One billion dollars in compensation for the X-Press Pearl incident
The container ship that sank in 2021 off the coast of Sri Lanka caused one of the worst environmental disasters in the country's history. The Supreme Court ordered the company that owned it to pay compensation. The court also ruled that the authorities, including former State Minister Nalaka Godahewa, failed to take adequate measures to prevent the tragedy.
Colombo (AsiaNews) – The Supreme Court of Sri Lanka has ordered the shipping company X-Press Feeders to pay compensation of one billion US dollars for the environmental and economic damage caused by the fire on the X-Press Pearl container ship, which sank off the coast of Colombo in June 2021. The amount has to be paid to the Secretary of the Treasury.
The ruling, issued by a five-judge panel, comes in response to a series of complaints about the violation of fundamental rights filed by several parties, including Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith.
In its ruling, the Court found that the relevant authorities, including the then-responsible State Minister Nalaka Godahewa, the Attorney General, and the chairwoman of the Marine Environment Protection Authority (MEPA) also violated the fundamental rights of the people by failing to take adequate measures to prevent the disaster and, consequently, their negligence aggravated the impact of the accident.
The X-Press Pearl, which left the Indian port of Hazira on 15 May 2021 bound for Colombo, was carrying 25 tonnes of nitric acid and 1,486 containers with other chemicals and cosmetics.
After an initial stop in Hamad, Qatar, it reached the waters off the Sri Lankan capital, Colombo, on 19 May. It had not yet entered the port when, the next day, a fire on board caused the disaster.
The blaze continued for 13 days, causing one of the worst environmental disasters ever recorded in the country. On 17 June 2021, the ship sank approximately 9.5 nautical miles from the coast.
The incident caused a toxic spill into the sea, with devastating consequences for the marine ecosystem – thousands of fish, turtles, dolphins, and even whales were found dead, washed ashore.
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07/11/2022 13:36
08/06/2021 16:40
