An STCW 95 Examiners' and Assessors' course was held at SPC in Suva from 25 Nov to 6 Dec 2002. 23 participants from ten Pacific Island Maritime Administrations and Training Institutions attended the course.

　

The STCW 1978 Convention (amended in 1995) sets out regulations on the training and assessment of sea farers required under the Convention. The Region now has SPC modules in place for deck and engine from Watchkeeper Rating to Class 3 master and engineer/watchkeeper. Standard examination and assessment practices are required.

　

The RMP contracted the New Zealand Maritime School to deliver a course on examining and assessing seafarers based on IMO model course 3.12, Examination and Certification of Seafarers. Subjects covered included STCW 95; Flag state responsibilities; assessment; assessment principles, testing methods and evaluation.

　

The guiding principles of assessment, such as using assessment to foster improvement; encouraging the development of self-assessment skills; assessing what really matters; considering the effects of assessment on student motivation and encouraging co-operation, set the tone of the two week training programme.

　

Two days were spent on administering an assessment. The competency of assessors and, more importantly, the attributes of good assessors were also discussed.

　

Diaries and learning logs, such as the seafarers' record books, is a good way to give students a greater sense of self-direction and involve a greater student responsibility. The record books can be completed over a period of time. SPC is developing record books for the various levels of certificate that are used in the Region.

　

In depth sessions were conducted on quality management; maritime education; setting standards; setting assessments and assessment control. A day was spent on moderating examinations. Participants compiled examination questions, which were then discussed by other course participants. Moderating techniques were also reviewed.

　

The use of ship simulators in general, and the SPC portable ship simulator in particular, was discussed, with emphasis on the use of the simulator in assessment.

　

RMP will work with various training providers to establish a bank of examination questions that can be used by the Region's Maritime Administrations and Training Institutions.

　

This programme got off to a good start in 2001 when the Govt of Taiwan/ROC approved funding in the amount of US$20,000 for 2002 and beyond Catherine Wiehe from the Department of Justice in FSM was the first Intern, attending at the RMP in Suva from O2/3 to 27/3 2002. In her report she said that she had really enjoyed the experience, learned a great deal about Maritime Law, and wanted to thank all those who had made it possible.

　

In November 2002 Joe Tagi from the Fiji Islands Maritime Safety Administration(FIMSA), commenced the Internship Programme. In early January, Inoke Ratotodro, also from FIMSA joined the programme.

　

The normal programme usually commences with a discussion of governance and the three "Heads" of government, the Legislature (Parliament and possibly an Upper House), the Executive and the Judiciary and how those are organized in different PICs. Then, amazingly, a trip back into English History is useful as most international maritime law today is based on English Common Law and British 18th and 19th Century statutes. Discussion centred on the adoption of some Roman law in Britain, as well as the retention of many Roman words in the English language, especially in the law.

　

The syllabus, as yet unwritten but in the process of being recorded, moves on to the development of the Codes of Maritime Law from the days of the Phoenicians, Greeks and Romans, to the Rolls of Oleron in the south of France, then to the Hanseatic League of Northern Germany and the Baltic. Many aspects of these regional Codes eventually found their way into customary international maritime law, much of which is quite different from other forms of law. The peculiarities range from the attribution of a legal personality to a vessel, to the concept of bills of lading, to the idea of limitation of liability, to the ability of certain persons to hold liens against a ship. All these concepts make maritime law a pretty unique branch of the overall body of law.

　

More people from PICs have requested a place on the programme this year. One person is a lecturer of law from the University of the South Pacific who wants to study maritime law, and then develop a syllabus so that maritime law can be taught at the Law Faculty in Port Vila, Vanuatu.

　

One of the perennial problems has been that most mariners get worried when the word "law" is mentioned, since it represents a concept that most only have a passing knowledge of from the course "Shipmaster's Business". Most lawyers, on the other hand, never learn much about maritime law in law school - in many law schools it is not taught, and in others there is only a single "elective" that touches the surface - so to most qualified lawyers Maritime Law and all things maritime are a bit of a mystery.

　

The purpose of the Regional Maritime Legal Internship Programme is to take the fear out of the law for mariners and to remove the mystery for lawyers. Its other purpose is to give lawyers enough knowledge of things maritime so that they might be able to discuss issues and take legal instructions from maritime administrators, and better understand maritime matters when attending court, arbitrations or inquiries. The other side of the coin is to allow maritime administrators, surveyors, port operators and others with a maritime background to appreciate legal concepts, feel familiar with the language and not be intimidated by legal issues concerning maritime events.

　

IMO is the only UN Organization involved with international shipping. It came into existence in 1958 when a number of international maritime conventions were already in place, but as those conventions became obsolescent as a result of new developments, IMO sponsored conferences at which new conventions or protocols to existing Conventions were adopted.

