Tag: maritime law

UK to host international conference on Somalia next month The British government should consider bringing Somali pirates to Britain for trial, lawmakers said on Thursday, accusing the government of not doing enough to tackle a problem that cost $135 million in ransoms last year alone.Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee also called on the government -- which recently announced it will permit British merchant ships sailing off Somalia to carry armed guards -- to state clearly when these guards may legally open fire."We conclude that for too long there has been a noticeable gap between the (British) government's rhetoric and its action," the influential committee said in a report on Somali piracy.Britain will host an international conference on Feb. 23 to try to agree on measures to tackle instability and piracy in the east African country, described by Prime Minister David Cameron as a "failed state that directly threatens British interests."Pirates operating from the Somali coast have raked in hundreds of millions of dollars in ransoms from hijacking ships and currently hold up to 10 ships and 200 hostages .The lawmakers said that despite nine U.N. Security Council resolutions and three multinational naval operations, counter-piracy policy had had limited impact."The number of ...

Inadequacy of our piracy laws necessitates additional legislative measures The Democratic Independent Workers' Association (DIWA) party-list representative is asking the House committee on overseas workers affairs to look into the recent sea piracy incidents involving Filipino seafarers.In House Resolution 1474, filed last week by DIWA party-list Rep. Emmeline Aglipay, the "inquiry in aid of legislation" would pave the way to ensure that all Filipino seamen are "accorded the equal protection of the law.""The inadequacy of our piracy laws necessitates additional legislative measures to make them more all-encompassing, so as not to prejudice other Filipino seafarers who are likewise prone to pirate attacks," she said.In particular, Aglipay noted that the government should provide "double compensation and benefits" to any victims of sea piracy. Under the present rules, only victims of hijacking in "high risk" zones are given double compensation, while those who become victims in other areas are left with no recourse."The Philippine government must take an aggressive role in addressing the plight of our Filipino seafarers who will continue... becoming victims of these illegal activities," Aglipay said, noting that the seamen have greatly boosted the Philippine economy through their remittances.There are over 300,000 Filipino seafarers, comprising around 30 percent of ...

Interest rate subsidies and other financial measures Russia will prepare a law to support shipbuilding industry in Far East by next week, Vice Prime Minister Sergey Ivanov said Sunday while inspecting the construction of maritime terminal on Kunashir Island.According to the RIA Novosti report, the document will include a number of measures aimed at economical support of the sector, among them interest rate subsidies and other financial measures.Besides, the law will make provisions for measures aimed at ship owner's advantages in building ships at domestic shipyards.Meanwhile, Ivanov also said geothermal energy development is necessary for the region."We need to develop geothermal stations. New stations have to be built here," Invanov said at a conference on the islands on "Social and Economic Development of the Kuril Islands 2007-2015" under Russia's Federal Target Program.Ivanov noted that the main purpose of his visit to the Islands is to check the progress on the federal target program for Russia's Far East, with an aim to tackle three major problems of the region -- transport infrastructure, energy and social services.The financing for the program will amount to 15 billion rubles (0.54 billion U.S. dollars) till 2015, which will not be affected despite the financial crisis.Ivanov ...