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Platform News – ‘With Bare Hands’: an immersive journey into the problems of shipbreaking

Posted on January 25, 2017January 10, 2019 by admin_ec

International media outlets publish 'With bare hands', the first multimedia and data-driven reporting project that documents the negative impacts on the environment and the human costs of shipbreaking in South Asia. Spanish daily newspaper El Pais and international news channel Al Jazeera are the first to make this reporting available.

Isacco Chiaf, graphic designer, and Tomaso Clavarino, journalist and photographer, are behind this outstanding project, which was funded by the European Journalism Centre. The two Italians travelled to Bangladesh and India, where dirty and dangerous scrapping is conducted on the tidal beaches of Chittagong and Alang. With texts, infographics, videos, photo-essays, interviews and maps, they have been able to show how shipbreaking activities are contributing to the destruction of the ecosystem and negatively affecting the lives of thousands of people.

"What impressed me the most during the days spent in Bangladesh and India, besides the extremely inhuman working conditions and evident pollution, was the difficulty to access this industry. Armed guards were securing the entry to the yards and our every move was tracked. The local police is clearly enmeshed with the ship breakers that don’t want their business practices revealed. That journalists and photographers are not welcome was clearly communicated. We still managed to penetrate this extremely closed industry – and the devastating stories we documented cannot be ignored."

Tomaso Clavarino - Journalist and Photographer

The multimedia platform highlights the issues of child labour, environmental pollution and lack of healthy and safe working and living conditions. Maps and graphs, based on the NGO Shipbreaking Platform’s data, focus on the practices of the shipping industry such as the use of flags of convenience and cases of illegal trafficking. Interviews with Patrizia Heidegger, the Platform’s executive director, and Muhammed Ali (Shahin), the Platform’s coordinator in Bangladesh, are also featured.

Platform publishes South Asia Quarterly Update #11

Posted on November 17, 2016January 14, 2022 by admin_ec

The NGO Shipbreaking Platform publishes today the eleventh South Asia Quarterly Update, a briefing paper in which it informs about the shipbreaking industry in Bangladesh, India and Pakistan. Providing an overview of vessels broken on the beaches of South Asia, accidents, recent on-the-ground, legislative and political developments including our activities in South Asia we aim to inform the public about the negative impacts of substandard shipbreaking practices as well as positive steps aimed at the realisation of environmental justice and the protection of workers’ rights.

In this edition you will find out more about the catastrophic explosion that occurred in Pakistan in November and other tragic accidents in both the Bangladeshi and Indian ship breaking yards, our follow up of the North Sea Producer case as well as the ongoing investigations on the Pakistani blast. Last but not least, watch the video featuring our South Asian members who were interviewed in June by the European Economic and Social Committee.

Platform publishes South Asia Quarterly Update #10

Posted on August 10, 2016January 14, 2022 by admin_ec

The NGO Shipbreaking Platform publishes today the tenth South Asia Quarterly Update, a briefing paper in which it informs about the shipbreaking industry in Bangladesh, India and Pakistan. Providing an overview of vessels broken on the beaches of South Asia, accidents, recent on-the-ground, legislative and political developments including our activities in South Asia we aim to inform the public about the negative impacts of substandard shipbreaking practices as well as positive steps aimed at the realisation of environmental justice and the protection of workers’ rights.

In this edition you will find out more about a dramatic surge of fatal accidents in the Bangladesh shipbreaking yards in May-June and the case study of young worker Mominul who was crippled while breaking European ships, our follow up of the Kabir Steel case with businesses in the yard's value chain as well as the UN Special Rapporteur's critique of German shipbreaking practices in substandard beaching yards. Last but not least, read our reaction to ECSA's so-called fact-finding report on their visit to the Alang shipbreaking yards.

Platform News – NGO Shipbreaking Platform presents Annual Report 2015

Posted on May 31, 2016January 14, 2022 by admin_ec

The NGO Shipbreaking Platform presents its Annual Report 2015.

Check the new Annual Report to find out more about:

- our findings about global shipbreaking practices in 2015, including an overview of developments on the ground and statistics on the total number of ships dismantled in 2015;

- our activities and campaigns in 2015, including our policy campaign aimed at creating a legal framework that ensures the growth of clean and safe ship recycling globally; our corporate campaign calling upon ship owners, cargo owners, ship financers and recyclers to commit to sustainable ship recycling; and our work in the shipbreaking countries where there is a need for strengthened regulation and implementation of existing legislation to protect the workers and the environment;

- our wide outreach in the press and on social media;

- latest organisational developments.