　

The main governing bodies of IMO are the Assembly, consisting of all members, but only meeting once every two years, and the Council, comprising a smaller number of members, which meets more often and gives more frequent direction to the Secretariat. However, it is at the committee meetings that most of the detailed business gets done. There are four main committees. They are the Maritime Safety Committee, Marine Environment Protection Committee. Legal Committee and the Facilitation Committee, Developments in shipping and other related industries are discussed by Member States in these bodies, and the need for a mew convention or amendments to existing conventions can be raised in Assembly, Council or one of the committees. Normally the suggestion is first made in one of the committees, since these meet mote frequently than the main organs. If agreement is reached in the committee, the proposal goes to the Council and, as necessary, to the Assembly. These bodies give the authorisation to proceed with the work and the committee concerned considers the matter in greater detail and ultimately draws up a draft instrument. Here, member States have representation and opportunity to input. In some cases the subject may be referred to a specialised sub-committee for detailed consideration. Intergovernmental and international non-governmental organizations that have a working relationship with IMO have an opportunity to contribute. In some cases these organizations have direct experience in the various matters under consideration, and are therefore able to assist in practical ways.

　

The draft convention is sent to the Council and Assembly, with a recommendation that a conference be convened to consider the draft for formal adoption. Invitations are sent to all Member States of IMO and also to States that are members of the United Nations. All Governments participate on an equal footing. In addition, organizations in official relationship with IMO are invited to send observers to the conference to give the benefit of their expert advice to the representatives of Governments. Before the conference opens, the draft convention is circulated to the invited Governments and organizations for their comments. The draft convention, together with the comments, is then examined by the conference and necessary changes are made in order to produce a draft acceptable to all or the majority of the Governments present The convention thus agreed upon is then adopted by the conference and deposited with the Secretary-General who sends copies to Governments.

　

A State may also sign a treaty "subject to ratification, acceptance or approval". In such a situation, signature does not signify the consent of a State to be bound by the treaty. However, Article 18(a) of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties does oblige the State to refrain from acts which would defeat the object and purpose of the treaty until such time as it has made its intention clear not to become a party to the treaty.

　

The terms signature, ratification, acceptance, approval and accession refer to some of the methods by which a State can express its consent to be bound by a treaty. After adoption, the convention is then open for signature by States, usually for a period of 12 months. Signatories may ratify or accept the convention, while nonsignatories may accede. Most multilateral treaties contain a clause providing that a State may express its consent to be bound by the instrument by signature subject to ratification. In such a situation, signature alone will not suffice to bind the State, but must be followed up by the deposit of an instrument of ratification with the depositary of the treaty. This option of expressing consent to be bound by signature subject to ratification, acceptance or approval originated in an era when international communications were not instantaneous, as they are today. It was a means of ensuring that a State representative did not exceed their powers or instructions with regard to the making of a particular treaty.

　

The words acceptance and approval basically mean the same as ratification, but they are less formal and non-technical and might be preferred by some States that might have constitutional difficulties with the term ratification. Many States nowadays choose this option, especially in relation to multinational treaties, as it provides them with an opportunity to ensure that any necessary legislation is enacted and other constitutional requirements fulfilled before entering into treaty commitments.

　

Accession is the method used by a State to become a party to a treaty which it did not sign whilst the treaty was open for signature. Technically, accession requires the State in question to deposit an Instrument of Accession with the depositary, which is the Secretary General of the IMO for all IMO conventions. Article 15 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties provides that consent by accession is possible where the treaty so provides, or where it is otherwise established that the negotiating States were agreed or subsequently agreed that consent by accession could occur.

　

Before the convention comes into force and before it becomes binding upon Governments that have ratified or acceded to it, it has to be accepted formally by individual Governments. Each convention includes appropriate provisions stipulating conditions which have to be met before it enters into force. These conditions vary but generally speaking, the more important and more complex the document, and the more stringent are the conditions for its entry into force. For example, the International Convention into for the Safety of Life at Sea, 1974, provided that entry into force requires acceptance by 25 States whose merchant fleets comprise not less than 50 per cent of the world's gross tonnage.² The International Convention on Tonnage Measurement of Ships, 1969, required acceptance by 25 States whose combined merchant fleets represent not less than 65 per cent of world tonnage.¹

　

When the appropriate conditions have been fulfilled, the convention enters into force for the States which have accepted - generally after a period of grace intended to enable all the States to take the necessary measures for implementation.

　

　

Captain Dr. Peter Heathcote has extended his contract with SPC for another 18 months - from 1 January 2003 to 30 June 2004. Captain Dr. Heathcote arrived at the Forum Secretariat on a two-year contract in October 1993. This contract was funded under the original Canada - South Pacific Ocean Development Programme (CSPOD).The proposed agenda was overly ambitious, and the two-year was extended for 18 months; then that contract extended for another 18 - months; and then that contract was extended for another 12 - months. The 1995 Amendments to the STCW Convention were circulated and the need to comply with this "new" convention became crucial for most PICs. During this time, the Maritime Division of the Forum Secretariat moved to the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) and became known as the Regional Maritime Programme. The RMLA then went on SPC Core Budget and was awarded a three-year contract that expired on 31 December 2002.

　

By the end of the new contract in mid-2004, most PICs will have;

　

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16 April, 2003