Confitarma, unacceptable the boycotting of Tunisia to the ships of the Grimaldi group



The Neapolitan shipowning group Grimaldi protests for the block of own ship ro-ro Eurocargo Bari by the Tunisian authorities, than from six days they force the unit to attend in oadstead to Tunisi having some prohibited the berthing in the port of call African. L'Eurocargo Bari, together with its binoculars Eurocargo Cagliari, is employed on the service ro-ro between Livorno, Genoa, Palermo and Tunisi offered from the partenopeo group every trisettimanale.

"Although the connection had obtained all the necessary authorizations by the Tunisian competent authorities and was begun 19th November with two landings place to the Goulette (port of Tunisi) - it has explained the Italian group - it abruptly is interrupted on 23 November with the prohibition to the berthing of the ship Eurocargo Bari for reasons of congestion in the port. From that day the ship is firm in oadstead while other ships arrived successively have had the authorization to berth. He is therefore obvious - it has emphasized the Neapolitan company - than the congestion is only a justification by the Tunisian authorities in order to dissuade the Grimaldi group continuing to offer the aforesaid connection which is not appreciate by the company of State Companies Tunisienne de Navigation (CTN)".

The Grimaldi group has specified that, "although the immediate involvement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs through the Embassy of Italy to Tunisi, the situation has remained unchanged with 30 members of the crew remained blocked on the Eurocargo Bari, together with its cargo".

Moreover the Neapolitan group has denounced of being meantime "victim of a disparaging campaign and slander on it prints Tunisian turns to damage its image, campaign that - it has accused Grimaldi - would seem is fomented by the same CTN. This aggression - it has continued the Neapolitan company - is turned to a group which is present in Tunisia without interruption gives about 50 years through important investments that they produce tangible benefits in the field of the transport, the logistics and tourism with important fallen back to economic and social level for the North African Country".

The Grimaldi group has remembered to annually transport an important number of foreign tourists towards Tunisia, promuovendo the Country as tourist goal. In particular, through Grimaldi Lines Tour operator they are offered to the packages ship more hotel, contributing so to the development of the activities of the Tunisian hotel field. Also tens of thousands of Tunisian citizens use the marine connections of the group between Italy (Civitavecchia, Salerno, Palermo, Trapani) and Tunisia (Tunisi - Radès). Moreover, in the field goods, the group transports every year from and towards Tunisi thousands of rotabili units (automobiles, truck, semitowings, etc) so as of the container of every type, contributing to the development of the commercial relationships between Tunisia and the remainder of the world. In order to support the efforts of the group in Tunisia "Grimaldi Tunisie" is created in 2011, employing about 50 dependent whose number would have to increase in the future.

The Grimaldi group has evidenced moreover that the prohibition to the berthing has resulted in the reaction of the Italian unions, which immediately has been mobilized in order to defend the places of work of the marine workers and harbour Italians threatened from an eventual interruption of the service offered from the Grimaldi group.

The Neapolitan group has concluded wishing "a fast and definitive conclusion of the issue with the removal of all the obstacles you mail to the berthing to Tunisi of own ships ro-ro" and has invited the Italian authorities "to intensify own efforts in such sense regarding those Tunisians".

The protest of the partenopea shipowning company is supported by the Italian Confederation Shipping (Confitarma), that it has defined "unacceptable the boycotting of Tunisia to the damages of ships of the Grimaldi group". "The come situation to create in the port of Tunisi-La Goulette - it has found the president of the Italian association shipowning, Paolo d' Amico - is most serious because the most elementary principles by right international on the freedom of the commercial traffics are treaded on. I had already marked in the course of the October assembly the unacceptable behavior of the Tunisian authorities - it has remembered of Friend - and we had had assurances from the Improta undersecretary of the interest of our administration in order to guarantee to our shipowner the possibility to operate in that Country in the respect of the principles of free competition and parity of treatment with the local carriers".

Confitarma has remembered moreover that "identical happened problems this summer had induced the shipowner to interrupt the service waiting for assurances by the Tunisian administration. In spite of the Italian shipowner it has recently received from the minister of the Transports Tunisian and from the Harbour Authority of Tunisi, the formal authorization to the landing place, with the relative programming of the ports of call - the Confederation has confirmed - the protests of the company of Tunisian navigation COTUNAV, with pretestuose motivations of treacherous competition, have newly provoked the illegitimate behavior of the local authorities".

As a result of the prohibition of Confitarma landing place immediately has been activated informing the ministers of the Transports and Foreign countries and asking a ready one and decided action to protection of the national interests for a long time evidently prejudiced: "we have carried out - it has explained of Friend - all the possible participations to the highest levels, but after six days from the arrest warrant of the ship, we have not had some reply. Meantime Tunisia succeeds in protecting own operators, deciding who, where and when it can operate in fact in its ports and conditioning the operativity of our services, while the Italian authorities continue to tolerate impotent and in Hush such situation".

From part its Confitarma has denounced the lacked answer the Italian authorities and the deficiency of cohesion of the labor organizations: "we are forced to find - it has complained of Friend - the total absence of a political strategy and diplomatic Italian to defense of national interests, and this is as well as more amazing if it is considered that it is penalized who produces and gives job also in a period of crisis as this. It minds to have me to emphasize that also the unions are not successful to tackle common in a situation as this that could represent a dangerous precedence".

Confitarma has concluded observing that, "besides the obvious commercial damage and of image that the company of Italian navigation is enduring, it is comprehensible that many marine workers are worried to lose the job as a result of a possible interruption of the line with expectable actions of protest".

Also the association of the CNA-Fita road haulage has activated itself in order to speed up the ministry of Infrastructures and the Transports and the Farnesina to assume initiatives against the Tunisian boycotting of the Italian ship Eurocargo Bari. The national president of the trade-union association, Cinzia Franchini, has written a letter to ministers Corrado Passera and Giulio Terzi di Sant'Agata so that the respective ministries (Transports and Foreign countries) can timely activate himself in order to resolve the intolerable boycotting of the ship of the Grimaldi shipowner, that still he is blocked in the Tunisian port of the Goulette. "Some enterprises our associates - it has written in the Cinzia Franchini letter - have been found again involved in typical retaliation to commercial background with enormous uneasiness and with the knowledge that whereby the market develops positive competitive dynamics is always in ambush who tries protect consolidated positions of unearned income. In specific - it has continued the Franchini - the CNA-Fita it considers worrisome that, little more than a month from the debut of the agreements Euromed, previewed with the beginning of 2013, it must be assisted to this type of behaviors by already operating Tunisian shipowning companies in our ports of call. Considering therefore completely the uneasiness brought to the ship Eurocargo Bari and the haulers loaded unwarrantable on we ask you to it to activate to you so that the abandonment of the line of connection directed between the port of call of Genoa and that Tunisian is asked for by the Grimaldi shipowner. It would be in fact serious and worrisome that, within tested bilateral agreements between Italy and Tunisia, it was not succeeded to guarantee the operativity in free competition between shipowners in the Mediterranean Sea".