Cegzy
GIR PTI.
To: Director of Marine, through Dr. Cowley,
Assesment of deck officers
For Procosed Hong Kong Shipping Register
The arrangement for certification of officers in the draft agreement in principle between United Kingdom and Hong Kong Goverment at 2(b) was that "in the caso of experienced personnel, following a full assessment of training, certificates held and experience and an interview by a surveyor serving with the Hong Kong Coverment aimed at assessing technical competence and command of spoken English," certificates would be granted if standard was satisfactory.
2.
I have been stressing since the beginning of the D.T.I. visit here that the range and spread of candidates coming forward should be as wide and representativo as possible. To quote from the revised note of the meeting with the Director of Marine on 23rd October, 1973, "Captain Anderson requested that the candidates be drawn from as many shipping companies and nationalities as possible so as to provide a wide representative sample. This was in the companies' own interests and would enable the team to make a fairer assessment of the future possibility of manning these ships to British standaris. Hore sexier officers would be preferred then juniors."
3.
When the list of World Wide candidates was known some two weeks ago I expressed my concern that candidates from World Wide Shipping Company, headed by Mr. Y.K. PAU, the largest owner and prime instigator in the efforts to establish a new Hong Kong Register, chould only put forward four second officers. It was stated that all the senior officers were British certificated. I had some doubts about this and in the absence of possitive infomation urged that some senior officers should be included.
4.
Yesterday, the first of the four World Wide candidates came forward and I found out that they were all studying at the Polytechnic in Hong Kong for British Foreign-going Second Hates' Certificates and would be taking their examination either in December 1973 or January next year. I contacted Mr. Fletcher and pointed out that we could be placed in a most embarrassing position, for example, if I accepted a candidate, he might come up for the Statutory examination next month and fail and vice versa. Having seen the first two of these candidates I was able to make a good assessment and there is really no point, in the very short time available, inter- viewing any more of these junior officers who are studying and coming forward ghortly for a Statutory Certificate. Their qualifications will be quite satisfactory determined from their required sea service and the examination results,
/Cont'd.....