The boat tragedy that occurred in the seas off the Kalutara coast last Sunday draws attention to a number of aspects of public safety at sea. At a time when the country’s tourism industry is beginning to exploit the potentials of our coasts and seas, the tragedy must be seen as a powerful warning to get our acts together even as we seek to reap the benefits.
Judicial proceedings are under way to ascertain the exact causes of death and injury and to pinpoint human culpability. But, various dimensions of what happened in our normally beautiful coastal waters off the Katukurunda beach point to different aspects of human safety.
The cause of the tragedy was the capsizing of the small multi-day fishing boat which was carrying over 40 pilgrims. The seas at the time were calm with little or no waves. Most indications are that the immediate cause of capsizing of the boat was the craft’s top heavy state with far too many passengers on board.
In fact, in the immediate aftermath of the tragedy, one pilgrim related to news media how he made his family disembark from the boat because he felt that there were already too many people on board. His sensibility may have saved his life and of his loved ones, but, clearly no sense had impacted on the minds of the unfortunate other passengers and boat crew.
The over-crowding of the boat points to the need for stricter regulations on the use of such craft for various purposes. The government’s enforcement of current laws to ban the use of fishing craft for passenger ferrying may be seen only as an intermediate measure. After all, even in countries where regular ferry services are a major local industry, capsizing or sinking due to overcrowding is common.
Much of our coastal communities yet lack the resources to allow for the development of dedicated coastal passenger ferry services that can then cater to seasonal needs like the transport of pilgrims by sea or annual boat processions for religious festivals. It may be inevitable that the lack of passenger boats may compel people to use fishing boats for the occasional pilgrimage.
In these circumstances, what is required is the applying of strict rules on passenger limits and the enforcement of such rules without favour. In addition to strict limits to numbers, on board accommodation design, passenger comfort and, safety inside the vessel also needs to be regulated and standardised. This should include the compulsory provision of life jackets to all passengers.
There are other aspects that need to be addressed with regard to public safety at sea. Boat crews need to have minimum swimming skills and life saving skills as part of their competence to operate such small scale ferry services. The sea worthiness of such vessels should be regulated. Furthermore, the sea-going range of such small vessels should be strictly regulated.
Today, with tourism, both domestic and foreign, booming, all these standards and facilities need to be introduced without delay.
Appointment of a High Court Judge
A minor furore broke out last week over the appointment of a lawyer to a provincial High Court with wild charges of constitutional violation, political favours and ethnic bias being flung hither and thither.
The judge concerned had been a practising lawyer at the unofficial bar in one of the country’s most prominent judicial areas of Batticaloa.
Sober examination of the issue throws a reassuring light on the facts and circumstances.
Such appointment of lawyers to the judicial bench is not uncommon and has occurred in many parts of the world where democratic judicial systems function. It has happened before in Sri Lanka too.
A recent similar appointment in this country was made during the tenure of Chief Justice Sarath Silva. In this case, too, the rationale was to redress the paucity of Tamils on the bench.
After decades of disruptive war and ethnic conflict, there has been the inevitable decline of minority professionals holding office in many institutions. At this time of reconciliation, the redressing of such imbalances is a matter of priority.
What is critical is the observation of proper procedure in such appointments. In the appointment in question, even as the relevant professional bodies themselves have recognised, all such procedure and formalities have been observed.
The competence of the individual is recognised. The President, in making the appointment has consulted with all requisite officers and obtained their concurrence.
The only criticism seems to be emanating from political sources and these sources are well known for their penchant to raising inter-ethnic suspicions unscrupulously and solely for their own political advantage. It is noteworthy that during the tenure of some of these politicos there were many such appointments to officialdom of people with no competence whatsoever. And, the citizenry well remembers the flagrant violation of procedure and protocol in the making of these appointments.