea, Lanes Supply, was technically bankrupt when snøkrabbetrafikken came. Turnover and profits grew, and the equity was solid, thanks to krabbebåtene.
Båtsfjord Harbour KF also received large revenues from the krabbeskipene, both at the harbour and through the millionutbytte from the subsidiary Båtsfjord Sentralfryselager. Fryselageret, where the Båtsfjord Harbour is the largest owner, made good money in temporary storage under the crab-bonanzaet 2014-2016.
KRABBEBÅTER: “Senator”, “Saldus” and “Pavel Kopytin” is still at the dock in Båtsfjord, now at the private dock. Photo: Hans Arne Vedlog / Dagbladet Show more
This situation in Swansea exemplifies a challenge that often arises in smaller municipalities where there are close ties between powerful actors in the public and private sector, ” says Tina Søreide, professor in law and economics at the Norwegian school of economics, and an expert on corruption.
Not seen anything unusual
the harbor master Jørgensen director the municipal enterprise Båtsfjord Harbour, one hundred per cent owned by Båtsfjord kommune. One of havnesjefens most important tasks is to make sure that laws and rules are followed in the harbor.
– This video makes me to be ashamed of me
– We perform no administrative tasks in relation to exercise active control of the working conditions, but we will notify proper authority if we detect something that is outside the Norwegian norm. Then join we from with a time.
– Have you ever notified about anomalous working conditions for the foreign mariners on the krabbebåtene?
No, we have not received any reports about it and we have not registered anything unusual. We were very surprised when we read about bad and inappropriate situations for the mariners in the Newspaper.
he says that He will notify the “proper authorities” about the possible illegality. But at the same time, if a company earns big money on the illegal practice, the revenue increase also for havnesjefen personally and his family, ” says Tina Søreide.
collaboration
Swansea-the company Sea & Coast is owned by one of the Latvian krabberederne, Peteris Pildegovics, the cousin and partner with Kirill Levanidov, which in turn is the main shareholder in krabbefabrikken Seagourmet in Swansea. Sea & Coast, even an affiliate company, has worked closely with the Lanes Supply of agenttjenester for krabbebåtene. Lanes has, among other things, permission to handle fortollingssaker.
– Indonesian sailor sent home with ulcers and without money
– the Link between havnesjefen and his søskens affiliate company can weaken people’s trust to havneadministrasjonen in Swansea although havnesjefen even are aware of the possible ethical challenges, commenting Søreide.
She has seen on the matter on Dagbladet solicitation.
– I’m a passive owner. It is my people here at the office that takes care of the Lanes Supply when it is appropriate. I notify me incompetent in all matters that have with the Lanes to make, and has not perceived this as a problem, ” explains Øystein Jørgensen.
He emphasizes at the same time that havnesjefens office do not add up in the competition between agentselskapene in Swansea.
– Lanes Supply has not gained market share after that I became the harbor master for three and a half years ago.
the newspaper Dagbladet have contacted the only possible competitor to the Lanes Supply, Swansea-the company Nor Companiet, who stated that agentselskapene in Swansea work.
– Lanes Supply helps us with customs clearance. We hunt not on each other’s customers and we did not experience habilitetsproblemer with havnesjefen or other by his office, ” says managing director Kim Einar Johnsen in the Nor Companiet.
Risk of conflict of interest
Søreide reminds of the risk of conflicts of interest:
– Although havnesjefen make sure that possible personal gain do not affect the opinions that are included in the job as harbor master, there is a risk of conflict of interest, ” she says.
Both Lanes Supply and Sea & Coast have signed on as employers at the “slavekontrakter” for indonesian seafarers in Swansea as the Newspaper has featured. So was it in any case for the Norwegian embassy in Jakarta, which was slavekontraktene as an attachment to the visa applications. The owners of both companies claim that their signatures are used on contracts, and denies to have signed. Sea & Coast-owner Pildegovics says contracts are fake.
SWANSEA-COMPANY IN SLAVEKONTRAKTER
those who run The Sea & Coast seems to be very trustworthy. We have not had any bad relationship with them. As businesses have both the Sea & Coast and Seagourmet been exemplary. They have provided playground equipment to the kindergarten and integrated themselves in society. In Båtsfjord, it is not tradition to be wary of foreigners, ” says Øystein Jørgensen to the Newspaper.
Mayor: Okay
Mayor Geir Knutsen can’t see that it has created some problems that havnesjefen is the brother of those who run the largest affiliate company in Swansea, and that he also has shares in this company.
– We are not aware of any breach of the habilitetsregler in Båtsfjord harbour. In the contract of employment for Øystein Jørgensen we got that he may not have the positions or ownership interests in companies that could expose him for habilitetsproblemer as the harbor master. We knew that he was a passive owner in the Lanes Supply, but he has the whole time reported him incompetent when issues about the Lanes Supply has been to treatment, ” says Knutsen, who also is chairman of the board in Båtsfjord Harbour.
): Mayor Geir Knutsen in Båtsfjord is not aware of any violation of habilitetsreglene. Photo: Hans Arne Vedlog / Dagbladet Show more 50 indonesiere was sent to the small village. In two years as mayor not a single one
– the daily operations of The havneselskapet taking not I me of. It makes my subordinate. I work most with the parent cases as a project. In addition, the driver I general management. Contact with agentselskapene takes havnevakten care of at any time, ” explains Øystein Jørgensen.
But it doesn’t help that Øystein Jørgensen delegate tasks to subordinates when familieselskapet is on the path. When the boss is incompetent is also his child.
Slave disqualified
Professor of law Jan Frithjof Bernt at the University of Bergen says that neither havnesjefen or any of his subordinates can take decisions affecting the company that is owned and operated by siblings to havnesjefen.
public administration section 6 which regulates this relationship. Havnesjefen is clear enough incompetent in matters relating to the søsknenes company, and in addition, we have a rule on that decision in a case where the manager is incompetent, nor can the decisions made by subordinate officials in the same management agency. This also applies to assessments relating to the control and supervision of ongoing operations, ” says Bernt.
Easier before
the Chief executive Herdis Jørgensen in Lanes Supply says that they had a simpler relationship to the havnesjefen earlier, before his brother was employed as a harbor master.
My brother can not participate in the meetings with us. It was better for us before when we could relate directly to the havnesjefen. Now we are talking only with other employees on your from here you. The only thing we get from havnesjefen is circular about the plans for the harbour, dredging and schedules. Such circular also goes to the other agents here, ” says Herdis Jørgensen.
Øystein Jørgensen explains its function as follows:
We will operate the service and be the glue between the companies doing business here. First and foremost, we shall control the vessel traffic and provide fortøyningshjelp to the boats. In addition, we make sure that the regulations in the harbor must be observed.
the customs for a job disappeared from Swansea in 2003. It was at a time when they already had the largest harbor in the county of Finnmark.
Swansea is the port that has the most traffic and the highest number of foreign ships visiting all ports in Finnmark. If we detect something suspicious, so we notify the Norwegian authorities. Sjøfartsdirektoratet have had control of boats that have been docked here, but they disappeared for four or five years ago. When the government is gone, so can any of the contraceptive effect of presence be compromised, ” says Øystein Jørgensen.
today is the havnesjefens office under the direction of Øystein Jørgensen who is the guardian for the authorities.
THE HIDDEN SLAVEKONTRAKTENE
