Senegal remembers ferry disaster
The people of Senegal have been marking the first anniversary of one of the
world's worst maritime disasters.

More than 1,800 people perished when a passenger ferry capsized in heavy
seas during a voyage from the province of Casamance to the capital, Dakar,
last September.

Religious services and civic events are being held to mark the anniversary
in the capital, Dakar, and Ziguinchor, the main city in Casamance, from
which the Joola ferry began its final journey.

The ferry was carrying nearly four times as many people as it should have
been when it went down off the Gambian coast.

An investigating commission subsequently called for better supervision and
improved safety measures.

Prayers

Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade is expected to attend a ceremony in
Ziguinchor, where multi-denominational prayer services are to be held.


He will lead relatives in throwing flowers into the sea for the dead,
before going on to a cemetery, where some victims were laid to rest.

Prime Minister Idrissa Seck will attend a ceremony at Mbao cemetery, near
Dakar, where some 100 victims of the tragedy are buried.

Senegalese Interior Minister Macky Sall is attending a ceremony near the
border with the Gambia where the bodies of some Joola victims were buried
after being picked up from the Gambian beaches.


Compensation

The Senegalese government says it is about to start paying victims'
relatives compensation totalling more than $30m.

However, the BBC's Dakar reporter, Alpha Jallow, say the government claims
that only 20 families have so far met the government criteria of filing for
compensation.

The victims' relatives are required to produce proofs, such as birth
certificates, passports and other legal documents in order to qualify for
compensation.


In addition, the names of the victims have to appear in the shipping
manifesto. About 30 Europeans, including some French nationals, were among
those who died.

Our correspondent says that many people may be disqualified, because the
ship was overloaded and it is likely that some names would not have been
included in the official passenger list.

There were only 64 survivors and about 500 bodies were recovered from the
Atlantic Ocean, where the Joola ferry was left, as what the government
describes the "sanctuary" for the dead.

A report published last November concluded that the accident had been
caused by overloading and negligence on the part of the boat's operators,
the Senegalese navy and rescue services.


Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/africa/3142668.stm

Published: 2003/09/26 12:50:36 GMT

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