Page 18 - Issue-30-En

ELITE Vol.1, Issue 30, April 2021 Happy

Ramadan
"Weather conditions were not the primary cause of the ship's Also, CNN's senior international correspondent Ben
grounding," Rabie said. "There may have been technological Wedeman said on Thursday, March 25, that "the scale
or human mistakes." The Panamanian container ship was of shipping has become so huge that it's very difficult
preceded by twelve ships, as it crossed on the same day, for the Egyptian authorities to, essentially, keep up
from the northern convoy 30 ships, meaning that the massive with the development." "In the last 50 years, the width
flow of cargo was not stopped due to the blowing of winds of the Suez Canal has practically doubled, and
and dust. In addition, the guides working in the Suez Canal obviously it is still not wide enough." If the industry
Authority succeeded in crossing thousands of ships with the does not adjust, he assumes the accident would be a
same size as this ship, and larger than them, through the wasted opportunity. ,
canal in very bad conditions. Also, there are many questions It's worth noting that this isn't the first time the canal,
about the route of the container and why it turned around which first opened in 1869, has been closed. It was
before entering the canal. Moreover, the maximum speed in closed before at tripartite aggression against Egypt in
the Canal is 8.6 knots while the ship was on 13 knots speed. 1956 when 48 ships and sea vessels sank inside it, and
Even so, due to the complicated ownership structures of it was reopened in 1957. The Canal stopped again for 8
global shipping, it is difficult to keep someone responsible. years at June setback, until June 4, 1975, a period in
The Ever Given is operated by Taiwan-based shipping which the world suffered heavy losses due to its
company Evergreen Maritime, as previously mentioned. closure, forcing ships to resort to the Cape of Good
Evergreen charters the ship from a Japanese firm; a Dubai- Hope Road and passing around Africa until the late
based company serves as the ship's port agent; and the ship President Anwar Sadat inaugurated after the signing of
sails under the Panamanian flag. Then, there is the issue of the second disengagement agreement between Egypt
who would pay the bill? The principle governing such and Israel. But now, since trade between Europe and
situations is the flag it flies, not the ship's owners or Asia has expanded significantly in the decades since
operators. However, Panama's flag is regarded as a "flag of the last two shutdowns, this closure has a much larger
choice" Flags of convenience, also known as open registries, and more destructive effect.
which have less stringent labor and environmental The Internet is enjoying the moment
legislation, as well as lower protection and insurance Although it's a very serious situation that has resulted
thresholds. Last summer, the Wakashio, a Japanese-owned in a major vessel traffic jam on the Egyptian waterway
ship with a Panamanian flag, ran aground in Mauritius, and has attracted international attention. But that didn't
pouring oil into the island's delicate marine environment, prevent people from sharing jokes, videos, and other
and no one was in charge. The fragmentation of ownership content about the crisis on social media. The pioneers
and activity through various legal jurisdictions and national of social media circulated funny solutions to floating
borders often makes assigning blame for incidents far more the ship in the Suez Canal. Others shared many memes
difficult. about the "Meme" dredge stand next to the ship. In
Exploiting the Crisis: Other Ways of Global Trade? addition, CNN built a simplified, unscientific
For the time being, the stoppage's knock-on impact is an simulation intended solely for illustrative purposes for
accumulation of insurance premiums and late fees, as well as people to try to move ships through the canal.
delays in freight delivery. However, in the long run, the
blockage of the Canal, coupled with the consequences of the
pandemic, could force a rethinking of how maritime
transport works. Indeed, A lot of voices are now talking
about the Egyptian canal's inability to handle this scale of
global trade, adding to the situation's complexity and
severity.
Maersk spokesperson said to Bloomberg, the world's largest
container shipping group, “Vessels larger than this one
would be passing through the Suez Canal” “The next event
is going to be much worse.”

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