Simshar survivor denies responsibility
Simon Bugeja
Simshar tragedy survivor Simon Bugeja and his wife Sharon this morning filed a judicial letter in which they “absolutely and categorically” denied the allegations and pretensions made by Fadumo Abdulle Qabobe in an official letter filed on June 9.
In her letter, Mrs Qabobe had claimed that her son Abdulrahman Abdala Gedi, 21, died in June 2008 as a result of Mr Bugeja's negligence, imprudence and lack of training in maritime safety.
In their letter, signed by lawyer Robert Abela, the Bugejas denied they were responsible for the incident which led to the sinking of the Simshar and Mr Gedi’s death in any way.
They said they were likewise victims of the tragedy in which they lost not just property but also family members and their future.
Mr Gedi died along with two other men and a boy a few days after the fishing boat, owned by Mr Bugeja, exploded and sank on the high seas on June 11, 2008.
The group survived the explosion and hung on to makeshift rafts made from debris from the wreck. Mr Gedi, who suffered extensive burns in the blast, was the first to die, followed by 33-year-old Noel Carabott, Mr Bugeja's father, 61-year-old Karmenu, and Simon Bugeja's son, 11-year-old Theo, whose body was never found.
The migrant's body was the last to be found on July 19, two days after the body of Mr Carabott was recovered. A day before, Mr Bugeja was found, barely alive, after having spent seven days at sea.
His son was with him but slipped from his hands the night before the rescue, according to what the survivor said.
The Bugejas called on Mrs Qabobe to regulate herself and avoid unnecessary expenses.
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James Portelli
Jun 20th 2010, 08:17
I am not a lawyer; but here is my penny's worth ..
Some comments are not distinguishing between criminal and civil liability. The nature of the outcome (sentencing/damages) and who initiates a case (prosecutor/plaintiff) would be different.
Since this is a plaintiff's case, then it is private between the plaintiff (i.e. the victims' relatives) and the defendants (either employer of the victim or tortfeasor causing/contributing to the victim's death). Therefore, the term ' criminal' should not be featuring in the discussions.
It is doubtful whether it is an employer's liability case. Was Gedi legally employed by the defendant? If not, one probably needs to look at the case from a 3rd party liability perspective.
Furthermore, although the victim (1) voluntarily (2) agreed to the venture it is arguable whether he had (3) full knowledge of the risks/s. Therefore, this cannot be treated as a case of Volens unless one can prove the victim's consent to the breach of Defendant's duty. Can Gedi's repeated previous engagements on Shimsar; learning from experience the conditions he was working under be construed as 'accepting' the defendant's breach of duty of care? (1) and (2) imply that the victim's negligence contributed significantly to the tort.
c.lia
Jun 19th 2010, 11:03
All category epirb's ( Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons ) use sensors to detect when the EPIRB is in the water (fresh or salt ) and automatically activate the beacon regardless of the switch position. So this means that you don't have to switch it on.
J s Borg
Jun 18th 2010, 15:52
So Mr Bugeja never knew how to press a button. Please pull/press the other one
J.Cutajar
Jun 18th 2010, 18:12
What's there to pull? http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20100609/local/simshar-tragedy-migrant-fishermans-family-files-for-damages '' the Simshar did not transmit data from its Vessel Monitoring System (VMS). It had resulted from the inquiry report that Simon Bugeja did not know how to use the emergency position indicating radio beacon. Neither did he know how to use digital selective calling and the VMS distress button. He did not know, or was not given the necessary training to know what to do in case of an emergency and what measures he had to take to save the lives of his crew.''
J.Cutajar
Jun 18th 2010, 15:19
The least the skipper could have done is inform anyone aboard his vessel that he didn't have the faintest idea of how to send the most basic distress signal.
Erin Caintar
Jun 18th 2010, 14:33
We need to get to the bottom of this. We can't just feel sorry for Simon Bugeja. If he is criminally liable then he has to be held responsible and the family of all his victims have a right to compensation. Everybody would agree if it was their family member who was killed and it was the captains fault.
Joseph Schembri
Jun 18th 2010, 14:13
Justice must be seen to be done that is why I expect relatives of every one of the thousands of Africans who died while crossing the sea on their way from Libya to Malta to follow suit....... Who should they sue however?
J. Micallef
Jun 18th 2010, 12:53
This unfortunate person not only suffered indescribable suffering now he is being prosecuted.
David Buttigieg
Jun 18th 2010, 15:06
Naturally,
If his negligence caused others 'indescribable suffering' too, then may he be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law!
C. Farrugia
Jun 18th 2010, 11:52
I am not trying to implicate anything by what I am about to write..but..something my mother said all her life comes to mind:
"Following a tragedy, or a criminal act....., it is only the dead that know the secret and the whole truth, but alas they cannot talk. The solution to the mystery.....they carry with them to the other side..."
A moment's reverence goes to the deceased.. and the families they left behind......