GovernmentNews

Cook Islands, Sao Tome and Principe Accede to Cape Town Agreement

By The Maritime Executive 2019-10-21 21:31:26

The Cook Islands and Sao Tome and Principe have become the latest States to become Party to the Cape Town Agreement on fishing vessel safety. They deposited their instruments of accession during the Torremolinos Ministerial Conference on Fishing Vessel Safety a and Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing (October 21-23). At the same time, they joined 44 other countries signing the Torremolinos Declaration, a non-legally binding political instrument. By signing the Declaration, the 46 States publicly indicate their determination to...

Second Japanese Aircraft Carrier Wreck Discovered

By The Maritime Executive 2019-10-21 20:32:43

The Japanese aircraft carrier Akagi, sunk on June 5, 1942 during the Battle of Midway, has been identified by Vulcan Inc. using the research vessel Petrel. This is the second Japanese carrier to be discovered this month by the company - the Kaga was also discovered. The wreck of Akagi was found 5,280 meters (more than 17,000 feet) below the surface of the Central Pacific in the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument, Hawaii. The Battle of Midway was a decisive naval...

Labor Reforms Signal End of Kafala System in Qatar

By The Maritime Executive 2019-10-19 22:42:18

Qatar has announced reforms aimed at ending the kafala system and therefore upholding the rights of migrant workers. “Kafala” is an Arabic word which means “sponsorship.” Kafala is unique to the Middle East. The Kafala system allows nationals to employ non-Gulf nationals. The power is entirely in the hands of the employer/sponsor known as the kafeel. The kafeel can dictate the conditions and terms of work, including the accommodation of the work migrant. The subjugation of the Kafala system has...

Baseline Study Published on Human Rights in Taiwanese Fisheries

By The Maritime Executive 2019-10-19 20:21:07

Human Rights at Sea has published a new baseline study in relation to the Taiwanese coastal and deep water fishing industry is response to ongoing field reporting of systemic human rights abuses for national and migrant crews. The publication titled Awareness and Application of Human Rights in Taiwan’s Fishing Industry is part of the series of baseline studies being undertaken by Human Rights at Sea to quantify and qualify the levels of understanding and application of human rights provisions and...

Sunken Japanese Aircraft Carrier Kaga Discovered

By The Maritime Executive 2019-10-19 17:37:04

Wreckage from the Japanese aircraft carrier IJN Kaga has been discovered in Hawaii. The vessel sank in the 1942 Battle of Midway, and the wreckage was found in 5,400 meters (over 17,000 feet) of water in the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument by Vulcan Inc., using the R/V Petrel. Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Imperial Japanese Navy hoped another defeat would destroy the U.S. Pacific Fleet. Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto planned to invade Midway, luring American aircraft carriers into an...

Two Shipping Companies Fined $1.8M for MARPOL Violations

By The Maritime Executive 2019-10-18 23:12:38

Chartworld Shipping and Liberian holding company Nederland Shipping Corp. pled guilty this week to two sets of U.S. federal charges - the first for their vessel's failure to notify the U.S. Coast Guard of a leaking hull and the second for presenting false documents that covered up vessel oil pollution. On Feb. 21, 2019, the Coast Guard’s Marine Safety Detachment out of Lewes, Delaware, conducted a PSC inspection of Chartworld's vessel, the Nederland Reefer. During the course of the inspection, the...

In Potential Win for UK Ports, Johnson Negotiates New Brexit Deal

By The Maritime Executive 2019-10-17 19:51:23

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has negotiated a deal on trade and customs with the European Union, and all EU27 leaders have agreed to it. The agreement includes an important concession to the EU, one that the previous administration of Prime Minister Theresa May had firmly ruled out: Northern Ireland will still be subject to European customs rules after Brexit. Under pressure from the Irish government, EU negotiators have insisted that there should be no "hard" border on the island...

U.S. Coast Guard Offloads $90M Cocaine Haul in San Diego

By The Maritime Executive 2019-10-17 16:54:28

The 1969-built U.S. Coast Guard cutter Alert called at the Port of San Diego Wednesday to offload $92 million worth of seized cocaine. The drugs were seized in four separate interdictions off the coasts of Mexico, Central and South America in the international waters of the Eastern Pacific. Three cutters - the Alert, the Robert Ward and the Seneca - contributed to the haul. Alert was responsible for two of the four cases, seizing a total of about two tons of...

Welcome to the Geoengineered Arctic

By Mia Bennett 2019-10-16 17:47:52

This past weekend, as has happened every October for seven years now, over a thousand participants from around the world gathered in Iceland’s capital to discuss their visions for the future of the Arctic. At the first meeting of the Arctic Circle in 2013, natural resource extraction was the theme of the day. Numerous presentations opened by underscoring the 90 billions of barrels oil and 44 billion barrels of natural gas estimated to lie under the ice by the U.S....

Animated Film Draws Scrutiny for Use of China's "Nine-Dash Line"

By The Maritime Executive 2019-10-16 16:10:35

American animation studio DreamWorks faces criticism in Vietnam, Taiwan and the Philippines over its new movie, "Abominable," which includes a scene with a map depicting China's "nine-dash line" claim to most of the South China Sea. The Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague invalidated China's sweeping maritime claims in the region in a 2016 ruling, finding that "no legal basis for China to claim historic rights" to the area, but China has largely ignored the decision. The "nine-dash line" is...