UNLIKE the rest of Hawaii's tourism industry, the cruise ship business is soaring, but security measures initiated after the 9/11 attacks have not taken into account the expanded arrival of tourists by sea. Brig. Gen. Robert Lee, Hawaii's adjutant general, has asked for more security officials to screen passengers boarding cruise ships. The federal security system needs to be broadened to address Lee's concern.

Hawaii's cruise ships carried fewer than 100,000 passengers in 1993, but this year's number is projected at 211,000, and that could double or triple in the next two years. Norwegian Cruise Line accounted for 63 percent of the passengers last year and is expected alone to carry up to 450,000 passengers in the islands in 2005 ......
Read more on Honolulu Star-Bulletin