Ministry Of Justice News

The second in a planned series of interactive workshops to prepare countries for a wide range of potential threats and security situations has been held, in Veracruz, Mexico (26-27 February).The interactive Port Facility Security/Port Security Officer Tabletop Exercise was run by International Maritime Organization (IMO) in collaboration with the Organization of American States Inter American Committee Against Terrorism (OAS-CICTE), following a successful pilot in Panama 2018.According to a press note from the UN body, participants in Mexico took part in a simulation exercise, designed to allow port facility security officers to develop their decision making skills in different situations…

Danish Ministry of Industry will launch a set of new initiatives to enhance safety at sea when operating water scooters, jet skis, speed boats and the like. The new initiatives are to prevent accidents at sea by securing, inter alia, that those riding water scooters have the skills needed and are familiar with current regulations. At the same time, the new initiatives are to make it easier to identify water scooters and their owners and to hold somebody responsible and intervene when the rules are not observed and others' safety is jeopardised. Minister for Industry, Business and Financial Affairs Brian Mikkelsen said: "It is important that everyone can feel safe in Danish waters and in our ports.

The Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) Dr. Dakuku Peterside has assured Nigerians and the international maritime community that the Federal Government is actively working to keep the menace of piracy and other illicit crimes in check on the nation’s territorial waterways. In this case the word are backed by action and investment, as the Nigerian government has approved the procurement of three helicopters and 12 fast intervention…

A recent visit to Cabo Verde November 30 to December 6 by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) provided an opportunity to meet various government agencies involved with maritime security and discuss the country’s future role in regional maritime security activities. Cabo Verde announced its intention to host the MultiNational Centre of Coordination (for Cabo Verde, Gambia, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Senegal) under the proposed operational framework to support the wider region’s maritime security Code of Conduct, which was signed by governments, including Cabo Verde, in 2013, to enhance cooperation to counter piracy and armed robbery at sea and other illicit maritime activity.

Foreign seafarers are being left stranded in British ports after their shipping companies flounder on the brink of bankruptcy. HM Courts and Tribunals Service said there were 42 warrants of arrest executed in the UK in 2011, up from 34 in 2010. The ships have been arrested by the Admiralty Marshall, a branch of the Ministry of Justice, due to unpaid fuel bills, mortgages and other maritime lien. Angry, confused and disillusioned crew members of various nationalities including Russian, Ukrainian and Belarusian, have been living in their vessels for months on end without being paid wages and without an idea of when they can return home, reports The Argus.

Foreign Office Minister Henry Bellingham's speech to the British Chamber of Shipping on the UK Government’s response to counter-piracy. One of the most important duties of a Government is to protect UK citizens, both at home and abroad. In the networked world of the 21st century, insecurity in pockets of the world ripples outwards and the impact can be felt here at home. Africa is a long way from the UK. But the crimes committed on the high seas off the coast of Somalia and off the coast of West Africa have a direct impact on the UK’s security, prosperity and the lives of British people.

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL; President: Koichi Muto) announced that the company is joining the “With All Our Hearts*1” international contribution project, to recycle children’s clothing, and will assist with transportation of the clothing. The project is sponsored by Japan’s Ministry of Justice. This project aims to donate second-hand children’s clothing collected at 150 Miki House Co., Ltd. stores throughout Japan. The items will be washed, sorted, repaired, and packaged by female inmates at the Mine Rehabilitation Program Center and distributed to children in Tanzania, where the Japanese Organization for International Cooperation in Family Planning (JOICFP) supports health- and hygiene-related initiatives.

The London P&I Club has warned its members about a spate of vessel arrests in Egypt, and in particular the port of Suez, in respect of claims for unsettled invoices in respect of supplies and/or services which have supposedly been provided to vessels. Writing in the latest issue of its StopLoss Bulletin, the Club says that, although suppliers have submitted false invoices with apparently authentic signatures of ship's staff and the ship's stamp, in most instances the master has been unable to explain how these have been affixed to the invoice. In other cases, invoices have been completely forged. Suppliers and their lawyers have also ordered the arrest of vessels as security in some instances.

Monica Mbanefo is gathering support for her bid to become the next Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization. for her in advance of the elections in June 2003. Mbanefo is currently Director of the Conference Division of IMO. world and demonstrable competence in running a large specialized UN agency. international organizations. Director/Head of the Legal Office of IMO. Fund Protocols, the HNS Convention and the Arrest of Ships 1999 Convention. in 1999 was promoted to Director, Conference Division. strengthening and reinforcing efficiency throughout the organization. and so improve implementation of existing regulations. that they support her candidature.