Friday, May 1, 2009
© Copyright 2013
Gwinnett Daily Post
WASHINGTON - The planet's shipping fleet should be protected from deadly pirates by arming senior crew members, or not - depending on who was speaking Thursday to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee: Maersk Alabama Capt. Richard Phillips or his boss, Maersk Inc. Chairman John P. Clancey.
'It would be my personal preference that a limited number of crew aboard the vessel have access to effective weaponry,' Phillips told the panel, his wife and a crew member seated behind him. But doing that could expose sailors to a tactical escalation in violence - and, Clancey said later, the corporation to liability. The captain and corporate chief - shoulder-to-shoulder yet somewhat at odds - illustrated the knotty problem Congress, the shipping industry and foreign governments face as they consider how to crack down on a worrying spike in piracy and its threat to billions of dollars in cargo, military equipment and humanitarian aid.More like this story
- US captain freed; Somali pirates vow to retaliate ( April 13, 2009 )
- World Briefs ( April 12, 2009 )
- Nation briefs ( April 16, 2009 )
- NATO frees 20 hostages<br/> Somali pirates seize Belgian ship ( April 19, 2009 )
- NATION: Girl found dead, brother burned ( February 16, 2011 )
Comments
Use the comment form below to begin a discussion about this content.
Sign in to comment
Or login with:
OpenID