E

FACILITATION COMMITTEE FAL 48/INF.2

48th session 30 January 2024
Agenda item 19 Original: ENGLISH
Pre-session public release: ☒

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

Addressing unjustified criminalization of seafarers in the

context of drug trafficking on ships

Submitted by Dominica, BIMCO, InterManager, INTERPORTPOLICE and WSC

SUMMARY

Executive summary: This document informs the Committee of the outcomes of the
"Symposium on Drug smuggling in ships: Fostering law
enforcement/trade collaboration" held in Houston on 9 January 2024
and provides suggestions for future consideration.

Strategic direction, if 4, 5, 6
applicable:

Output: Not applicable

Action to be taken: Paragraph 14

Related documents: Resolutions FAL.9(34); A.1190(33) and FAL 48/17/2

Background

1 In December 2023, the Assembly adopted resolution A.1190(33) on Enhancing the

framework of the fight against organized crime in the maritime sector. This resolution, inter alia,
acknowledged the need to enhance the resilience of seafarers and port workers against the
pressure caused by organized crime. It also calls upon interested Member States and
governmental and non-governmental organizations to submit proposals to the Maritime Safety
Committee and the Facilitation Committee with the aim of enhancing and adapting the framework
for the fight against organized crime in the maritime sector. Furthermore, it invites Member States
to share with the Organization the strategies that in their experience have worked to mitigate the
impacts of organized crime on international maritime traffic and port facilities.

2 On 9 January 2024, the "Symposium on Drug smuggling in ships: Fostering law

enforcement/trade collaboration" (the symposium) was held at the U.S. Coast Guard Sector
Houston-Galveston headquarters in Houston, Texas. The event was organized by BIMCO,
InterManager, World Shipping Council, INTERPORTPOLICE and Northeast Maritime Institute
and its Center for Ocean Policy and Economics (COPE) and hosted by the United States Coast
Guard. The symposium was attended by over 60 representatives of government departments,
shipping companies, ports, supporting services, military, law enforcement, and border control
agencies.

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3 The context for the symposium were developments to smugglers' modus operandi;
the increase in drug-related threats and violence levels against ship crew, port workers, and
officials; and the increase in detention cases (of both seafarers and ships) when drugs are
discovered on board despite the lack of any indication of crew involvement.

4 The aim of the symposium was to review the current situation with respect to the
criminalization of seafarers in drug cases; to review current measures to prevent the smuggling
of drugs, psychotropic substances and precursor chemicals on ships engaged in international
maritime traffic; and to identify key workstreams for improving the guidance available to
governments, ship operators, seafarers, port operators and law enforcement and border
control agencies going forward. A copy of the programme is attached in the annex.

5 A reference point for the discussions was the current 'Revised Guidelines for the
prevention and suppression of the smuggling of drugs, psychotropic substances and precursor
chemicals on ships engaged in international maritime traffic', adopted as resolutions
MSC.228 (82) and FAL.9(34), with a common effective date of 1 April 2007.

6 The symposium took into account Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16: Promote
peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all
and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.

Key discussion points of the symposium

7 Trafficked drugs

.1 Drug use is increasing. The United Nations Organization on Drugs and Crime
(UNODC) estimates a 23% increase between 2011 and 2021, with
some 296 million users worldwide.

.2 There has been a huge increase in cocaine production, which has led to an
increased demand for transportation of products from production sites to
customers worldwide. The range of other drugs available has evolved
considerably since 2007 with a wide range of new drugs being manufactured
and trafficked.

.3 Many powerful new drugs are lethal in small quantities and if mishandled,
pose a health threat to seafarers and search teams finding them.

.4 UNODC is an excellent source of information on the types of drugs being

trafficked, for example its annual World Drug Report which can be found at:
https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/data-and-analysis/world-drug-
report- 2023.html.

8 What should Administrations and ship operators do?

.1 Recognize that the shipping industry cannot do it alone.

.2 There need to be partnerships and active collaboration between seafarers,

companies, port operators, shipping agents, security companies, law
enforcement and border control agencies. Engagement of shipping
companies' representatives in national and port level maritime facilitation
committees would be a good start.

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.3 Embrace the concept that there is no competition on security. This should

include two-way sharing between customs/law enforcement and industry, as
well as other trusted parties, to share information on trends, methods,
successes and failures, as well as treating any shared information with the
necessary confidentiality. Such information should include methods of
concealment, traffickers' tactics, vulnerabilities in ports, security concerns,
corrupt officials, et cetera, that can be collated, assessed and promulgated to
assist in voyage risk assessments. Additionally, the importance of detection
and mitigation tools should also be shared and emphasized, to include both
physical scanning and screening tools, as well as screening of data using
keywords and rules developed with the two-way information sharing and to
identify anomalies that should be targeted for further investigation.

