Identification systems urged for ships plying Malacca Strait<\/p>\n
SINGAPORE (AFP): The International Maritime Organization (IMO)
\ncalled Thursday for ships passing through the narrow Malacca
\nStrait to be equipped with an automatic identification system to
\nprevent accidents.<\/p>\n
IMO Secretary-General William O'Neil said ships fitted with
\ntransponders could give information such as their name, position,
\nspeed and course when asked under a mandatory reporting system
\nbeing implemented in the strait.<\/p>\n
The London-based IMO is the United Nations watchdog for
\nmaritime safety and prevention of pollution from ships.<\/p>\n
A new mandatory ship reporting system was introduced in the
\nMalacca Strait in December 1998 but its effectiveness depended
\nvery much on the compliance by the estimated 30,000 vessels that
\nply the busy waterway every year, he said.<\/p>\n
The system was implemented by the littoral states Malaysia,
\nSingapore and Indonesia.<\/p>\n
\"There is always the possibility that some vessels will not
\nreport in, which can result in their not being readily identified
\nand contacted in the event of an emergency,\" O'Neil told an
\ninternational conference here.<\/p>\n
The two-day conference on navigational safety and pollution
\ncontrol on the Straits of Malacca and Singapore was attended by
\nofficials from the littoral states as well as top shipping
\nexecutives, acdemics and maritime policy officials.<\/p>\n
The 520-mile (836-kilometer) accident-prone Malacca Strait
\nlies between the west coast of Thailand and Malaysia on the
\nnortheast, and the coast of Sumatra in Indonesia on the
\nsouthwest.<\/p>\n
Together with the Singapore Strait, it forms the main seaway
\nconnecting the Indian Ocean with the China Sea. It provides a
\nvital link between the Indian and Pacific Oceans and is the
\nshortest route for oil tankers trading between the Persian Gulf
\nand East Asian countries.<\/p>\n
O'Neil said the safe navigation of ships in the Malacca and
\nSingapore straits was vital to cope with an escalation in traffic
\nto about 40,000 to 50,000 vessels per year along that
\ninternational waterway.<\/p>\n
The IMO chief also suggested that shore authorities be given
\npowers to issue orders to ships to help them avoid mishaps at
\nsea.<\/p>\n
Under existing regulations, shore authorities have the right
\nto contact ships in potential distress and warn of the danger
\nahead but they have no powers to compel a change of course.<\/p>\n
\"I think that we should ask ourselves if the time has not come
\nto question this approach and to empower the shore authorities,
\nin certain cases, to order ships to take whatever action
\nnecessary to avoid an accident,\" he said.<\/p>\n
O'Neil said one of the oldest traditions of the sea -- that
\nthe authority of the ship's master should be paramount -- \"may no
\nlonger be valid in a world that is becoming dominated by new
\ntechnology.<\/p>\n
\"At locations where reporting in is mandatory -- and is obeyed
\n-- the shore authorities know the position of all vessels, their
\nidentity, track and speed.<\/p>\n
\"By observing their radar screen, they can, for example,
\ndetermine that if a ship continues on its present course it will
\nrun aground in 10 minutes or that it is on a collision course
\nwith another craft,\" he said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/identification-systems-urged-for-ships-plying-malacca-strait-1447893297",
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