• SC orders compensation of $ 1 billion 
• Ship authorities intentionally withheld info, violated int’l law, polluted environment 
• Environmentalists also want legal action against FR violators; Catholic Church cites impact on fishers’ livelihoods 

The relevant State institutions should properly utilise the compensation that would be awarded for the environmental and economic damage caused by the Singaporean flagged MV X-Press Pearl maritime disaster in 2021, for ocean-cleaning efforts and the welfare of affected fishermen, stated several petitioners who sought compensation through the Supreme Court (SC).

Concluding the hearing of several fundamental rights (FR) petitions filed by several parties, the SC yesterday (24) ordered the relevant shipping company to pay United States Dollars $ one billion in compensation.

When contacted by The Daily Morning, one of the petitioners, environmentalist Dr. Ajantha Perera said that the Government should now ensure that the compensation received is properly used for ocean-cleaning efforts, and that legal action is initiated against those found to have violated FR.

“The Government should take this forward now. For instance, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) should initiate the necessary legal action against the individuals and parties who have been found to have violated FR. At the same time, the relevant institutions should utilise the compensation to clean the ocean. The SC will be monitoring the progress of these efforts,” Dr. Perera pointed out.

As the Archbishop of Colombo, Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith was also among the petitioners, The Daily Morning contacted the Spokesperson for the Catholic Bishops' Conference, Father Jude Krishantha Fernando, and he said that a larger portion of the compensation should go towards the affected fishermen's welfare. "The fish harvests dropped significantly at the time, and many people were reluctant to buy fish. It severely affected the livelihoods of fishermen.  That’s why a larger portion should go towards their welfare," Fernando emphasised.

The compensation ordered by the SC is to be paid to the Secretary to the Treasury, and a special MV X-Press Pearl Compensation Commission, chaired by retired SC Judge, Justice E.A.G.R. Amarasekera will be established to oversee the process. The SC also directed the Attorney General to advise the CID to complete investigations into all relevant offences – including those under the Penal Code and laws related to marine and coastal environment protection – within three months and to consider instituting legal action where applicable.

The Court also held then-minister in charge, Dr. Nalaka Godahewa and the Marine Environment Protection Authority for violating FRs by failing to take timely action to prevent the disaster. 

SUB- HEAD - SC rules…  **on Page 02 

The non-State parties or the X-Press Pearl group is made up of 1) the registered owner of the MV X-Press Pearl vessel, namely EOS Ro Pte. Limited, 2) the bareboat charterer of the vessel, Killiney Shipping Pte. Ltd., and 3) the charterer of the vessel under a time charter, namely Sea Consortium Pte. Ltd., all being parties in Singapore, and 4) the owner and operator’s Agent in Sri Lanka – Sea Consortium Lanka (Pvt.) Ltd.

The Court made the findings that for the purpose of gaining entry to the Colombo Port, obtaining anchorage and using the berthing facility that had been issued by the said port’s harbour master, the master, owner, operators and local agent of the MV X-Press Pearl intentionally suppressed and withheld from the said Harbour Master, truthful, timely, comprehensive and accurate information regarding the situation that evolved over a period of time and prevailed at the time the vessel entered the territorial waters, and that they also violated international law with regard to the relevant reporting-related obligations, and also committed the offence of cheating by suppressing the relevant information. Further, the Court held that the handling of, responses to and the management of the situation that evolved and later prevailed on board and in the vessel by the master, owner, operators and local agent of the vessel, resulted in causing marine and coastal environmental pollution.

The SC also held that then-Minister in charge of the subject (State Minister for Urban Development, Coast Conservation, Waste Disposal and Community Cleanliness) Dr. Nalaka Godahewa, and the Marine Environment Protection Authority (MEPA) and its then-Chairperson Dr. Dharshani Lahandapura violated fundamental human rights by failing to take appropriate action to prevent the environmental catastrophe. Dr. Godahewa failed to constitute the MEPA Marine Environment Council and exercise supervisory duties while both the MEPA and Dr. Lahandapura failed to efficaciously respond to the situation and the latter failed to convene the MEPA's Board of Directors and assess the effectiveness of the measures taken in light of the worsening emergency.

The Court also held that fundamental human rights had been violated by the Attorney General (AG) as he failed to perform his statutory function of indicting the owner and the operators of the vessel for their criminal responsibility, while the decision taken by the AG to institute civil legal action against the X-Press Pearl group of companies in a Singapore court, as opposed to the High Court of Sri Lanka exercising admiralty jurisdiction, was an unreasonable, irrational and arbitrary one, not in the best interests of Sri Lanka. 

According to the SC’s judgment, the compensation is to be paid to the Secretary to the Treasury, and has to be paid in four installments of varied but specified amounts within one year.

The judgment was delivered by a five-Judge bench headed by Chief Justice Murdu Fernando PC. 

• On 20 May 2021, the MV X-Press Pearl caught fire off the coast of Colombo. The vessel was engulfed in flames by 27 May and declared a total loss. It was still afloat, and the fire was thought to be under control by Sri Lankan firefighters by the late hours of 27 May. After burning for 12 days, the vessel sank on 2 June as it was being towed away to deeper waters. The incident was deemed the worst marine ecological disaster in Sri Lankan history for the chemical products that spilled. The incident, considered one of the worst marine environmental disasters in the country’s history, led to severe coastal pollution and a major impact on the fishing industry.