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2 JULY 2013. - An Act to Accredit the Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships, made in Hong Kong on May 15, 2009 (1)(2)(3)

ALBERT II, King of the Belgians,
To all, present and to come, Hi.
The Chambers adopted and We sanction the following:
Article 1^er. This Act regulates a matter referred to in Article 77 of the Constitution.
Art. 2. The Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships, made in Hong Kong on 15 May 2009, will take full and full effect.
Art. 3. The amendments to the Annex to the Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships, made in Hong Kong on 15 May 2009, which are adopted pursuant to Article 18 of the Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships, made in Hong Kong on 15 May 2009, without Belgium opposing their adoption, will come out their full and full effect.
Promulgate this Act, order that it be put on the State Seal and published by the Belgian Monitor.
Given in Brussels, 2 July 2013.
ALBERT
By the King:
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs,
D. REYNDERS
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the North Sea,
J. VANDE LANOTTE
Seal of the state seal:
The Minister of Justice,
Ms. A. TURTELBOOM
____
Notes
(1) House of Representatives (www.lachambre.be):
Documents: 53-2733
Full report: 29/04/2013
(2) See Decree of the Flemish Community/Flemish Region of 13 November 2015 (Belgian Monitor of 2 December 2015), Decree of the Walloon Region of 13 March 2014 (Belgian Monitor of 28 March 2014), Order of the Brussels-Capital Region of 27 March 2014 (Belgian Monitor of 7 May 2014).
(3) List of related States.

List of related States


INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION ON HONG KONG
for the safe and environmentally sound recycling of ships
THE PARTIES TO THE CONVENTION,
NOTING the growing concerns regarding safety, health, environment and well-being issues in the ship recycling industry,
RECOGNIZING that recycling of ships contributes to sustainable development and that as such, it is the best solution for vessels that have reached the end of their operational life,
RECALLING Resolution A.962(23), adopted by the Assembly of the International Maritime Organization (Directives on the Recycling of Ships), the amendments to these guidelines adopted by resolution A.980(24), decision VI/24 of the sixth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Bssle Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal, which adopted the technical guidelines for the environmentally sound management of the dismant^e session (Security and Health in the Ship Demolition Sector: Guiding Principles for Asian and Turkey Countries),
RECALLING AUSSI Resolution A.981(24), by which the Assembly of the International Maritime Organization invited the Organization's Marine Environment Protection Committee to develop a mandatory instrument on ship recycling,
NOTING EQUALEMENT the role of the International Labour Organization in protecting safety and health at work of workers involved in ship recycling,
NOTING IN ORDER the role of the Bssle Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal by protecting human health and the environment from the harmful effects that may result from these wastes,
ANYTHING ESPRIT is the precautionary approach set out in principle 15 of the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development and referred to in resolution MEPC.67(37), which the Organization's Marine Environment Protection Committee adopted on 15 September 1995,
AYANT AUSSI A SPIRIT is the need to promote the replacement of potentially dangerous substances used in the construction and maintenance of ships by substances that are less potentially hazardous or, preferably, substances that are not potentially dangerous, without compromising the safety of ships, the safety and health of seafarers and the effectiveness of the operation of ships,
RESOLUES to effectively address, in a legally binding instrument, the risks to the environment and to safety and health at work related to the recycling of vessels, while taking into account the special characteristics of sea transport and the need to ensure the smooth removal of vessels that have reached the end of their operational life,
CONSIDERING that the best way to achieve these objectives is to adopt an international convention for the safe and environmentally sound recycling of ships,
AGAINST WHO ITS:
Article 1
General obligations
1. Each Party to this Convention undertakes to give full and complete effect to its provisions in order to prevent, limit, minimize and, to the extent practicable, eliminate accidents, bodily injury and other harmful effects of ship recycling on human health and the environment and to enhance the safety of ships, the protection of human health and the environment throughout the operational life of a ship.
2. Nothing in this Convention shall be construed as preventing a Party from taking, individually or jointly with other Parties, more stringent measures in accordance with international law, in respect of the safe and environmentally sound recycling of vessels, in order to prevent, limit or minimize any harmful effects on human health and the environment.
