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Demonstrators dressed as pirates protest cruise ships in Venice


Dozens of pirate ships filled Venice’s Giudecca Canal on Sunday. Yes, pirates.

No, this wasn’t some viral marketing campaign to promote the release of the “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales” (Really? Another one?), they were there to protest against massive cruise ships being allowed to navigate the Italian city’s canals.

According to Quartz, protesters, some of whom were decked out in full pirate garb including eye-patches and tri-corner hats, manned the small boats and waited for big cruise ships to pass by.

As the Thomson Celebration cruise ship navigated the canal, en route to the local international terminal, protesters sounded horns, shot off coloured flares and waved banners which read “No Big Ships.”

Demonstrators dressed as pirates protest cruise ships in Venice (Getty)
[Demonstrators dressed as pirates protest cruise ships in Venice. (Getty)]

At issue is the protection of the city’s famously beautiful canals.

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Residents and environmentalists worry that the large motors that power the nearly 600 “big ships” that pass through its waters every year could damage the city’s fragile foundations, which have been overloaded and corroded by salt.

Others worry about a disaster on par with the Costa Concordia, which struck a rock off the coast of Italy and saw 32 people on board die, which could be to devastating Venice’s ancient architecture.

The city has seen a rise in incidences where tides and winds cause its low-lying areas to flood. A billion-dollar project to build a system of gates mounted to hinges on the ocean floor, which are filled with air and designed to create a temporary seawall, is currently underway.

The mammoth vessels have also been criticized for their appearance.

Earlier this summer, UNESCO expressed “extreme concern” about the deterioration of Venice’s lagoon, and threatened to place the city on its endangered list if it doesn’t ban large cruises and tankers by next February.

Research by UNESCO from 2015 found that the city inhabitants and tourists have exceeded its capacity and are causing “significant damage.”

The city is home to about 265,000 people and welcomes about 25 million tourists every year.

But its current mayor, Luigi Brugnaro, is a firm supporter of the local cruise industry, arguing that it is responsible for thousands of jobs.

Three years ago, legislation banning ships of more than 96,000 tonnes from navigating the Giudecca Canal was put into law, and the passage of smaller ships was limited to five a day.

However, the legislation was overturned last year.