TNAG-0357-FCO40-393-Registration-of-merchant-shipping-in-Hong-Kong-1972 — Page 55

DEPARTMENT OF TRADE AND INDUSTRY

SHIPPING POLICY DIVISION 2

The Adelphi John Adam Street London WC2N 6BQ Telegrams Civilair London Telex Telex No 22294 22-\\ G

Telephone 01-836 1207 ext 1846

2.

(.cc.

P.D.T. Depr

ki. ་ཤརྟལ་

O.L.A.

52

6

with the. Dankkeis

1:

تعلاما

نگاها

3. June +

Let To HK

my 3. MATH4 July.

Your reference HKK 21/2

ro HK of

M

Goodfellow Esq

Hong Kong & Indian Ocean Dept Foreign & Commonwealth office

Our reference FSR/37/72

RECEIVED IN

London SW1

Date 13 July 1972.

REGISTY No.51 17 JUL 1972

CONFIDENTIAL

Dear Goodfellow

HKK 21/2

LAST

IV.

(36)

NAKY

FLAGS OF CONVENIENCE

REF.

Please refer to Drukker's letter of 30 June.

Pice-Oxley of the British Shipping Federation phoned me this afternoon to report on the outcome of his talks with Blyth on 3 July and of subsequent developments. He said he had got no further with Blyth than to confirm the BSF's interpretation of ITF policy. He had established with Blyth that Hong Kong registered ships with Hong Kong/Chinese crews were not at risk under the ITF rules. Rice-Oxley also said that the Swires' ships, registered in the UK and operating in Hong Kong and the China Sea, which were manned by Chinese, were also not at risk. This is because although the Swires' ships come under the ITF definition of crews of convenience, there is an agreement with the National Maritime Board (representing seafarers unions and the British Shipping Federation) under which the MB approves or disapproves the employment of non-UK seafarers.

Rice-Oxley also referred to the blacking in Australia, of which we are aware. He said this was a worrying new aspect. The British ship concerned, which had an Indian crew (and which would not normally be at risk under the ITF rules) was on charter to the Germans and the ITF claimed that the Germans were trying to evade ITF policy. The ITF ad advised their Australian affiliate to boycott the ship. The BSF oot the boycott called off. But the BSF are worried by this case because chartering is a common shippino practice; and the Cermans, rather than trying to evade ITF rules, may have chartered the vessel merely because they needed a refrigerated ship at that particular time. Rice- Oxley had surrested this possibility to Blyth, but did not convince him, and rot no further.

Rice-Oxley said, in confidence, that the German member of the Hong Kong Shipowners Association had arrived at the British Shipping Federation recently and had discussed the problem of Hong Kong. The German was worried about his own ships which are registered under the Liberian flag and operate from Hong Kong with Indonesian crews. The BSF had surrested various arrangements which the German might suprest to the ITF. The German subsequently met Blyth, then phoned the BSF to report that he had got nowhere and that his ships were at risk.

Rice-Oxley said the most difficult problem to solve related to flag of convenience ships. The BSF could not think up any compromise formula to ret an FOC ship out of trouble. They could only surrest that the ITF's definition of an FOC ship was wrong. The ITF definition of an FOC ship is a 'ship owned by

ship owned by a company other than a company registered in the country of the flar'. All the BSF could do was to surrest that the definition should relate to a ship operated by rather than owned by.