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UK cruise ship captain may face charges in Indonesia
Sunday, 17 Mar, 2017
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The crew of a UK-based expedition cruise ship which damaged a world renowned coral reef could face criminal action.
The Caledonia Sky accidentally ran aground on the reef allegedly causing extensive damage to the coral over an area measuring several thousand square metres.
"The destruction of Raja Ampat coral reefs, which were developed by nature for hundreds of years, was done in less than one day by Caledonian Sky and its captain," said Djoko Hartoyo, spokesman from Indonesia’s Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs.
"It is simply impossible to restore that part of Raja Ampat. Fish that were normally seen in that particular area were all gone."
Indonesia’s foreign ministry spokesman Arrmanatha Nasir said: "This will not be tolerated. The government is very concerned and very worried about this incident and certainly all steps will be taken to ensure accountability."
Officials are reportedly seeking the extradition of the ship’s captain and the British Ambassador in Jakarta was summoned to meet government officials.
The line has promised to pay for damage to a ‘pristine’ coral reef caused when one of its ships ran aground.
In a statement ealier this week Noble Caledonia said it was working with local experts in Indonesia to assist with the regeneration of the reef.
Locals say it has also potentially damaged their tourism industry, which is almost entirely dependent on divers visiting to explore the reefs of Raja Ampat which are among the very best in the world.
"We value our relationships around the world with local people and we are sorry to have impacted the local community," said the cruise company.
"To this end Noble Caledonia has established a fund with the aim of helping the local population and contributing to the repair of the reef. We would like to send our own expedition teams to help with the regeneration.
"Separately, we are fully insured and our insurers are currently working in conjunction with the Indonesian Government and a local reef assessment expert. Together we shall work towards a fair and realistic settlement."
The ship was caught in low tide, despite being equipped with GPS and radar instruments. Initial attempts to refloat her using a tug, as suggested by the Indonesia Search & Rescue Authority, failed, and she eventually refloated herself on the high tide several hours later.
"As a company we are very upset that this incident has led to the damage to this reef," added Noble Caledonia.
"We are one of the leading expedition cruise companies which specialises in expedition tours to remote locations such as this, in addition to which we take protection of the environment very seriously indeed. The master on duty at the time is one of the world’s leading expedition captains. He has many years’ experience of working on such operations.
"We immediately recognised that our actions caused this incident. We now need to establish precisely how we can assist local operators and authorities to finance and work towards a regeneration of this vital reef."
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Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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