.4 Implement "target hardening" measures on board, both physical and

procedural, with a view to raising the level of effective protection.

.5 Review ship security procedures to include these target hardening

measures.

.6 Introduce and implement crew training and awareness programmes on how

to avoid being compromised, how to recognize suspicious behaviour, how to
report suspicious activity, and how to respond to such reports.

.7 Focus on team building on board ships, not only for general mental health of
seafarers but also to improve the security awareness culture.

.8 Understand the law in countries of destination and make sure that seafarers
are properly briefed.

.9 Emphasize as a best practice that one of the most successful tools to

securing the release of improperly detailed seafarers is using diplomatic
channels to engage with the Member States whose authorities have unjustly
detained seafarers.

.10 Greater transparency in the maritime sector will also drive improvement.
For example, the identification of ports that do not take positive action to
protect ships and crews from criminal activity, ports in countries that do not
proactively support interagency cooperation, ports in countries most
susceptible to the drug trade; and ports where seafarers are more likely to
be unjustifiably criminalized will enable ship operators to make more
informed decisions on choice of destinations and avoid ports that do not
provide adequate security and protection from traffickers or fail to meet
acceptable ethical standards.

9 What should port State authorities and port / terminal operators do?

.1 The relationship between ports, marine terminal operators (MTOs) and the ships
that they serve is a critical factor. Ports and MTOs are service providers to the
ships that they serve and the "us" and "them" mentality needs to change.
Increasing cooperation between ports and MTOs and ship operators will
improve efficiency and facilitation. There need to be partnerships and active
collaboration between seafarers, companies, ports, MTOs, shipping agents,
security companies, law enforcement and border control agencies. Good
security is marketable and gives a responsible port a competitive advantage.

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.2 Port security procedures should embrace the whole port security

management system, including people, equipment, procedures and risk
management procedures.

.3 Key elements of effective port security include port security advisory

committees (as set out in the ILO/IMO Code of Practice on security in ports)
and national and port level maritime facilitation committees.

.4 Counter narcotics measures should be integrated into wider security

measures (maritime security, stowaways, human trafficking, wildlife etc.).

.5 Ports should provide appropriate additional security assurance measures as

part of its service package. These could include sniffer dogs, divers,
underwater inspections, surveillance, patrolling and guarding and effective
access control, the use of which should be documented and certified to the
Master as part of the ship's due diligence measures.

.6 Ports should conduct background checks on all staff and ensure that they
are adequately trained before they are issued permits to enter restricted
areas.

.7 Law enforcement and port personnel, including security personnel should be

rotated through different posts on an irregular basis, screened on entering
and leaving restricted areas and subject to oversight in order to reduce their
likelihood of being recruited by traffickers.

.8 National and local community engagement programmes (for example

"SeeSayAct", confidential reporting and "whistleblower" programmes), if
properly managed and acted upon, will provide useful information to counter
drug trafficking.

10 Exercising due diligence

.1 Any drug find is a potential court case and it is critical that seafarers and port
workers can prove that they have taken all reasonable measures to avoid
trafficking drugs. Procedures should therefore be in place to record what has
been done; for example additional access controls, searching persons
boarding the ship, pre-departure searches of the ship, use of divers, dogs
et cetera.

.2 Other due diligence measures can include documenting responsibilities of

crew members port/terminal workers, and government employees, keeping
comprehensive and accurate records of training, and proof of oversight
measures employed.

11 Other measures

.1 Effective cooperation, coordination and communication mechanisms are the

key to effective security. Where it is deemed appropriate, secure, and safe to
do so, feeding back information from the point of detection of narcotics to
(ideally multiple) authorities at the point of departure can provide valuable
insights on how to prevent further shipments.

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.2 It is important to build durable and resilient committees and communication

mechanisms based on written standard operating procedures in order to
cope with change of personnel.

.3 Counter drug trafficking measures should be harmonized with other security

and border control measures, consistent with the FAL Convention.

.4 New technologies, including machine learning and artificial intelligence

should be harnessed for better risk assessment and interdiction capabilities.

12 Learning from aviation

.1 There are many lessons to be learned from aviation. The relationship

between airports and airlines, with the airport as the service provider, is more
clearly defined.

.2 The attitude of border control authorities towards aircrew is also far more
reasoned. How many airline captains are arrested when drugs are found in
the cargo or concealed in the aircraft?

