One year has passed since the fatal collision of the Handymax bulk carrier ‘Royal Arsenal’ with the diving support vessel ‘Al Misbar’, and her crew remain under detention at Umm Qasr, Iraq.
In August 2017, the Royal Arsenal collided the Al Misbar, owned and operated by the General Company Ports of Iraq (GCPI), which was transferring port employees from an offshore oil terminal at that time. The Al Misbar overturned and 21 people died as a result. After the accident, the Royal Arsenal returned to Umm Qasr port in order to be investigated, where she has been stuck onboard since that time along with 22 crew members.
Questions have been raised about the qualifications of the deck crew navigating the Al Misbar and the adequacy of life saving equipment for the number of passengers onboard. It has been reported that the reinsurers of the Al Misbar have declined to pay the total loss claim due to the unseaworthiness of the vessel, and the GCPI have paid compensation to the families of the deceased, according to MTI Network.
Despite repeated efforts to work with the Courts, the GCPI and the families of the deceased crewmen to resolve this matter, very little progress has been achieved, and the vessel remains at Umm Qasr. No quantified claims have been filed at Court, even 12 months after the incident, so it has not been possible for security for the claims to be provided to enable the ship and crew to leave.
Roy Khoury, Managing Director of the vessel’s managers, Blue Fleet Group, said that, despite new obstacles are constantly created against the resolution of the case, the company will continue to support the crew ‘by fully settling their wages and entitlements, by offering professional support, and by making sure that the vessel is supplied with provisions and with power.’
This is perhaps a vivid demonstration of why Iraq, a country of such promise and potential, maintains such a low ranking in the Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index, and might indeed serve as a warning to other companies in their trading relations with and within the Iraq.
To date, the owners have incurred expenses in excess of US$1.8 million, and lost a year’s income, he added.
As a result, Owners have been in close contact with the St Vincent and Grenadines Flag Administration who referred the case to their Attorney General. He has recently confirmed the support of the St Vincent and Grenadines Government in bringing proceedings against the State of Iraq before ITLOS (International Tribunal Law of the Sea) in Hamburg due to the prolonged detention of the vessel and the apparent absence of an effective and responsive judicial system. Clearly, the GCPI view the application of the rule of law as an optional extra – Owners do not.
