While controversy rages in Europe over the now infamous
"ghost
ships", Britain and other European countries are quietly
transporting
their waste ships to developing countries - in breach of the
Basel
Convention (1)
The Greenpeace flagship Rainbow Warrior has tracked the
end-of-life
vessel GENOVA BRIDGE to Alang, India - the world's largest ship
breaking
yard. Greenpeace demands that the British owner and the
British
authorities ensure that the toxic materials onboard of this ship
will be
removed safely and taken back to England for final disposal.
Greenpeace
has informed the Minister of Environment and Forests of India,
of this
gross violation of International conventions and Indian
legislation by a
UK shipping company.
"This is a classic case of double standards. While the UK
authorities
don't want US waste in their backyard, they are happy to
illegally dump
their own elsewhere - failing to ensure safe removal of toxic
substances
and safe conditions for the workers in the developing world. We
demand
that the UK government apply the same international rules to
their
illegal export of toxic ships to India, as they apply to the
illegal
import of the Ghostfleet to the UK." said Ramapati Kumar,
Ship-breaking
campaigner onboard Rainbow Warrior at Alang. (2)
The international community has recognised that the
environmental
pollution from shipbreaking is a serious concern but fails to
address
the issue seriously. End-of-life-ships are waste and this means
that
their export is regulated under the Basel Convention. The
international
maritime authorities do not accept the notion that
end-of-life-ships are
waste.
The IMO is not only failing to protect the environment and poor
workers
in ship breaking yards, but it is also trying to expel
Greenpeace from
the organisation (3).
"The inability of the IMO to address this issue conclusively is
no
longer acceptable. When the IMO's General Assembly meets later
this
month, it needs to conclude that the illegal export of toxic
end-of-life-ships will be stopped. Any other conclusion will
show the
inability of the IMO to deal with current marine and
environmental
issues. It should also reverse its decision to expel Greenpeace,
failure
to do so will be a clear demonstration that the organisation is
more
interested in listening to the vested interests of the shipping
industry
rather than the voice which is trying to ensure the protection
of the
environment and human lives." said Paul Horsman of Greenpeace
International.
The Rainbow Warrior is in India on a Corporate Accountability
tour, in a
bid to expose corporations that are committing crime against
nature and
humanity. The first phase of the tour is focused on the on
Ship-breaking
at Alang, Gujarat.
(1)The Basel Convention - The Open Ended Working Group of
the
Basel Convention concluded at its recent meeting that: a ship
may become
waste, in accordance with article 2 of the Basel Convention, and
that at the
same time it may be defined as a ship under other international
rules.
(2) 17665 dwt ro/ro sailing under St. Vincent & Grenadines
flag, owned
by V. Ships Commercial, London. A total of eleven ships has been
sold by
UK ship owners for scrap in Asia during 2003. Read more on
www.greenpeace.org
(3) Greenpeace has had observer status at the IMO since 1991. At
its
recent council meeting in June, the IMO decided to expel
Greenpeace
following complaints from some member states against
protests
activities. The final decision on Greenpeace's status will be
decided at
the forthcoming IMO Assembly.
Contacts:
Ramapati Kumar + 91 98 455 35 414 or +91 98 455 35 419 onboard
the Rainbow
Warrior in Alang, India
Marietta Harjono: +31 615007411 or +31 625031005
Paul Horsman, Greenpeace campaigner +44 780 12 12 990
Erika Augustinsson, Media officer +31 625 031 001
For video +31629001135, For stills +31 653819121