IMO calls for ‘proper balance’ in access to ships

IMO calls for ‘proper balance’ in access to ships    The International Maritime Organization’s Maritime Safety Committee, which met last week at IMO headquarters in London, has urged “a proper balance” be found for security, access to ships, and shore leave for crew personnel.
   The panel acknowledged “the protection of the human rights of seafarers and port workers and the requirement to maintain the safety … of a ship, particularly when allowing access for activities such as the taking on of stores, repair and maintenance of essential equipment, and other vital activities that are appropriately undertaken when a ship is moored at port facilities.”
   The committee also said the implementation of maritime security rules adopted by the IMO in 2002 “must be given urgent priority.”
   The IMO safety panel approved a circular on guidelines for such implementation. They include advice on security measures and procedures to be applied “at the ship/port interface when either the ship or the port facility do not comply with requirements of the Safety of Life At Sea (SOLAS) chapter XI and of the International Ship and Port Facility (ISPS) Code,” the IMO said in a statement.
   The guidelines also cover implementation of the ISPS Code in relation to shipyards.
   In other business, the Maritime Safety Committee amended existing conventions in regard to search and rescue services, and the status of persons in distress after rescue at sea.