13 Going forward

.1 The symposium was intended to be a starting point for developing

comprehensive, up-to-date guidance to Governments and industry on
preventing drug trafficking on ships; protecting seafarers from being abused
by traffickers; and ensuring more equitable treatment of seafarers unwittingly
or unknowingly implicated in such activities.

.2 It is intended to expand on the points identified in the symposium, to identify

best and promising practices and to produce a comprehensive guide in a
user-friendly format. This work will be through correspondence facilitated by
COPE in cooperation with the co-sponsors.

.3 If the Committee decides to update the existing guidance given in resolutions

MSC.228 (82) and FAL.9(34), the outcomes of the work at COPE°in
cooperation with the co-sponsors will be shared with the Committee for its
consideration.

Action requested of the Committee

14 The Committee is invited to note the information provided in this document.

***

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Annex, page 1

ANNEX

PROGRAMME

DRUG SMUGGLING IN SHIPS:

FOSTERING LAW ENFORCEMENT / TRADE COLLABORATION

9 January 2024
8:30 – 9:00 In-processing at base main gate, U.S. Coast Guard Sector Houston-
Galveston, 13411 Hillard Street, Houston TX 77034

9:00 – 9:10 Organiser’s remarks and conference chair’s introduction

Jakob Larsen, Head of Maritime Safety & Security, BIMCO.
Thomas Damsgaard, Head of BIMCO Americas.

9:10 – 9:25 U.S. Coast Guard welcome address

Captain Keith M. Donohue, Commanding Officer, U.S. Coast Guard
Sector Houston-Galveston.

9:25 – 9:45 Keynote address

Bud Darr, Executive Vice-President, Mediterranean Shipping Company

9:45 – 10:00 Fostering law enforcement/trade cooperation: How we create

direction and momentum
Chris Trelawny, Deputy Secretary-General, INTERPORTPOLICE.

10:00 – 10:15 Break

10:15 – 11:30 Session 1: Seafarers and shipowners in trouble

Carole Rouffet, Assistant Vice President, Claims, Skuld North America.
Suresh Prabhakar, Director Operations, Pacific Basin, Hong Kong.
Ismael Delfin, P&I Services Mexico, Mexico.
Janusz Florczuk, President, Intership Navigation Inc.
Javier Franco, Managing Partner, Franco & Abogados Asociados,
Colombia.
Moderator: Jakob Larsen, Head of Maritime Safety & Security, BIMCO.

11:30 – 12:45 Session 2: Combatting drug trafficking in the container and liner
supply chain
Raymond Monzon, US Customs & Border Protection, USA.
Keith Fleming, Director CSI.
Javier Montano Duran, UN Office on Drugs & Crime.
Bud Darr, Executive Vice-President, Mediterranean Shipping Company.
Hector Alvarez, Regional Security Commissioner Latin America, Hapag-
Lloyd.
Christophe Bouthiaux, CMA CGM, CSO for North America.
Lisa Thornburg, Sr. Manager, Supply Chain Security, ONE.
Moderator: Ian Ralby, CEO, I. R. Consilium.

12:45 – 13:30 Sandwich lunch and networking

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13:30 – 14:45 Session 3: Obtaining data and information, and turning it into
actionable intelligence
Ian Ralby, CEO, I.R. Consilium.
Dani Linsker, Partner and Regional Director, Control Risks, Mexico.
Colonel William Snook, Director Plans & Policy, Joint Inter-Agency TF
South.
Stephen Grant, Regional Specialized Officer, INTERPOL.
Timothy Ed Stacy, Maritime Safety Watch Lead, National Geospatial
Agency, USA.
Moderator: Chris Trelawny, Deputy Secretary-General,
INTERPORTPOLICE.

14:45 – 15:00 Break

15:00 – 16:15 Session 4: The comprehensive frontline challenge: The search for
practical solutions
Javier Garrido Vergara, Port facility Security Officer, Compas Barranquilla,
Colombia (recorded message).
Suresh Prabhakar, Director Operations, Pacific Basin, Hong Kong.
Peter Carmedy, General Manager Marine, MOL Chemical Tankers, USA.
Doug Spooner, Risk Management, Siem Shipping, UK.
Chris Trelawny, Deputy Secretary-General, INTERPORTPOLICE.
Moderator: Joe Kramek, Director U.S. Government Relations, World
Shipping Council.

16:15 – 16:30 Wrap up and way ahead

Thomas Damsgaard, Head of BIMCO Americas.
Hannah Dawicki, Director of Digital Operations, COPE°/Northeast
Maritime Institute.
Chris Trelawny, Deputy Secretary-General, INTERPORTPOLICE.
Jakob Larsen, Head of Maritime Safety & Security, BIMCO.

___________

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