The United Nations has taken note of Singapore’s refusal to accept a Supreme Court order to pay $1 billion in compensation for the Express Pearl maritime disaster. The organization’s Sri Lanka office has expressed its concern in a statement.
In a statement posted on the X social media platform, the UN office said the Singaporean company’s refusal to accept the ruling was “deeply concerning.”
“We call on the shipping company to review the scale of the damage to people, coastlines and marine life, and to ensure justice for communities and the ecosystem,” the statement said.
The UN statement comes in response to comments made by X-Press Feeders CEO Shmuel Yoskowitz about the court ruling.
He told AFP that if his company complies with the ruling, it could have serious consequences for global shipping and set a “dangerous precedent.”
“We will not pay, because the entire basis of maritime trade is based on the limitation of liability. This ruling undermines the limitation of liability,” Yoskowitz said, rejecting the penalty.
The Singapore-flagged X-Press Pearl caught fire and sank off the west coast of Sri Lanka in May 2021, causing the country’s worst marine pollution disaster.