Eko Kvarner: Croatia Has to Learn the Lessons from Und Adriyatik Incident
Vjeran Piršić, President of the Council of Eko Kvarner association, sent an open letter to Prime Minister Ivo Sanader, regarding the incident with Turkish vessel Und Adriyatik and warning of the very real danger for Croatia not to learn several important lessons from the incident.
- Our greatest concern refers to the fact that there are attempt to push the obvious holes in the system for protection of the Adriatic under the carpet, out of the public view, says the open letter, adding that the natural inclination to avoid admitting mistakes should not be tolerated, having in mind the high stakes, the Adriatic Sea itself. - The next similar disaster may have catastrophic consequences on the environment and for all of us living on and off the sea, adds the letter, unless proper necessary measures to improve the capacity of institutions to deal with such crises are not taken. Eko Kvarner believes that the care for the Adriatic should not be left to scientists only, since they have systemically try to down-play the dangers of possible incidents involving oil tankers in the Adriatic, but should engage far greater numbers of independent experts and educated representatives of civil society who are prepared to volunteer their efforts in that area. The organization also believes that the protection of the Adriatic needs an integral approach, involving all neighbouring countries. - Therefore, we believe that this last incident demands wider debate in Croatian society. We are sure that we share the opinion of majority of citizens that the Commission for Investigation in the Incident created by Minister Kalmeta is not sufficient, concludes Eko Kvarner. The full text of the open letter, in Croatian, is available on ZaMirNet. |
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