Over view of Maritime Conventions

STCW 1978 Convention and Code

Convention:

Resolutions: 19

Articles I - XVII (17 articles)

Regulations: 8
Level of Competency: 3
1. Management
2. Operational
3. Support
Functions: 7
1. Navigation
2. Cargo
3. Controlling ship operations and care of persons
4. Marine Engineering
5. Repair and Maintenance
6. Electrical, Electronics and Automation
7. Radio Communication
Competency/Proficiency/ROE/Revalidation as per STCW 1978, as amended
1. Written Examination
2. Oral Examination
3. Proficiency Examination
Code:
Part A: Mandatory, 8 chapters
Part B: Guidance, 8 chapters
Chapters I - VIII (8 regulations)
Chapter I – General Provisions (16 Regulations)
Regulation I/1 – Definitions and clarifications
Regulation I/2 – Certificates and Endorsements
Regulation I/3 – Principles governing near-coastal voyages
Regulation I/4 – Control procedures
Regulation I/5 – National provisions
Regulation I/6 – Training and Assessment
Regulation I/7 – Communication of Information
Regulation I/8 – Quality Standards
Regulation I/9 – Medical Standards
Regulation I/10 – Recognition of Certificates
Regulation I/11 – Revalidation of Certificates
Regulation I/12 – Use of Simulators
Regulation I/13 – Conduct of Trails
Regulation I/14 – Responsibilities of Companies
Regulation I/15 – Transitional Provisions
Regulation I/16 – Verification of Compliance
VICT – Vertical Integration Course for Trainers
AECS – Assessment, Examination and Certification of Seafarers
TSTA – Train the Simulator Trainer and Assessor Course

Chapter II – Master and Deck Department (5 Regulations)

Regulation II/1 – Mandatory minimum requirements for certification of officers
in charge of a navigational watch on ships of 500 gross tonnage or more.
Regulation II/2 – Mandatory minimum requirements for certification of Masters
and Chief Mates on ships of 500 gross tonnage or more.
Regulation II/3 – Mandatory minimum requirements for certification of officers
in charge of a navigational watch and of masters on ships of less than 500 gross
tonnage.
Regulation II/4 – Mandatory minimum requirements for certification of Rating
formatting part of a navigational watch
Regulation II/5 – Mandatory minimum requirements for certification of ratings
as Able Seafarer Deck
Chapter III – Engine Department (7 Regulations)
Regulation III/1 – Mandatory minimum requirements for certification of officers
in charge of an engineering watch in a manned engine-room or designated duty
engineers in a periodically unmanned engine-room
Regulation III/2 – Mandatory minimum requirements for certification of Chief
Engineer officers and second engineer officers on ships powered by main
propulsion machinery of 3,000 kw propulsion power or more
Regulation III/3 – Mandatory minimum requirements for certification of Chief
Engineer officers and second engineer officers on ships powered by main
propulsion machinery of between 750 kw and 3,000 kw propulsion power
Regulation III/4 – Mandatory minimum requirements for certification of ratings
forming part of a watch in a manned engine-room or designated to perform
duties in a periodically unmanned engine-room
Regulation III/5 – Mandatory minimum requirements for certification of ratings
as Able Seafarer Engine in a manned engine-room or designated to perform
duties in a periodically unmanned engine-room
Regulation III/6 – Mandatory minimum requirements for certification of Electro
Technical Officers
Regulation III/7 – Mandatory minimum requirements for certification of Electro
Technical Rating

Chapter IV – Radiocommunication and Radio operators (2 Regulations)

Regulation IV/1 – Application
Regulation IV/2 – Mandatory minimum requirements for certification of GMDSS
Radio Operators
Chapter V – Special Training requirements for personnel on certain types of
ships (4 Regulations)
Regulation V/1-1 – Mandatory minimum requirements for the training and
qualifications of Masters, officers and rating on oil and chemical tankers
Regulation V/1-2 – Mandatory minimum requirements for the training and
qualifications of Masters, officers and rating on liquified gas tankers
Regulation V/2 – Mandatory minimum requirements for the training and
qualifications of Masters, officers, rating and other personal on passenger ships
Regulation V/3 – Mandatory minimum requirements for the training and
qualifications of Masters, officers, rating and other personal on ships subject to
IGF Code.
Regulation V/4 – Mandatory minimum requirements for the training and
qualifications of Master
FAL convention (The Convention on Facilitation of International Maritime Traffic)

• The Convention on Facilitation of International Maritime Traffic (FAL), 1965 was adopted on 9 April.
• The Convention's main objectives are to prevent unnecessary delays in maritime traffic, to aid co-operation
between Governments, and to secure the highest practicable degree of uniformity in formalities and other
procedures. In particular, the Convention reduces to just SEVEN the number of declarations which can be
required by public authorities.