3. The Parties shall endeavour to cooperate to ensure the effective implementation, compliance and implementation of this Convention.
4. Parties are committed to promoting the continued development of techniques and practices that contribute to the safe and environmentally sound recycling of ships.
5. The Annex to this Convention is an integral part of this Convention. Unless otherwise expressly provided, any reference to this Convention shall at the same time be a reference to its Annex.
Article 2
Definitions
For the purposes of this Convention, unless otherwise expressly stated:
1. "Convention" means the Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships, 2009.
2. "Administration" means the government of the State whose ship is authorized to defeat the flag or under whose authority it is operated.
3. "Competent Authority or Authorities" means the authority or government authorities designated by a Party to perform, in a specific geographic area or area or area of competence, functions related to the recycling facilities of vessels operating under the jurisdiction of that Party, as specified in this Convention.
4. "Organization" means the International Maritime Organization.
5. "Secretary General" means the Secretary General of the Organization.
6. "Committee" means the Organization's Marine Environment Protection Committee.
7. " Navire" means a bsstiment, of any type, operated or operated in a marine environment and includes submersible equipment, floating equipment, floating platforms, self-lifting platforms, floating storage units (FSU) and floating production, storage and unloading units (FPSO), including a ship that has been disarmed or is towed.
8. "Green gauge" means the gross gauge calculated in accordance with the gauge rules set out in Annex I to the 1969 International Convention on the Measurement of Ships, or any subsequent convention.
9. "Possible hazardous matter" means any substance or substance that could endanger human health and/or the environment.
10. "Recycling of ships" means the activity of dismantling in whole or in part a vessel in a recycling facility to recover the elements and materials that can be retired or reused, while taking care of potentially hazardous materials and other materials, and includes all operations that relate to that activity, such as the storage and on-site processing of the elements and materials, but not their subsequent processing or disposal in the event of the reprocessing of the materials.
11. " Ship recycling facility" means a defined area that is a site, site or facility used for ship recycling.
12. "Recycling Company" means the owner of the ship recycling facility or any other body or person to whom the owner of the facility has entrusted the responsibility for the performance of the ship recycling activity and who, by assuming that responsibility, has agreed to carry out all tssches and obligations imposed by this Convention.
Article 3
Scope
1. Except as otherwise expressly provided in this Convention, this Convention shall apply:
.1 to vessels authorized to defeat the flag of a Party or operated under its authority;
.2 to recycling facilities for vessels operating under the jurisdiction of a Party.
2. This Convention does not apply to war vessels, auxiliary war vessels or other vessels owned or operated by a Party and used exclusively for non-commercial public service at that time. However, each Party shall ensure, by taking appropriate measures that do not compromise the operations or operational capacity of such vessels owned or operated by it, that they act in a manner consistent with this Convention, provided that this is reasonable and feasible in practice.
3. This Convention does not apply to vessels of a gross tonnage of less than 500 or vessels that are operated throughout their lives only in waters under the sovereignty or jurisdiction of the State of which they are authorized to defeat the flag. However, each Party shall ensure, by taking appropriate measures, that such vessels act in a manner consistent with this Convention, provided that this is reasonable and feasible in practice.
4. In the case of vessels authorized to defeat the flag of States not Parties to this Convention, the Parties shall apply the requirements of this Convention to the extent necessary to ensure that such vessels do not receive more favourable treatment.
Article 4
Vessel recycling control measures
1. Each Party shall require that vessels authorized to fly its flag or operated under its authority comply with the requirements set out in this Convention and take effective measures to ensure such compliance.
2. Each Party shall require that the recycling facilities for vessels under its jurisdiction comply with the requirements set out in this Convention and take effective measures to ensure such compliance.
Article 5
Visits and issuance of certificates
Each Party shall ensure that vessels flying its flag or operating under its authority and who are to be visited and to obtain certificates are subject to visits and to obtain certificates under the rules of the Annex.
Article 6
Authorization to ship recycling facilities
Each Party shall ensure that the recycling facilities for vessels operating under its jurisdiction and that recycle vessels to which this Convention applies or vessels subject to the same treatment under section 3.4 of this Convention are authorized in the manner prescribed in the rules of the Annex.
