International Cruise Victims Association (ICV) President Along with Cruise and Crime Experts to Testify at U.S. Senate Hearing on June 19, 2008 in Washington, D.C.
United States Senate to Address Issues to Protect Americans from Crimeson Cruise Ships:
SAMMAMISH, Wash., June 18 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The United States Senate has scheduled a hearing on June 19, 2008 at 10:00 a.m. on "CruiseShip Safety: Examining Potential Steps For Keeping Americans Safe At Sea." The hearing will be conducted by the Committee on Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety, and Security and will be held at the Russell Senate Office Building (Room 253), in Washington D.C. The U.S. Senate has invited the President of the International Cruise Victims Association (ICV) along with certain cruise and crime experts to testify regarding their recommendations for protecting passengers on cruise ships. The following individuals will be discussing proposals to enhance passenger safety, reduce shipboard crime, and to protect the victims from poor treatment by the cruise industry:
Kendall Carver of Arizona lost his daughter on the Celebrity cruise ship Mercury, owned and operated by Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines. Following her disappearance, the cruise line failed to notify family members or law enforcement and engaged in a cover-up of his daughter's disappearance, Mr.Carver alleges. Mr. Carver is the President and one of the founding members of the ICV. Families of victims created this organization as a victims' advocacy group to protect passengers, who choose to travel on cruise ships. The group now has hundreds of members around the world, including sixteen countries and a separate chapter in Australia. Mr. Carver and other members of the ICV appeared before the United States Congress in 2005, 2006,and 2007, and have proposed a ten-point plan to address the problem ofcruise crime and the disappearance of cruise ship passengers.
Dr. Ross Klein is a Professor at Memorial University ofNewfoundland in St. John's, Newfoundland. His academic training is in sociology, and his interests include the cruise industry. He has studied the issue of passenger disappearances and crime on cruise ships extensively. He is the author of "Cruise Ship Blues" and has written and lectured extensively regarding the cruise ship industry. He previously testified before the United States Congress regarding the issue of cruise ship crime in 2007.
Evelyn Fortier is the Vice President of Policy of the Rape, Abuse &Incest National Network (RAINN) which is the nation's largest anti-sexual assault organization. RAINN operates the National Sexual Assault Hotline at1 (800) 656-HOPE in partnership with over 1,000 local rape crisis center. RAINN also carries out programs to prevent sexual assault, help victims, and ensure that rapists are brought to justice. RAINN's experience, expertise, and compassion have been instrumental in assisting victims on cruise ships and in developing policies to address the problem of rape on cruise ships. Ms. Fortier will address the issues of what to expect if you are raped on a cruise ship, and propose recommendations for Congress to deal with this problem. RAINN is a partner with the International Cruise Victims Association (ICV).
