Another four Filipino seafarers were taken off the Carnival Sunshine cruise ship and deported after the vessel docked in Norfolk, Virginia, on Sunday, bringing the total number of Filipinos removed from the ship to 28 this year.
According to Inquirer.net, the Pilipino Workers Center of Southern California (PWC) confirmed the deportation, raising concerns about due process. PWC Executive Director Aquilina Soriano Versoza said the group was “worried that again there will be no due process and the revocation of their visas with no evidence, charges or convictions and that they will be quickly deported.”
The deported workers included a restaurant steward, a laundry attendant, a deck department staff, and a third officer. Versoza added that more than 100 Filipino crew members across various cruise lines have already been deported in 2025 alone.
This development comes as the Philippine Senate is investigating what has been described as unjust deportations of seafarers. On June 28, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers raided the Carnival Sunshine in Norfolk, removing several Filipino workers holding valid 10-year visas. They were deported and banned from re-entering the U.S. for a decade.
The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) has since revealed that those accused of consuming child pornography were denied due process. DMW official Hans Leo Cacdac Olalia told senators that the workers were not informed of their right to consular representation under Article 36 of the Vienna Convention, and that the Philippine Consulate was not even notified of their detention or deportation.
In response, PWC has appealed to U.S. Congressman Bobby Scott, Senator Tim Kaine, the Philippine Embassy, and Carnival Cruise for assistance. While financial aid is being extended to affected workers, Versoza stressed that this was not enough. “We must get the seafarers’ visas reinstated and stop these deportations now,” she said.