Platform publishes South Asia Quarterly Update #9

Posted on April 27, 2016August 23, 2018 by admin_ec

The NGO Shipbreaking Platform publishes today the ninth South Asia Quarterly Update, a briefing paper in which it informs about the shipbreaking industry in Bangladesh, India and Pakistan. Providing an overview of vessels broken on the beaches of South Asia, accidents, recent on-the-ground, legislative and political developments including our activities in South Asia, we aim to inform the public about the negative impacts of substandard shipbreaking practices as well as positive steps aimed at the realisation of environmental justice and the protection of workers’ rights.

In this edition you will find out more about several accidents in the shipbreaking yards in Bangladesh and a revived High Court order, the effects of the European Union standard for sustainable ship recycling, and the story of the illegal export of the Horizon Trader. In the first quarter of 2016, 239 large commercial vessels were sold for breaking, 189 of these were beached in South Asia. So far this year at least seven workers have lost their lives at the shipbreaking yards in Bangladesh.

Press Release – NGO publishes 2015 list of all ships dismantled worldwide

Posted on February 4, 2016January 18, 2022 by admin_ec

Ignoring industry leaders and human rights and environmental organisations, ship owners continue to profit from dangerous and dirty shipbreaking practices on South Asian beaches in 2015, according to new data released today by the NGO Shipbreaking Platform. 768 large ocean-going vessels were sold to the scrap yards last year. 469 were broken on the beaches of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh where shipbreaking yards do not provide fundamental labour rights, ignore international waste trade law, and fail to respect international environmental protection standards.

One of many accidents that killed or maimed shipbreaking workers last year was a major gas explosion at Shitol Enterprise, a shipbreaking yard in Bangladesh. A gas cylinder burst killed four workers immediately and severely injured another four. The vessel they were breaking was sold to Shitol Enterprise by the Greek shipping company Universal Ship Management Corporation, and sailed under the flag of St. Kitts and Nevis, a typical low-cost, end-of-life flag of convenience. Greek owners by far outstripped ship owners of other nationalities by having sold the most end-of-life vessels to dirty and dangerous shipbreaking sites in South Asia, and for the first time in many years, Bangladesh was the world’s number one destination for scrap ships.

DUMPERS 2015 - examples of particularly bad practices

The worst dumper prize goes to IDAN OFER, son of shipping magnate Sammy Ofer. Idan Ofer owns QUANTUM PACIFIC GROUP and has a controlling stake in Israel's largest publicly traded company, ISRAEL CORPORATION. Combined, these shipping companies sold the highest number of vessels for substandard breaking operations in 2015: nine in total, with six of them going to Bangladesh, where conditions are known to be worst.

GREEK SHIP OWNERS sold the most ships to South Asian shipbreaking yards in 2015, with 87 ships in total. Since the NGO Shipbreaking Platform started to compile data on world-wide ship dismantling practices in 2009, Greek shipping companies have unceasingly topped the list of owners that opt for dirty and dangerous shipbreaking. Backed by the Greek government, they continue to refuse liability for the damage done to workers and the environment in South Asia.

Despite being part of several sustainable shipping initiatives and boosting environmentally friendly technologies on-board operational ships, well-known South Korean shipping companies such as HYUNDAI and HANJIN; Taiwanese container giant EVERGREEN; and Japanese companies including MOL, K-LINE and the TOYOTA owned TOYOFUJI sold vessels for breaking in Bangladesh in clear contradiction of their own company values and standards. SOUTH KOREAN SHIP OWNERS sold 27 ships exclusively to South Asia, mostly to Bangladesh. Also JAPANESE SHIP OWNERS sold exclusively to South Asia, many to Bangladesh.

German shipping company NORDDEUTSCHE VERMÖGEN sold three vessels to the beaches of India and Bangladesh – the Northern Glance, the Northern Diversity and the Northern Vitality. The latter had been arrested in the port of Wilhelmshaven in Germany in 2012 to prevent an imminent illegal export to India. Despite awareness of the poor conditions at the South Asian shipbreaking yards NORDDEUTSCHE VERMÖGEN did not care about their vessels hitting the beaches, one of which went to Bangladesh - no lesson learnt. See our latest blog-post on the case here.

Polish government-owned POLSTEAM sold ships to Bangladesh and Pakistan – and refused to take responsibility for their own actions following an alert sent by the NGO Shipbreaking Platform. Worse, the Polish government has likewise not acted.