Standards and recommended practices

• In its Annex, the Convention contains "Standards" and "Recommended Practices" on formalities,
documentary requirements and procedures which should be applied on arrival, stay and departure to the
ship itself, and to its crew, passengers, baggage and cargo.

• The Convention defines standards as internationally-agreed measures which are "necessary and practicable in
order to facilitate international maritime traffic" and recommended practices as measures the application of
which is "desirable".

• The Convention provides that any Contracting Government which finds it impracticable to comply with any
international standard, or deems it necessary to adopt differing regulations, must inform the Secretary-
General of IMO of the "differences" between its own practices and the standards in question. The same
procedure applies to new or amended standards.
In the case of recommended practices, Contracting Governments are urged to adjust their laws accordingly but are only required to notify
the Secretary-General when they have brought their own formalities, documentary requirements and procedures into full accord.

The IMO Standardized Forms (FAL 1-7)

Standard 2.1 lists the documents which public authorities can demand of a ship and recommends the maximum information and number of
copies which should be required. IMO has developed Standardized Forms for seven of these documents. They are:

IMO General Declaration

• Cargo Declaration

• Ship's Stores Declaration

• Crew's Effects Declaration

• Crew List

• Passenger List

• Dangerous Goods

The general declaration, cargo declaration, crew list and passenger list constitute the maximum information necessary. The ship's stores
declaration and crew's effects declaration incorporate the agreed essential minimum information requirements.
 SAR Convention
Home
Adoption: 27 April 1979
Entry into force: 22 June 1985

• The 1979 Convention, adopted at a Conference in Hamburg, was aimed at developing an

international SAR plan, so that, no matter where an accident occurs, the rescue of persons in
distress at sea will be coordinated by a SAR organization and, when necessary, by cooperation
between neighboring SAR organizations.

• Although the obligation of ships to go to the assistance of vessels in distress was enshrined both in
tradition and in international treaties (such as the International Convention for the Safety of Life at
Sea (SOLAS), 1974), there was, until the adoption of the SAR Convention, no international system
covering search and rescue operations. In some areas there was a well-established organization
able to provide assistance promptly and efficiently, in others there was nothing at all.
 SUA convention:

• Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Safety of Maritime Navigation, Protocol for the
Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Safety of Fixed Platforms Located on the Continental Shelf

• Adopted 10 March 1988; Entry into force 1 March 1992; 2005 Protocols: Adopted 14 October 2005; Entry into force 28 July 2010

• Concern about unlawful acts which threaten the safety of ships and the security of their passengers and crews grew during the 1980s, with
reports of crews being kidnapped, ships being hi-jacked, deliberately run aground or blown up by explosives. Passengers were threatened and
sometimes killed.

• In November 1985 the problem was considered by IMO's 14th Assembly and a proposal by the United States that measures to prevent such
unlawful acts should be developed by IMO was supported.

• Measures to prevent unlawful acts against passengers and crews on board ships.

• In November 1986 the Governments of Austria, Egypt and Italy proposed that IMO prepare a convention on the subject of unlawful acts
against the safety of maritime navigation 'to provide for a comprehensive suppression of unlawful acts committed against the safety of
maritime navigation which endanger innocent human lives, jeopardize the safety of persons and property, seriously affect the operation of
maritime services and thus are of grave concern to the international community as a whole."

