Sheryl Saurin Ms.

Grace
Rebuelta
BTM 33
Tranportation Mngt.

I. International Rules and Regulations

Registry
Rule 14 of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence of
the ICC provides that the Registrar shall put in place
regulations to govern the operation of the Registry.
In this context, the Registrar circulated, in April
2005, a draft set of regulations for the purpose of
consultation. (The Regulations of the Court were
adopted by the Judges on 26 May 2004, while the
Regulations of the Office of the Prosecutor are still
pending.)

Further, a large number of experts, including

representatives of NGOs, were invited to participate
in consultations on the draft regulations, which took
place from 25-27 May 2005. All participants were
divided into several working groups according to the
chapters of the draft regulations (Court
management, defence and counsel, translation and
interpretation, victims participation and reparations,
victims and witnesses protection and detention).
The staff of the Registry listened to the participants'
concerns and thereafter returned to the drafting
table to conclude a final draft to be submitted to the
Presidency for approval.

The Regulations of the Registry were made public on

19 April 2006, after being approved on 6 March by
the Presidency of the Court in accordance with Rule
14 of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence. These
Regulations provide for the practical arrangements
for the judicial proceedings and the operation of the
Registry itself.

Jones Act

A considerable number of our clients have raised

the question as to how the "Jones Act" effects them
in terms of their clients embarking and
disembarking during the duration of a cruise at an
intermediary port of call.

The Jones-Shafroth Act (the Jones Act as it is known)

was signed into law on March 2, 1917, by President
Woodrow Wilson. Even today, close to 90 years
later, many provisions of the Act a very pertinent
especially those dealing with Seamen's health,
accident and disability benefits. So what is the
"Jones Act" and how does it influence us as resellers
of cruises?

The Jones Act is the everyday name for Section 27 of

the Merchant Marine Act of 1920 (46 U.S.C. 883; 19
CFR 4.80 and 4.80b). Its intent is very simple, to
promote a healthy U.S-Flag fleet and protect that
fleet from unfair foreign competition, the Jones Act
requires that cargo moving between U.S. ports be
carried in a vessel that was built in the United States
and is owned (at least 75 percent) by American
citizens or corporations. Since the Jones Act vessels
are registered in the United States, our general labor
and immigration laws require that crewmembers be
American citizens or legal aliens. (In fact most
maritime nations have an equivalent to the Jones
Act - (50 countries).
International Safety of Life and Sea

The International Convention for the Safety of

Life at Sea (SOLAS) is the most important treaty
protecting the safety of merchant ships. The first
version of the treaty was passed in 1914 in response
to the sinking of the RMS Titanic. It prescribed
numbers of lifeboats and other emergency
equipment along with safety procedures, including
continuous radio watches.

Newer versions were adopted in 1929, 1948, 1960,

and 1974. The 1960 Convention - which was
activated in 1965 - was the first major achievement
for International Maritime Organization (IMO) after
its creation and represented a massive advance in
updating commercial shipping regulations and in
staying up-to-date with new technology and
procedures in the industry. The 1974 version
simplified the process for amending the treaty. A
number of amendments have been adopted since. In
particular, amendments in 1988 based on
amendments of International Radio Regulations in
1987 replaced Morse code with the Global Maritime
Distress Safety System (GMDSS) and came into
force beginning 1 February 1992.

The intention had been to keep the convention up to

date by periodic amendments, but the procedure to
incorporate the amendments proved to be very
slow: it could take several years for the amendments
to be put into action since countries had to give
notice of acceptance to IMO and there was a
minimum threshold of countries and tonnage. The
latest Convention in 1974 therefore included the
"tacit acceptance" procedure whereby amendments
enter into force by default unless nations file
objections that meet a certain number or tonnage.
II. Characteristics of Sea Transport in
the Philippines

Maritime Industry and Authority

The Philippines' Maritime Industry Authority

(Filipino: Pangasiwaan ng Kalakalang Pandagat),
abbreviated as MARINA, is an agency of the
Philippine government under the Department of
Transportation and Communications responsible for
integrating the development, promotion and
regulation of the maritime industry in the
Philippines.

MARINA has jurisdiction over the development,

promotion and regulation of all enterprises engaged
in the business of designing, constructing,
manufacturing, acquiring, operating, supplying,
repairing, and/or maintaining vessels, or component
parts thereof, of managing and/or operating
shipping lines, shipyards, drydocks, marine railways,
marine repair ships, shipping and freight forwarding
agencies and similar enterprises.

Philippines Port and Authority

The Philippines' Philippine Ports Authority (Filipino:

Pangasiwaang Pilipino sa mga Daungan),
abbreviated as PPA, is an agency of the Philippine
government under the Department of Transportation
and Communications responsible for financing,
management and operations of public ports
throughout the Philippines.