Article 7
Exchange of information
If ship recycling facilities obtain the authorization of a Party, the Party shall communicate to the Organization, if so requested, and to the Parties requesting the relevant information, under this Convention, on the basis of which it has made the decision to grant an authorization. The information is exchanged promptly and in a timely manner.
Article 8
Inspection of ships
1. A ship to which this Convention applies may, in any port or terminal off another Party, be inspected by agents duly authorized by that Party for the purpose of determining whether it meets this Convention. Except as provided in paragraph 2, an inspection of this type shall be limited to verifying that there is an ongoing international certificate on board that certifies that the vessel has a Potentially Hazardous Material Inventory or a valid international certificate certifying that the vessel is ready for recycling, in which case these certificates must be accepted.
2. If the vessel does not have a valid certificate or there are good reasons to believe that:
.1 the state of the vessel or its equipment does not in substance correspond to the indications of the certificate and/or Part I of the Inventory of potentially hazardous substances; or
.2 no procedure shall be carried out on board the vessel to update Part I of the Inventory of Potential Hazardous Materials, an in-depth inspection may be carried out in the light of the guidelines developed by the Organization.
Article 9
Search for offences
1. The Parties shall cooperate in the search for offences and the implementation of the provisions of this Convention.
2. Where there is sufficient evidence that a vessel is exploited, operated or is about to be operated in violation of a provision of this Convention, a Party that holds such evidence may request that the vessel be inspected at its entry into a port or offshore terminal under the jurisdiction of another Party. The inspection report is sent to the Party that requested inspection, to the administration of the vessel in question and to the Organization so that each party can take the measures it considers appropriate.
3. If the vessel is found to be in breach of this Convention, the Party conducting the inspection may make arrangements to warn the vessel, retain it, order its departure or exclude it from its ports. A Party taking these measures shall immediately inform the administration of the vessel in question and the Organization.
4. Any Party should inspect a ship recycling facility under its jurisdiction and prepare a report if it receives an inquiry from another Party with sufficient evidence that the vessel recycling facility is being operated, operated or is about to be operated in violation of any provision of this Convention. The report of this investigation is sent to the Party that has requested the investigation, together with information on the measures that have been taken or that could be taken, and to the Organization to take appropriate action.
Article 10
Offences
1. Any breach of the requirements of this Convention shall be prohibited under national legislation and:
.1 in the case of an offence vessel, penalties shall be provided by the law of the administration to which the vessel concerned reports, regardless of where the offence is committed. If the administration is informed by a Party of such an offence, it conducts an investigation and may request the Party that has informed it to provide additional evidence of the alleged offence. If the administration is satisfied that there is sufficient evidence to allow it to prosecute the alleged offence, it shall initiate such proceedings as soon as possible in accordance with its legislation. The administration shall promptly inform the Party that has reported the alleged offence and the Organization of any action taken. If the administration has not taken any action within one year of receipt of the information, it shall inform the Party that has reported the alleged offence and the Organization of the reasons why it has not taken any action;
.2 in the case of a recycling facility for vessels in violation, penalties shall be provided by the legislation of the Party under which the recycling facility for the vessels in question is located. If the Party is informed of such an offence by another Party, it conducts an investigation and may request the Party that has informed it to provide additional evidence of the alleged offence. If it is satisfied that there is sufficient evidence to allow it to prosecute the alleged offence, it shall initiate such proceedings as soon as possible in accordance with its legislation. It shall promptly inform the Party that has reported the alleged offence and the Organization of any action taken. If it did not take any action within one year of receipt of the information, it shall inform the Party that reported the alleged offence and the Organization of the reasons why it did not take any action.
2. Any breach of the requirements of this Convention in the jurisdiction of a Party shall be prohibited and shall be subject to sanctions under the legislation of that Party. Each time such an offence occurs, the Party shall:
(1) to prosecute in accordance with its legislation;
.2 either provide the administration to which the vessel in question is responsible for the information and evidence that it may hold that there has been an offence.
3. Sanctions under the legislation of a Party pursuant to this Article shall be, by their rigor, in order to discourage offences under this Convention wherever they may be committed.
Article 11
Undue loss or retention of vessels
1. It should be avoided, to the extent possible, that a vessel is unduly retained or delayed as a result of the application of Article 8, 9 or 10 of this Convention.