• In March 1988 a conference in Rome adopted the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Maritime
Navigation. The main purpose of the Convention is to ensure that appropriate action is taken against persons committing unlawful acts
against ships. These include the seizure of ships by force; acts of violence against persons on board ships; and the placing of devices on
board a ship which are likely to destroy or damage it.
•
 Nairobi International Convention on the Removal of Wrecks
Adoption: 18 May, 2007; Entry into force: 14 April 2015

• The Nairobi International Convention on the Removal of Wrecks, 2007, was adopted by an international conference held in Kenya in 2007.
• the Convention provides the legal basis for States to remove, or have removed, shipwrecks that may have the potential to affect adversely the safety of lives, goods and property at sea, as well as the
marine environment.
• The Convention provides a set of uniform international rules aimed at ensuring the prompt and effective removal of wrecks located beyond the territorial sea.
• The Convention also includes an optional clause enabling States Parties to apply certain provisions to their territory, including their territorial sea.
• Although the incidence of marine casualties has decreased dramatically in recent years, mainly thanks to the work of IMO and the persistent efforts of Governments and industry to enhance safety in
shipping operations, the number of abandoned wrecks, estimated at almost thirteen hundred worldwide, has reportedly increased and, as a result, the problems they cause to coastal States and shipping
in general have, if anything, become more acute.
• These problems are three-fold: first, and depending on its location, a wreck may constitute a hazard to navigation, potentially endangering other vessels and their crews; second, and of equal concern,
depending on the nature of the cargo, is the potential for a wreck to cause substantial damage to the marine and coastal environments; and third, in an age where goods and services are becoming
increasingly expensive, is the issue of the costs involved in the marking and removal of hazardous wrecks. The convention attempts to resolve all of these and other, related, issues.
• The Convention provides a sound legal basis for coastal States to remove, or have removed, from their coastlines, wrecks which pose a hazard to the safety of navigation or to the marine and coastal
environments, or both. The treaty also covers any prevention, mitigation or elimination of hazards created by any object lost at sea from a ship (e.g. lost containers).

• The Convention makes shipowners financially liable and require them to take out insurance or provide other financial security to cover the costs of wreck removal. It also provides States with a right of
direct action against insurers.

• The Convention defines "Wreck", following upon a maritime casualty, as:

• (a) a sunken or stranded ship; or

• (b) any part of a sunken or stranded ship, including any object that is or has been on board such a ship; or
• (c) any object that is lost at sea from a ship and that is stranded, sunken or adrift at sea; or
• (d) a ship that is about, or may reasonably be expected, to sink or to strand, where effective measures to assist the ship or any property in danger are not already being taken.

• Articles in the Convention cover:

• reporting and locating ships and wrecks - covering the reporting of casualties to the nearest coastal State; warnings to mariners and coastal States about the wreck; and action by the coastal State to locate
the ship or wreck;
• criteria for determining the hazard posed by wrecks, including depth of water above the wreck, proximity of shipping routes, traffic density and frequency, type of traffic and vulnerability of port facilities.
Environmental criteria such as damage likely to result from the release into the marine environment of cargo or oil are also included;
• measures to facilitate the removal of wrecks, including rights and obligations to remove hazardous ships and wrecks - which sets out when the shipowner is responsible for removing the wreck and when a
State may intervene; liability of the owner for the costs of locating, marking and removing ships and wrecks - the registered shipowner is required to maintain compulsory insurance or other financial
security to cover liability under the convention; and settlement of disputes.
 International Convention on Salvage
Adoption: 28 April 1989; Entry into force: 14 July 1996

• The Convention replaced a convention on the law of salvage adopted in Brussels in 1910 which incorporated the "'no cure, no pay" principle
under which a salvor is only rewarded for services if the operation is successful.

• Although this basic philosophy worked well in most cases, it did not take pollution into account. A salvor who prevented a major pollution
incident (for example, by towing a damaged tanker away from an environmentally sensitive area) but did not manage to save the ship or the
cargo got nothing. There was therefore little incentive to a salvor to undertake an operation which has only a slim chance of success.

• The 1989 Convention seeks to remedy this deficiency by making provision for an enhanced salvage award taking into account the skill and efforts
of the salvors in preventing or minimizing damage to the environment.

• Special compensation
• The 1989 Convention introduced a "special compensation" to be paid to salvors who have failed to earn a reward in the normal way (i.e. by
salving the ship and cargo).

• Damage to the environment is defined as "substantial physical damage to human health or to marine life or resources in coastal or inland waters
or areas adjacent thereto, caused by pollution, contamination, fire, explosion or similar major incidents."

