Death of Diane Brimble

[ethics]

A coroner's inquest into the 2002 death of Dianne Brimble on board the P&O liner Pacific Sky has shocked Australia with its graphic descriptions of her treatment by a group of men she met on board.


The inquest has heard that Brimble, 42, died of an overdose of gamma hydroxybutyrate, a "date rape" drug also known as fantasy, mixed with a high blood alcohol level.


I've never been on a cruise like this so I don't know how lax (or not) the security is. But, at first appearance, and looking at the statistics, it doesn't seem like this is an epidemic or something?

How is this being played out in Aussie land?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060713/lf_nm/crime_australia_cruise_dc;_ylt=Alfphmzf6KdF7wNfVv8ygtoDW7oF; _ylu=X3oDMTBhZDhxNDFzBHNlYwNtZW5ld3M-

[Advocat]

People are starting to speak up and be recognized on this issue. Jurisdiction for crimes committed on the high seas / cruise ships is a murky question; depending on which international treaties you look at, which the flag the ship is sailing under, the nationality of the actual owners, which ports the ship calls home or just calls at during the trip, the nationality of the cruise ship staff and crew, and the nationality of the victims... well, just about everyone, or no one, is legally responsible for enforcement of laws and investigation of the crime. Depends on your point of view and the quality of your lawyers.

This ignores the standard the liability waivers which you agree to when you buy a ticket, and when you add in the lack of effective investigative staff on-board ship, and the fact the cruise lines don't want bad press, so their either 1) ignore the whole situation and pretend it never happened, or 2) buy the victim(s) off with payment and a secrecy contract... well, things are pretty much a mess.

[ethics]

What would be a viable solution? One size fits all no matter what ship, nationality, country, etc..?

[Advocat]

What would be a viable solution? One size fits all no matter what ship, nationality, country, etc..?

Best, but not likely, since this would require an international treaty with every nation ceeding treatment of it's citizens to somebody else's set of laws.

A number of countries are trying to pass legislation which requires the ship to operate under the laws of the country where it has it's home port... but that's not have much success either... can you say "lobbying"? :shake:

[ditch]

This story has generated some anger and disgust, there's no doubt. In this particular case, the death is being investigated as a crime committed under Australian laws. I do not know the ins and outs of why it is classified as such. The ship docked at Vanuatu I believe when the crime was first reported, and it was there that Oz investigators went on board to start their inquiries.

It was this P&O ad campaign I posted about in the link below, that stirred up more emotion and caused P&O to apologise for it's poor taste and judement.

http://www.globalaffairs.org/forum/showthread.php?t=45308