Crew on Al Messilah to be checked by health officials

The Eastern Cape health department said measures had been put in place to ensure all those aboard the Al Messilah were free of the coronavirus.

Health MEC Sindiswa Gomba gave the assurance on Wednesday as the vessel, owned by Kuwaiti company Al Mawashi, was set to dock. At time of writing, however, the Al Messilah had not entered the East London harbour.

The ship was due to load more than 60,000 “quarantined” sheep and sail by Friday. Al Messilah is the sister ship of the Al Shuwaikh, which caused fury among animal rights activists in September and October when it took more than 60,000 sheep to the Middle East.

Gomba said every ship entering the province's shores was thoroughly searched and the people aboard tested to make sure they were not infected with Covid-19.

“If there are those who are infected on board, they will be quarantined because we avoid them having contact with people on land,” Gomba said.

Iiyaas Ally, the MD of Al Mawashi SA, said the vessel had 54 crew members.

“These include the ship's crew and the veterinary crew,” Ally said. “All the members are healthy, and do not show any symptoms of Covid-19. The ship will loaded with sheep that have been quarantined,” he said.

The ship will load 63,000 merino sheep from a farm in Berlin near East London.

Ally said the live export trade had been welcomed and was well received by many stakeholders in the value chain.

The shipping has attracted protests from animals activists who have described the export as cruel.

Ban Animal Trading director Dr Smaragda Louw was among those watching the vessel on Wednesday. She said amid the outbreak of the novel coronavirus across the world, the ship's arrival raised the possibility of spreading the disease.

“There are about three of us watching the ship when it docks to inform people,” Louw said. “The whole world is in lockdown. Those people [aboard the ship] may be free now but could carry the virus. We are not learning anything as a country.”

Emerging farmer Mandisi Nofumba said the shipping of the sheep would pave the way for emerging farmers to become commercially viable. About 20,000 of his sheep will board the ship.

“Al Mawashi will help us. It's a give-and-take situation. This is an opportunity that we should all welcome.”