Opinion: Red Sea safety

The People’s Assembly’s Transport Committee recently opened the controversial file on ferries working the Red Sea routes.

The committee warns that around half of these ferries are not fit to operate, posing a serious threat to passengers travelling between Egyptian and Saudi ports.

This situation could lead to another scandal like that of the sinking of the Es-Salam ferry in 1996, claiming more than 1,000 lives.

The parliamentarians have discovered irregularities in the licensing and operating of these ferries, some of which have been working for more than 30 years.

They were shocked to discover that, legally, there is no upper age limit for the operation of these ferries.

The licences issued for these ferries mainly depend on the inspections and maintenance carried out by the Navigation Safety Authority.

Apparently any corrupt employee in this authority could give the green light for a ferry to operate, even if it didn’t meet with the recognised safety standards.

This happened under the Mubarak regime, allowing a corrupt businessman, Mamdouh Ismail, to dominate the Red Sea routes, helped by the immunity he acquired when he was appointed to the Shura Council (Upper House of Parliament).

When the Es-Salam ferry sank, Ismail, its owner, fled to England, where he still lives, despite receiving a prison sentence in absentia.

After this tragedy, old ferries were supposed never to operate again. But many such ferries still operate between Egypt and Saudi Arabia, raising flags of certain foreign countries, to get round the Egyptian regulations.

Regardless of the flag, the Egyptian authorities should ensure the high standards of every ferry to using its ports, so as to guarantee the safety of passengers.

Parliament has done well to raise this issue before another disaster happens.

However, now might be the right time to revive the project for building a bridge between Egypt’s Sinai and Saudi Arabia, making travel between the two countries simpler and safer.

This project would also, surely, boost trade and tourism between Egypt and all the Arab Gulf states.