The mother of the Somali fisherman who died in the Simshar tragedy two years ago is demanding compensation from the captain and sole survivor, Simon Bugeja, accusing him of causing her son's death through negligence and lack of safety training.

Fadumo Abdulle Qabobe filed a judicial letter yesterday claiming her son, Abdulrahman Abdala Gedi, 21, died in June 2008 as a result of Mr Bugeja's negligence, imprudence and lack of training in maritime safety.

She warned Mr Bugeja and his wife Sharon that she would institute legal proceedings against them if they did not pay damages within a week.

The claim for damages has so far not been quantified because the process is still in the initial stages.

Mr Gedi died along with two other men and a boy a few days after the fishing boat, owned by Mr Bugeja, exploded and sank on the high seas on June 11, 2008.

The group survived the explosion and hung on to makeshift rafts made from debris from the wreck. Mr Gedi, who suffered extensive burns in the blast, was the first to die, followed by 33-year-old Noel Carabott, Mr Bugeja's father, 61-year-old Karmenu, and Simon Bugeja's son, 11-year-old Theo, whose body was never found.

The migrant's body was the last to be found on July 19, two days after the body of Mr Carabott was recovered. A day before, Mr Bugeja was found, barely alive, after having spent seven days at sea.

His son was with him but slipped from his hands the night before the rescue, according to what the survivor said.

The Somali fisherman's family said the tragedy was the result of Mr Bugeja's failure to use safety equipment on board the Simshar. They made leverage on a Malta Maritime Authority inquiry into the tragedy which a year ago flagged the fact that Mr Bugeja had failed to use safety equipment.

Mr Bugeja had admitted with the inquiring board that he did not activate an emergency beacon, which would have helped locate the survivors earlier, both because he did not know how to activate the device and because there was no time.

"This means that Mr Bugeja did not have, and was not given, the necessary training to know what to do in an emergency and what measures he should have taken to save the crew's lives." The woman is also asking the Bugejas to name the insurance company that covered the Simshar when the tragedy occurred.

The judicial letter was also filed against the director general of the Fisheries Department, Anthony Gruppetta for failing to enforce safety standards according to the law.

Lawyer Tonio Azzopardi signed the judicial letter.