Feb
2
Much has been written about Royal Caribbean International’s decision to continue port calls at its private beach resort in Labadee, Haiti 
following the island’s devastating earthquake on January 12. In particular, some organizations have questioned the morality of passengers sipping margaritas on the beach in a private compound that suffered no damage while thousands of Haitians are suffering a mere 100 km away at the quake’s epi-centre in the country’s capital of Port-au-Prince.
There’s no question that the dramatically different images of pampered cruise ship passengers enjoying carefree fun on the beach versus hungry and homeless people wandering the devastated streets of Port-au-Prince are difficult to reconcile. In fact, on first 
glance, they can be downright offensive. But there’s more to this story – a lot more — than what these images and some media reports may have let on.
So let’s put the issue of these Haitian port calls in perspective.
After much internal debate and discussion with officials from Haiti, executives at RCI decided to continue port calls in Labadee rather than diverting its ships elsewhere. They did so because they believed it was the most effective way they could help the 
country deal with this terrible tragedy now and in the future.
That decision was based on two primary factors: the amount of money pumped into the local economy every time a ship visits Labadee, and the potential for ships to bring food and other needed supplies ashore to help in the country’s relief efforts. For example, 40 pallets of rice, beans, powdered mile, water, and canned foods were delivered when the first RCI ship called on Labadee following the earthquake, and more has followed in subsequent visits. In addition, RCI is donating 
every cent of its revenue from the visits to humanitarian relief in Haiti, and more than 300 Haitians in the area derive part or all of their income from cruise ship visits.
So the facts show that RCI’s decision to continue calling at Labadee was the right one from both a humanitarian and economic perspective. But what about the public relations damage caused by those contrasting photos and stories, and the outrage felt by people who question the morality of vacationing so close to a disaster zone?
It may have helped RCI’s image if they had waited a few weeks after the earthquake 
before allowing their ships to call at Labadee. For one, it would have shown the cruise line was really struggling over its decision, that is was sensitive to the public’s perception of the situation in Haiti, and that it wanted to respond in a respectful fashion. And at the very least, it would have given them an opportunity to more fully flesh out their relief plan, determine the size of an appropriate corporate donation, and get out in front of what they should have known would be a public relations challenge.
As for the morality issue of pampered passengers having fun when so many people 
are suffering, it’s a legitimate concern that demonstrates our sense of humanity. As caring people, we don’t think it is right for “rich” holiday makers to be drinking margaritas on the beach while “poor” people are sleeping in tents just a few miles away.
However, while this is a noble sentiment, it’s also somewhat hypocritical. After all, would we still care if the happy holiday makers were celebrating on a beach in nearby Cuba or the Dominican Republic? And would this outcome be better for the people of Haiti, some of whom rely on tourism for their family income or are benefitting from RCI’s relief efforts?
The reality is that while we may have found the images of cruise ship passengers frolicking on the beach in Labadee somewhat troubling, I don’t believe we can fault the motives or actions of RCI. They’ve done their best to help in Haiti, despite a rather unfair public relations hit to their image. If we need someone to blame, perhaps we should be looking at those media outlets and special interest groups who were only too happy to profit from a misleading photo or headline.
Comments
5 Comments so far
Ahoy Commodore! Thank you for this well-thought response to a very challenging ethical dilema. I’ve read much on the subject, and easily this is the most well-balanced viewpoint. Your point about RCI waiting for a period of time to demonstrate genuine consideration of their decision was an excellent one. I whole-heartedly agree with you that Haiti benefits from the continued calling at Labadee, and to deny Haiti these benefits in their time of need would have been an unfortunate response. Kudos to RCI for maintaining their position even in the face of a PR controversy.
As someone who enjoys cruising I couldn’t agree more with your comments. Excellent blog. On an NCL cruise in Hawaii I remember stopping at Fanning Island and the cruise line would always have school supplies on board to give to the local people who by all standards were very poor. The passengers helped out by purchasing the many trinkets the people had for sale more out of a sense of campassion than need. I am sure that the RCI passengers and crew are doing the same in Haiti. Bravo RCI for being responsible
We will never be able to “Fix” the press and the way it reports. Some reports and “Stories” are better than others. Yours CD is a pretty good one btw. Labadee was way out of whack with Haiti well before their latest tragedy. RCI made a decision quickly and in my opinion the right one. Cruisers and future cruisers and others that have been or will go there will be split on their thoughts as are folks in all sorts of matters. It’s the human way. At least RCI is helping. Doing something… and because they had infrastructure already and it was unharmed were able to do it right away.
Now if you were to go without passengers aboard and only crew and medical professionals; to get some of those Haitian people on to see to their medical needs, to feed and clothe them with all the clothing that the rich forget aboard your ships, etc. That would be a nice deed from your rich company……..
“Hi Five” Commodore for your delicate handling of a very touchy situation.
People were upset and didn’t know what was happening. The T.V. showed Haitians who were angry with everything and anything that was being done for them be it food, medical care or shelter — it was days before many of them received help and water. Afterall, Haiti was still rebuilding after a major hurricane that devasted their island 3/4 years ago when the earthquake hit.
Other corporations should follow RCI’s humanitarian example and help. The island needs help from the International Community. I hope that the people of Haiti get the help that they need.