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Dead dolphins, tourism in jeopardy: Oil disaster threatens to drown Mauritius

Residents are demanding answers from the government after the leak that covered parts of the pristine coastline on an island in the Indian Ocean. At least 40 dead dolphins have been washed ashore, and experts are investigating whether there is a connection between this and the sinking of the Japanese tanker. "We do not trust the government," said thousands of protesters in the capital

• Mauritius
• Oil leak

News agencies

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Thousands of people demonstrated yesterday (Saturday) in the capital of Mauritius demanding to investigate the oil spill from the Japanese tanker and the mysterious deaths of at least 40 dolphins, which is near the center of the environmental disaster. Environmental activists have called for an investigation into whether there is a link between the deaths of the dolphins and the oil leak from the Wakshio tanker, which hit a coral reef last month. About a thousand tons of oil leaked in the maritime area, where rare animals live.

One of the protesters in a central square in Fort Louis held a sign showing a dolphin covered in oil under the caption "Our lives are important." Another held a sign demanding the resignation of the government. "We do not trust the government and the meager information they give us about the treatment and response to the oil spill," Fabio Monti, a scientist who took part in the protest, told Reuters. Many of the protesters wore black shirts.

Many islanders in the Indian Ocean feel the government could have done more to prevent the disaster, in addition to criticizing its decision to sink the ship after it was split in two. Demonstrations also took place in London and Paris.

More on Walla! NEWS

Paradise painted black: Ecological disaster in Mauritius over oil leak from a sunken ship

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Do not trust the information of the government. Demonstrators in the capital of Mauritius, yesterday (Photo: Reuters)

No direct link has yet been found to the oil leak. Dolphin dies off the coast of Mauritius last week (Photo: Reuters)

The government said it would dissect the dead dolphins to determine the cause of their deaths, and set up a commission of inquiry into the oil leak. The investigation is divided into two - one is conducted by the police, and it examines the responsibility of the ship's crew, and the other by a senior official in the Ministry of Shipping, who is investigating what happened to the tanker. The ship's captain was arrested and charged with safe sailing risk, but he has not yet commented on the matter.

Tests done so far on two dead dolphins by a government research institute have left no traces of oil on their bodies, but signs of injuries have been found. According to the Ministry of Fisheries, the results of the tests for 25 dolphins that were washed ashore last week are expected to arrive in the coming days.

Severe damage to the economy. Oil slicks off the coast of Mauritius (Photo: Reuters)

The local environmental conservation group Eco-Sud, which took part in yesterday's demonstrations, said in a statement on Friday that representatives of civil society should be present at the dolphin tests and that a second independent inspection should be conducted by independent experts.

Tourism is a major industry in the island's economy, and the ecological disaster is a severe blow to it, in parallel with the Corona epidemic, which has limited international tourism.

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