Express Pearl Disaster: Centre for Environmental Justice Calls for International Tribunal
20-Oct-2026.
President's Counsel Dr Ravindranath Dabare, co-founder and senior legal adviser to the Centre for Environmental Justice, has called for the establishment of an international tribunal to hold international private companies accountable for the environmental disaster caused by the Express Pearl and to address the limitations of domestic legal systems.
He made these remarks while addressing a session of Friends of the Earth International held at the United Nations premises in Geneva.
Elaborating on the matter, he said:
“Our organisation filed a fundamental rights petition before the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka concerning the disaster caused by the Express Pearl. In July 2025, the Supreme Court delivered a landmark judgment identifying constitutional violations and ordered the group of companies associated with the Express Pearl to pay US$1 billion in compensation to the Sri Lankan Treasury. However, reports indicate that only US$1 million has been paid to date.”
The Express Pearl, a Singapore-flagged vessel, caught fire in Sri Lankan waters in May 2021. The incident resulted in approximately 1,680 tonnes of plastic pellets, along with hazardous chemicals such as nitric acid, caustic soda and methanol, entering the sea.
He stated that an international tribunal was necessary to ensure accountability when domestic legal systems failed to provide adequate remedies for environmental damage, threats to public health and the disruption of coastal communities' livelihoods.
Environmental justice must be enforced through robust international laws that transcend national boundaries, he said, adding that such a framework was essential to protect affected communities, future generations and nature.
It is noteworthy that legal representatives of insurance companies representing parties involved in the Express Pearl compensation dispute visited Sri Lanka on September 29 and held discussions with senior government officials, including representatives of the Treasury and the Attorney General's Department.
