Durban — It was shaping up as a classic case of chasing “fool’s gold” for a British company after it seemed destined to receive zero compensation for voluntarily salvaging silver bullion worth more than R738 million belonging to the South African government during a covert mission.
Argentum Exploration Limited, well known for scouring the oceans’ floors for sunken loot, recently reached a secret out-of-court settlement with South Africa for retrieving – in 2017 – its 2 364 bars of silver that had lain on a seabed about 2.5km deep near Seychelles for 75 years.
The silver bars were on board the SS Tilawa sailing from Mumbai, India, to Durban, when it was fired on by a Japanese submarine on November 23, 1942, during World War II.
The attack claimed the lives of 280 people in what some have dubbed the “Indian Titanic”.
Rescue missions by two nearby ships (HMS Birmingham and SS Carthage) responding to the Tilawa’s distress calls saved 678 passengers.
This month, the Supreme Court of the UK dismissed Argentum’s legal bid for salvage costs from South Africa.
Two lower courts previously ruled in favour of Argentum’s stance of salvage entitlement, but South Africa appealed those decisions at the Supreme Court and had them overturned.
Before Lord David Lloyd-Jones read out the judgment in the Supreme Court matter on May 8, the court had already been informed that the two parties had reached a secret settlement agreement two weeks earlier, but concurred it was appropriate for the court to deliver its ruling.
The legal jostling began with ownership claims for the silver being made by Argentum, but their focus shifted to arguing for the costs of the salvage operation after South Africa confirmed it was the rightful owner.
Argentum made a case in the lower courts that, according to maritime law, anyone who salvages treasure can claim payment for recovering it.
Argentum maintained it was entitled to ask South Africa for payment, even though the country did not ask the company to retrieve the silver.
South Africa argued throughout the legal proceedings that the lower courts had no jurisdiction over it and it therefore had immunity.
The silver was categorised as non-commercial cargo because it was originally destined for the South African mint, which effectively negated Argentum’s costs claims.
The Supreme Court ruled that the silver was not in use nor intended to be used for commercial purposes, so South Africa was not liable for Argentum’s claim.
While both parties agreed that the Tilawa was engaged in commercial activities, the silver was not, the court reasoned.
South Africa’s legal representatives included lawyer Jonathan Goulding from British-based law firm HFW.
Goulding delivered a crisp response when commenting on the ruling to the media.
“The court has firmly sent a message to those hoping to find and claim ownership of lost treasure that finders are not always keepers,” he said.
The Department of Justice was responsible for presenting South Africa’s opposition to Argentum’s compensation bid.
The Independent on Saturday approached the department for a response to the court outcome and insight on the settlement agreement, but no response was provided.
The South African Reserve Bank was asked when the silver was likely to be returned and whether it would be used for the minting of coins, but no response was received.
SS Tilawa, a privately owned vessel, had cargo weighing 6472 tons, which included the silver bars and cotton, 732 passengers and a crew of 222.
The passengers were a mix of traders, sailors and businessmen.
The ship was torpedoed twice, about 20 minutes apart. The silver, which South Africa bought from India in 1942, and locked in a secure bullion room, sank with the vessel.
Armed with the latest technology and equipment, Argentum’s team discovered Tilawa’s wreckage in 2014.
It took their team six months, beginning in January 2017, to bring the silver to the surface.
Argentum is owned by British investments manager Paul Marshall.
The company declared its find to the office of the Receiver of Wreck and it was unloaded into a Southampton warehouse for safekeeping.
Why the vessel was attacked remains a point of speculation nearly 82 years later.
The first ever commemoration of the sinking of the SS Tilawa was staged in Mumbai in 2022.
Kash Solanki and his son Emile are driving initiatives to have the tragedy recognised by the Indian and Japanese governments and replicas of the illfated vessel put on display in their respective maritime museums.
Emile’s great-grandfather, Nichchabhai, was on the ship but did not survive.
A website created by Emile in memory of the tragedy has provided a conduit for survivors and families to meet and recount their experiences.
Survivor Chunilal Navsaria recalled the fateful day on a video he posted on the website, which was also detailed on Indian online publication, The Print.
“I heard a terrible explosion, the ship flared, and sirens were going up,” said Navsaria.
“Everybody was trying to escape. I had a terrible shock because I was just a teenager at that time (17).
“It was another 15-20 minutes later when we heard another explosion and the lights of Tilawa went off,” he said.
An extract from Navsaria’s book, The Memoirs of Chunilal Navsaria (Survivor of The SS Tilawa), describes the mood before disaster struck.
“Once at sea, a boat drill was carried out and we were told not to light matches or torches on the upper deck.
“There was a blackout on the ship. The portholes were painted black and kept shut at night. There was a constant fear amongst passengers and crew of an enemy submarine attack. I made sure that I kept a life jacket close at hand.”
Arvindbhai Jani, another survivor whose account is carried on the website, said his mother’s intervention saved him.
“As soon as she saw the water coming into the boat, she tied me to her back with her sari, grabbed whatever she could and jumped on to the last life raft that carried passengers to safety,” he recalled.
Emile’s website carries the account of Ahmed Essa Bobat, narrated by his son Yoosuf, which says the second torpedo caused the ship to sink.
Ahmed, a non-swimmer, who was 25 at the time, jumped into the ocean. He eventually latched onto a large piece of timber with 14 other people until a British ship picked them up. Ahmed said they experienced waves as high as four-storey buildings, huge sharks circling and fish nibbling their toes.
Independent on Saturday