• The compensation consists of the salvor's expenses, plus up to 30% of these expenses if, thanks to the efforts of the salvor, environmental
damage has been minimized or prevented. The salvor's expenses are defined as "out-of-pocket expenses reasonably incurred by the salvor in the
salvage operation and a fair rate for equipment and personnel actually and reasonably used".

• The tribunal or arbitrator assessing the reward may increase the amount of compensation to a maximum of 100% of the salvor's expenses, "if it
deems it fair and just to do so".

• If, on the other hand, the salvor is negligent and has consequently failed to prevent or minimize environmental damage, special compensation
may be denied or reduced. Payment of the reward is to be made by the vessel and other property interests in proportion to their respective
salved values.
 Convention relating to Civil Liability in the Field of Maritime Carriage of Nuclear Material (NUCLEAR)

Adoption: 17 December 1971; Entry into force: 15 July 1975

In 1971 IMO, in association with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the European
Nuclear Energy Agency of the Organization for Economic Co‑operation and Development (OECD),
convened a Conference which adopted a Convention to regulate liability in respect of damage arising
from the maritime carriage of nuclear substances.

The purpose of this Convention is to resolve difficulties and conflicts which arise from the
simultaneous application to nuclear damage of certain maritime conventions dealing with
shipowners' liability, as well as other conventions which place liability arising from nuclear incidents
on the operators of the nuclear installations from which or to which the material in question was
being transported.

The 1971 Convention provides that a person otherwise liable for damage caused in a nuclear incident
shall be exonerated for liability if the operator of the nuclear installation is also liable for such damage
by virtue of the Paris Convention of 29 July 1960 on Third Party Liability in the Field of Nuclear Energy;
or the Vienna Convention of 21 May 1963 on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage; or national law which
is similar in the scope of protection given to the persons who suffer damage.
 Athens Convention relating to the Carriage of Passengers and their Luggage by Sea (PAL)

Adoption: 13 December 1974; Entry into force: 28 April 1987; 2002 Protocol: Adoption: 1 November 2002; Entry into force: 23 April 2014

• The Convention was adopted at a Conference, convened in Athens in 1974 and was designed to consolidate and harmonize two earlier Brussels conventions dealing with passengers and
luggage and adopted in 1961 and 1967 respectively.

• The Convention establishes a regime of liability for damage suffered by passengers carried on a seagoing vessel. It declares a carrier liable for damage or loss suffered by a passenger if the
incident causing the damage occurred in the course of the carriage and was due to the fault or neglect of the carrier.
•
• However, unless the carrier acted with intent to cause such damage, or recklessly and with knowledge that such damage would probably result, he can limit his liability. For the death of, or
personal injury to, a passenger, this limit of liability is set at 46,666 Special Drawing Rights (SDR) per carriage. The 2002 Protocol, when it enters into force, will introduce compulsory
insurance to cover passengers on ships and substantially raise those limits to 250,000 SDR per passenger on each distinct occasion. .

• As far as loss of or damage to luggage is concerned, the carrier's limit of liability varies, depending on whether the loss or damage occurred in respect of cabin luggage, of a vehicle and/or
luggage carried in or on it, or in respect of other luggage.
•
• The 1976 Protocol made the unit of account the Special Drawing Right (SDR), replacing the "Poincaré franc", based on the "official" value of gold, as the applicable unit of account.

• The 1990 Protocol was intended to raise the limits set out in the convention but it did not enter into force and was superseded by the 2002 Protocol.

• The 2002 Protocol

• Adoption: 1 November 2002
• Entry into force: 12 months after being accepted by 10 States

• The Protocol introduces compulsory insurance to cover passengers on ships and raises the limits of liability. It also introduces other mechanisms to assist passengers in obtaining
compensation, based on well-accepted principles applied in existing liability and compensation regimes dealing with environmental pollution. These include replacing the fault-based liability
system with a strict liability system for shipping related incidents, backed by the requirement that the carrier take out compulsory insurance to cover these potential claims.

• The limits contained in the Protocol set a maximum limit, empowering - but not obliging - national courts to compensate for death, injury or damage up to these limits.

