24 Disabled North Sea Oil Divers Sue Norwegian Government, Claiming Human Rights Violations - AP
The Associated Press
Published: January 28, 2008
OSLO, Norway: A group of 24 deep sea divers who claim their health was ruined when they worked at extreme depths in the early years of Norway’s offshore oil boom sued the government on Monday for violating their human rights.
The so-called pioneer divers were sent to extreme and sometimes experimental depths while working on offshore oil installations in the 1970s and 1980s, according to a government commission that studied the case.
The case brought before the Oslo city court was the second legal test of the government’s legal responsibility to the divers. In August, the same court ordered the government to pay a total of nearly 30 million kroner (US$5.4 million; €3.75 million) to three divers with similar claims.
An appeal by the government in that case remains to be heard and the outcome of the two challenges could bring a rash of other suits by injured divers, some of whom complain of lung and brain damage. The current case is scheduled to last until May 15.
The divers have often been called the forgotten victims of an industry that has made Norway a major oil exporter and one of the world’s richest countries.
In his opening remarks, Marius Reikeraas, an attorney for the divers, said some of his clients were sent to depths of 400 meters (1,300 feet) until 2002. The safe limit is now set at 180 meters (590 feet).
“This is a test case for the Norwegian government when it comes to respecting human rights. The central question is whether the government was aware of the risk of injuries the divers faced,” he said.
The lawsuit, formally brought against the Ministry of Labor and Social Inclusion, alleges that the government violated the European Convention on Human Rights by sending them to dangerous depths when it knew or should have known the risks. If the divers win, the government could be obliged to pay them compensation.
The government has accepted moral and political responsibility for the divers, but rejects any legal obligation. However, in 2004, Parliament authorized compensation of up to 2.7 million kroner (US$491,000; €337,000) for each of about 200 divers, in addition to previous payments of up to 500,000 kroner (US$90,100; €62,500).
A government survey released in December 2007 said 20 percent of 139 divers active between 1965 and 1990 were on medical disability pensions. Reikeraas said the number of divers injured was probably closer to 200.