"Despite a lot of international attention on the problems of shipbreaking on the beaches of South Asia, the statistics for 2015 show that the vast majority of ship owners have not changed their practice for the better. On the contrary, most have opted for one of the worst shipbreaking destination in the world – Bangladesh, where children are still illegally exploited to break ships manually on tidal mudflats. [1] "

Patrizia Heidegger - Executive Director - NGO Shipbreaking Platform

Ship owners sell their vessels to South Asian yards via cash-buyers, companies that specialise in the trade of end-of-life tonnage. Cash-buyers promise ship owners not only the highest price, but also to rid them of their responsibility to properly deal with the end-of-life management of their ships. [2] Ships contain large amounts of toxic materials such as oil sludge, asbestos and paints laden with heavy metals and would yield less profit at end-of-life if sold to a recycling facility that firmly follows environmental and occupational health and safety standards.

One sign of hope, is a group of leading ship owners that have vowed to take responsibility for clean and safe end-of-life management and demonstrate that alternatives are available. The European Union is also expected to publish a list of approved ship recycling facilities worldwide by the end of 2016. This will satisfy the call from those that demand better practices, including investors such as ABN-Amro and cargo owners such as H&M, Stora Enso and Phillips – none of whom wish to be associated with polluting and harmful end-of-life management of old ships. While, only vessels sailing under an EU flag will be legally obliged to use an EU approved recycling facility, any ship owner can nevertheless opt for an EU approved facility for its non-EU flagged ships on a voluntary basis. The NGO Shipbreaking Platform therefore demands that shipping companies and their investors only allow their vessels to go to yards listed on the EU list. Moreover, governments of the world’s leading maritime nations, such as Greece and Germany, must likewise take steps to ensure national use of the EU list. Introducing a financial incentive based on the polluter pays principle would go a far way in pushing irresponsible ship owners towards sustainable ship recycling. [3]

For detailed figures and analysis on ships dismantled in 2015, click here.
For background information on global ship dismantling practices, click here.

NOTES

[1] Last year, in Bangladesh alone, 16 workers lost their lives in explosions, by falling from heights or by being crushed by falling steel plates. At least 22 workers were seriously injured, and some of them are still awaiting proper medical treatment. Many more workers became ill from inhaling asbestos fibres and toxic fumes such as those released when cutting the ships with blow torches. According to the ILO and leading trade unions, shipbreaking on the beaches of South Asia is one of the most dangerous jobs in the world. Pakistani shipbreaking yards in Gadani also lack proper infrastructure and facilities to protect workers or to properly manage the hazardous wastes found on-board ships. Despite reported improvements in four Indian yards that have received a Statement of Compliance with the requirements of the International Maritime Organisation’s Hong Kong Convention from Japanese classification society ClassNK, concerns persist related to the continued operations in unprotected tidal waters; the lack of proper accommodation and medical facilities for workers; and the lack of proper downstream waste management. Six workers died in accidents at shipbreaking yards in India last year, however, the authorities do not disclose the accident record to the public. Yards in other parts of the world, are not necessarily all operating in line with standards that ensure sustainable ship recycling. While many ship recyclers will seek to have their facility listed on the EU list, only those that comply with the requirements and do not use unprotected beaches and coastal areas causing pollution of the marine environment, will be approved.

[2] Cash-buyers, such as GMS and Wirana, are responsible for almost all sales to substandard yards in South Asia. For more on the role of cash-buyers and especially their use of Flags of Convenience at end-of-life, see our report: What a difference a flag makes. Why ship owners’ responsibility to ensure sustainable ship recycling needs to go beyond flag state jurisdiction (2015).

[3] Possibilities for introducing a financial incentive for safe and clean ship recycling is being discussed at the European level. The idea is that all ships entering European waters will need to hold a ‘ship recycling licence’. Money set aside would only be paid back to the last ship owner upon proof that the ship has been recycled in a safe and environmentally friendly way.

Platform publishes South Asia Quarterly Update #8

Posted on January 21, 2016January 14, 2022 by admin_ec

The NGO Shipbreaking Platform publishes today the eighth South Asia Quarterly Update, a briefing paper in which it informs about the shipbreaking industry in Bangladesh, India and Pakistan. Providing an overview of vessels broken on the beaches of South Asia, accidents, recent on-the-ground, legislative and political developments including our activities in South Asia we aim to inform the public about the negative impacts of substandard shipbreaking practices as well as positive steps aimed at the realisation of environmental justice and the protection of workers’ rights.

In this edition you will find out about the appalling accident record of the shipbreaking yards in Bangladesh in 2015.Very unfortunately, the New Year has already seen its first fatal accident in the shipbreaking yards of Chittagong. Our Bangladeshi member organisation OSHE Foundation recently published a Bengali language documentary highlighting some of our major concerns regarding occupation health and safety in the yards. In the last quarter of 2015, 150 large commercial vessels were sold for breaking, 104 of these were beached in South Asia.

Tag: data