• The Protocol also includes an "opt-out" clause, enabling State Parties to retain or introduce higher limits of liability (or unlimited liability) in the case of carriers who are subject to the
jurisdiction of their courts.
 Convention on Limitation of Liability for Maritime Claims (LLMC)
Adoption: 19 November 1976; Entry into force: 1 December 1986; Protocol of 1996: Adoption: 2 May 1996; Entry into force: 13 May 2004

The Convention replaced the International Convention Relating to the Limitation of the Liability of Owners of Seagoing Ships, which was signed in Brussels in 1957, and came into force in 1968.
Under the 1976 Convention, the limit of liability for claims covered is raised considerably, in some cases up to 250-300 per cent. Limits are specified for two types of claims - claims for loss of life or
personal injury, and property claims (such as damage to other ships, property or harbour works).
The limits under the 1976 Convention were set at 333,000 SDR for personal claims for ships not exceeding 500 tons plus an additional amount based on tonnage. For other claims, the limit of liability was
fixed under the 1976 Convention at 167,000 SDR plus additional amounts based on tonnage on ships exceeding 500 tons.
The Convention provides for a virtually unbreakable system of limiting liability. Shipowners and salvors may limit their liability, except if "it is proved that the loss resulted from his personal act or
omission, committed with the intent to cause such a loss, or recklessly and with knowledge that such loss would probably result".

Protocol of 1996 Adoption: 2 May 1996

Entry into force: 13 May 2004

Amendments to 1996 Protocol

Adoption: 19 April 2012
Entry into force: 8 June 2015

Under the Protocol the amount of compensation payable in the event of an incident being substantially increased and also introduces a "tacit acceptance" procedure for updating these amounts.

The limit of liability for claims for loss of life or personal injury on ships not exceeding 2,000 gross tonnage is 2 million SDR.

Under the amendments to the 1996 Protocol, the limits are raised as follows:

The limit of liability for claims for loss of life or personal injury on ships not exceeding 2,000 gross tonnage is 3.02 million SDR (up from 2 million SDR).

For larger ships, the following additional amounts are used in calculating the limitation amount:
• For each ton from 2,001 to 30,000 tons, 1,208 SDR (up from 800 SDR)
• For each ton from 30,001 to 70,000 tons, 906 SDR (up from 600 SDR)
• For each ton in excess of 70,000, 604 SDR (up from 400 SDR).

The limit of liability for property claims for ships not exceeding 2,000 gross tonnage is 1.51 million SDR (up from 1 million SDR).

For larger ships, the following additional amounts are used in calculating the limitation amount:
• For each ton from 2,001 to 30,000 tons, 604 SDR (up from 400 SDR)
• For each ton from 30,001 to 70,000 tons, 453 SDR (up from 300 SDR)
• For each ton in excess of 70,000 tons, 302 SDR (up from 200 SDR).
INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANISATION

The only tripartite U.N. agency, since 1919 the ILO brings together governments, employers and workers of 187
Member States , to set labour standards, develop policies and devise programmes promoting decent work for all
women and men.

The Constitution of the ILO was drafted in early 1919 by the Labour Commission, chaired by Samuel Gompers,
head of the American Federation of Labour (AFL) in the United States. It was composed of representatives from
nine countries: Belgium, Cuba, Czechoslovakia, France, Italy, Japan, Poland, the United Kingdom and the United
States.

The process resulted in a tripartite organization, the only one of its kind, bringing together representatives of
governments, employers and workers in its executive bodies.

The driving forces for the ILO's creation arose from security, humanitarian, political and economic
considerations. The founders of the ILO recognized the importance of social justice in securing peace, against a
background of the exploitation of workers in the industrializing nations of that time. There was also increasing
understanding of the world's economic interdependence and the need for cooperation to obtain similarity of
working conditions in countries competing for markets.
 Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 (MLC)
MLC, 2006 Preamble and Articles
Explanatory note to the regulations and code of the maritime labour convention
Title 1. Minimum requirements for seafarers to work on a ship
Title 2. Conditions of employment
Title 3. Accommodation, recreational facilities, food and catering
Title 4. Health protection, medical care, welfare and social security protection
Title 5. Compliance and enforcement Appendixes

Appendix A2-I
Appendix A4-I
Appendix B4-I
Appendix A5-I
Appendix A5-II :
- Maritime Labour Certificate
- Declaration of Maritime Labour Compliance - Part I, II
- Interim Maritime Labour Certificate
Appendix A5-III
Appendix B5-I - EXAMPLE of a National Declaration
Amendments of 2014 to the Maritime Labour Convention, 2006