Accidents reveal failures
Greece’s shipping industry is doing well beyond national borders. Its success is due to the high level of professionalism and the sector’s respect for the rules set by international organizations. At home, however, that same shipping industry follows the overall trend of Greek entrepreneurship: Professionalism is lacking, rules are not kept to and no one makes sure laws and regulations are monitored and enforced. This is confirmed by the repeated shipping accidents, more recently by the fatal cargo ship explosion off the Perama docks on Thursday. The lack of professionalism and the absence of respect for safety regulations has resulted in the tragic deaths of eight dockworkers. This is only one of the many accidents to have occurred on that specific dock, a fact that unavoidably raises many questions. Last year, two workers died in a ship explosion and ensuing fire at the same site. If some people do not want to enforce the law and common sense, is there anyone else out there to implement it?
