By Majorca Daily Bulletin reporter
Associations which comprise the platform against mega-cruise ships have sent a letter to the president (speaker) of the Balearic parliament, Vicenç Thomas, and called for measures to be adopted because of the "imminent" arrival of cruise ships in Palma. Considering the ships to pose a potential health risk, the platform insists that decisions regarding a reactivation of cruise tourism should be taken by the Balearic parliament and government and not by the Balearic Ports Authority (APB) and "multinational cruise companies".
The concerns are based on the nature of cruise shipping, which make it difficult to trace and isolate positive coronavirus cases. This is why there is a potential danger for ports where ships stop over and for passengers and crews. "Our concern increases when we observe the pressures to accelerate economic recovery with the motivation of creating jobs, while ignoring the risks of Covid-19 outbreaks as well as the environmental and social impacts."
The platform has requested a meeting with the spokespeople of parliamentary parties. It wants parliament to "unanimously" ask the APB to make public the health measures that it will be taking and its contingency plan in the event that anyone on board a ship is positive for coronavirus. It is also seeking a capacity limit for mega-cruise ships which arrive in Palma, as now - more than ever - there will be dangers from masses of passengers going into the city.
As things stand, leading cruise lines have suspended all operations. The duration of this suspension ranges from end-June to end-July.
June 2, 2020 at 03:58PM
via Majorca Daily Bulletin News Feed read more...
0 Comentarios