Royal Caribbean needs to here an earful from the public about their insensitive decision to run business as usual.
The Independence of the Seas, a luxury cruise liner capable of carrying 4,370 passengers, has docked less than 100km from the earthquake disaster zone at a private resort leased to Royal Caribbean International, The Guardian newspaper reports.
Are you kidding me? People are suffering and dying 100km away and you decide to take your vacationing passengers to your private Haiti get away?
O.K. before I go full hate on these people they have said:
the company says all profits from the visit will to help Haitians affected by the quake and both ships will carry food aid.
But I think one passenger summed it up quite nicely:
"I just can't see myself sunning on the beach, playing in the water, eating a barbecue lunch, and enjoying a cocktail while a 100 miles away (in Port-au-Prince) there are tens of thousands of dead people being piled up on the streets," the passenger wrote on the Cruise Critic forum.
I understand that commerce needs to continue and that Royal Caribbean has had this piece of land leased from the Haitian Government since 1986. But somehow throwing a party anywhere in Haiti at this moment seems completely inappropriate. But then again maybe I'm just too sensitive.
Sorry for the short diary. I was too outraged not to let more folks know about this.
Update:
So I don't have to keep repeating in comments. I believe they should dock and deliver the aid. But to allow passengers off to jet ski, eat and drink and have a general good time on Haitian land...that's a little much for me.