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Kerry Proposes Cruise-Ship Safety Bill

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By KIMI YOSHINO

Los Angeles Times

Published: June 28, 2008

Cruise ships would be required to install peep holes in cabin doors, increase guard-rail heights and maintain crime report logbooks under legislation introduced Thursday by Sen. John Kerry.

The Senate bill, designed to hold the $35.7 billion industry more accountable, mirrors legislation introduced in the House by Rep. Doris Matsui, D-Calif., and comes days after Kerry, D-Mass., chaired a Senate subcommittee hearing examining cruise-ship safety.

"Murky legal jurisdictions in international waters are no longer an excuse for failing to report serious crimes so that they may be effectively prosecuted," Kerry said Thursday. "If U.S. passengers are at risk, then U.S. law should hold the industry accountable for their safety."

For years, victims of crime and their relatives have alleged that cruise lines skirt U.S. regulations by hiring foreign crews and registering ships in foreign countries. Cruise ships are not required under U.S. law to report crimes that occur outside U.S. territorial waters, Kerry said, although it remains a matter of debate what crimes are required to be reported and to which agency.

A number of high-profile incidents - and increasingly vocal advocates for victims - have prompted lawmakers to hold several congressional hearings. A spokeswoman for the Cruise Lines International Association said it was looking forward to working with lawmakers.

The industry has maintained that no additional oversight is needed because there is no proof that crime is a serious problem aboard ships. Mundi Travel, based in San Jose, Calif., said: "The premise that cruises are unsafe is just not true or we wouldn't be selling cruises."

Under a voluntary reporting agreement among the FBI, the Coast Guard and cruise lines, 489 serious incidents aboard cruise ships were reported from April 1, 2007, to April 30, 2008, including one suspicious death, eight missing people and 83 sexual assaults.

The Senate committee requested a breakdown by cruise lines, the number of crimes investigated and how many led to prosecution, but the FBI has not provided that information. The legislation introduced by Kerry and Matsui would require cruise lines to train crew members in crime scene investigation and keep sexual assault evidence collection kits on board.

"The inaction of the cruise industry and its unwillingness to take common-sense steps to protect its passengers is what warrants major legislation," Matsui said.

Royal Caribbean, for one, said it is making changes. The cruise line, which faced scrutiny after a honeymooner went missing in 2005, said it plans to have peep holes on all its doors by the end of the year.

Ken Carver, president and founder of International Cruise Victims, said his organization would continue pressuring the industry until it addresses all the group's concerns.

"Will we win this year? I don't know," Carver said, "but at least we're giving them heartburn."

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