The container ship Rena is stuck on a reef, in New Zealand's waters, and has been leaking oil onto the beaches of the Bay of Plenty for more than a week.<br /><br />The ship is registered in Liberia, which is well known for offering ship-owners a 'flag of convenience', a business practice which allows ship owners to register their vessels in an alternate sovereign state to their place of origin.<br /><br />In the case of Rena, the ship is owned by Greeks, registered in Liberia, on the coast of West Africa and, operated by a Filipino crew - most likely to avoid stricter health, safety and employment regulations enforced in Greece.<br /><br />Al Jazeera's Yvonne Ndege reports about the business practice from Liberia's capital, Monrovia.
