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International Conference of All Maritime Related Concerns, Both Governmental and Private, on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships
Tokyo Appeal
The governmental authorities of participating States and region (hereinafter referred to just as the "States" but that includes "region"), shipping companies and other participants who attended this meeting,
BEING PROFOUNDLY CONCERNED about the rising trend in the number of acts of piracy and armed robbery against ships, including hijacking and other heinous and organized acts particularly committed in the waters of Southeast Asia,
TAKING INTO ACCOUNT the IMO recommendation (MSC/Circ.622/Rev.1 and MSC/Circ.623/Rev.1) adopted in the Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) on May 1999, AIMING AT implementing these recommendations, and ALSO RECOGNIZING the role and responsibility of flag States,
ACKNOWLEDGING that in taking measures to combat piracy and armed robbery against ships, it is first necessary to achieve a detailed understanding of the actual situation of piracy and armed robbery against ships,
CONSIDERING the need to ensure unfailng reporting by ships, in the event of any victimization, in view of the indispensability of immediate reporting to the concerned authorities of such incidents, so that States in whose internal waters or territorial sea piracy and armed robbery against ships occur (hereinafter referred to as "coastal States/port States") can crack down swiftly and effectively on piracy and armed robbery against ships,
CONSIDERING ALSO that, because some victimized ships have not taken adequate preventive measures, there is a need to seek more thorough measures by ships, and BEING AWARE anew that preparedness and action by shipping companies themselves is fundamental to the prevention of piracy and armed robbery against ships,
RECOGNIZING that the basis for undertaking measures to combat piracy and armed robbery against ships within maritime policy authorities in the flag States or other substantially interested States is for shipping companies to provide guidance and supervision in, and to create an environment conducive to, the taking of appropriate measures to combat piracy and armed robbery against ships, including reporting of such incidents by (ships owned or operated by) shipping companies,
RECOGNIZING ALSO that measures which should be taken by the coastal States/port States consist of cracking down and other enforcement operations designed to prevent piracy and armed robbery against ships and, in the event of piracy and armed robbery against ships, to conduct lifesaving and other rescue missions and to investigate the case,
EMPHASIZING that because most of recent cases of armed robbery against ships occur in the internal waters or territorial sea of a given State, it is above all necessary to strengthen crackdown measures by coastal States/port States in whose internal waters or territorial sea such acts take place,
CONSIDERING FURTHER that because many cases of victimization occur to ships which are berthed, anchored or adrift in or near ports, it is necessary to fortify countermeasures by authorities having jurisdiction over such territorial areas as well as to strengthen vigilance by ships in or near ports,
RECOGNIZING FURTHER that a truly effective response cannot be achieved without mutual coordination and cooperation in measures taken by the relevant authorities , and that acts of piracy and armed robbery against ships, like other incidents relating to ships, affect a large number of States, including the flag States or other substantially interested States as well as the coastal States/port States in whose internal waters or territorial sea such acts occur,
NOTING THAT, owing to the increase of heinous acts such as hijacking by international syndicates in recent years, there is an increasing prevalence toward the involvement of multiple States, and consequently the demand is becoming all the more pressing to strengthen liaison and cooperative structures embracing all States concerned within the affected area,
EMPHASIZING its importance of Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Safety of Maritime Navigation (SUA), and the Protocol which was adopted in 1988 under the auspices of IMO,
ACKNOWLEDGING ALSO that piracy and armed robbery against ships is not an issue that can be resolved if relevant authorities, flag States and other substantially interested States and coastal States/port States, each take measures independently based on their individual positions, but an issue that can be effectively tackled only when such parties mutually coordinate and cooperate in a manner transcending their individual positions,
1. REITERATE their firm resolve to cooperate, devise and implement all possible measures to combat piracy and armed robbery against ships;
2. RESOLVE, based on the foregoing, to prepare their own action plan, whose elements are outlined below, and swiftly implement appropriate measures;
1) Implementation and enhancement of self-protection measures on ships, such as the introduction of position notification system technology, geared against hijacking and other heinous and organized acts;
2) Preparation of an environment conducive to enforcing thorough reporting from victim ships to coastal States/port States relevant authorities, so that coastal States/port States can take swift and effective measures in the event of an act of piracy and armed robbery against ships
3) Establishment of a legal framework by coastal States/port States to facilitate and enhance effective prosecution of the alleged criminals
4) Development of a system enabling effective and dynamic countermeasures to be taken by all the relevant authorities working in concert
5) As a means of promoting the exchange of information and coordination internationally, among competent authorities with expertise of each State, establishment of a comprehensive information network of all the governmental authorities concerned, by designating relevant offices as their operational contact points in addition to the existing diplomatic channel
6) Sharing and joint use of data relating to piracy and armed robbery against ships, as a way of contributing to the fortification of self-protection measures by ships, as well as to the early discovery of the missing ships by relevant authorities.
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