2. A vessel that has been unduly retained or delayed as a result of the application of Article 8, 9 or 10 of this Convention shall be entitled to compensation for losses or damage suffered.
Article 12
Disclosure of information
Each Party shall provide to the Organization and the Organization, in the appropriate form, the following information:
.1 a list of vessels recycling facilities authorized under this Convention and operating under the jurisdiction of that Party;
.2 the coordinates of the Authority or the competent authorities, including a single point of contact, of that Party;
3. a list of recognized bodies and designated inspectors who are authorized to act on behalf of that Party in the administration of matters relating to the recycling of vessels in accordance with this Convention, the specific conditions under which the authority was delegated to recognized bodies or designated inspectors and the specific responsibilities assigned to them;
.4 the annual list of vessels flying the flag of that Party to which an international certificate certifying that the vessel is ready for recycling has been issued, including the name of the recycling company and the location of the recycling facility for vessels indicated on that certificate;
.5 the annual list of vessels that have been recycled within the jurisdiction of that Party;
information on offences under this Convention; and
.7 actions taken against vessels and recycling facilities for vessels under the jurisdiction of that Party.
Article 13
Technical assistance and cooperation
1. Parties undertake, directly or through the Organization and other international organizations, as appropriate, to provide, for the safe and environmentally sound recycling of vessels, their support to Parties requesting technical assistance in order to:
Training of staff;
ensure the availability of relevant technologies, equipment and facilities;
.3 launch joint research and development programmes; and
.4 take further measures to ensure the effective implementation of this Convention and the directives thereto prepared by the Organization.
2. Parties undertake to cooperate actively, without prejudice to their national legislation, regulations and policies, to the transfer of management systems and techniques in the safe and environmentally sound recycling of ships.
Article 14
Settlement of disputes
Parties shall settle any dispute between them with respect to the interpretation or application of this Convention by negotiation or by any other peaceful means agreed between them, such as investigation, mediation, conciliation, arbitration, judicial settlement or resort to regional bodies or agreements.
Article 15
Relationship with international law and other international agreements
1. Nothing in this Convention shall affect the rights and obligations of any State under the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and customary international law of the sea.
2. Nothing in this Convention affects the rights and obligations of Parties under other relevant and applicable international agreements.
Article 16
Signature, ratification, acceptance, approval and accession
1. This Convention shall be open for signature by any State at United Nations Headquarters of 1^er September 2009 to 31 August 2010 and then remains open to membership.
2. States may become Parties to this Convention by:
.1 unconditional signature of ratification, acceptance or approval; or
.2 signature subject to ratification, acceptance or approval, followed by ratification, acceptance or approval; or
.3 accession.
3. Ratification, acceptance, approval or accession shall be effected by the deposit of an instrument to that effect with the Secretary-General.
4. If a State has two or more territorial units in which different legal regimes are applicable in respect of matters dealt with in this Convention, it may, at the time of signature, ratification, acceptance, approval or accession, declare that this Convention applies to all of its territorial units or only to one or more of them and may amend that declaration by submitting another declaration at any time.
5. A statement made under paragraph 4 shall be notified in writing to the Secretary-General and expressly refers to the unit or territorial units to which this Convention applies.
6. At the time of expressing its consent to be bound by this Convention, a State declares whether or not it requires that a ship's recycling plan be expressly or tacitly approved so that the vessel may be recycled to its vessel recycling facilities. Such a declaration may be amended at a later date by notification to the Secretary-General. This amendment shall be accompanied by the date on which it takes effect.
Article 17
Entry into force
1. This Convention comes into force twenty-four months after the date on which the following conditions are met:
.1 at least fifteen States either signed it unconditionally with respect to ratification, acceptance or approval, or deposited the required instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession in accordance with Article 16;
2. The merchant fleets of the States referred to in paragraph 1.1 represent a total of at least 40% of the gross tonnage of the world fleet of commercial vessels; and
.3 the maximum annual volume of recycling of vessels of the States referred to in paragraph 1.1 over the last ten years represents at least 3% of the gross tonnage of all the merchant fleets of the said States.
2. For States that have deposited an instrument of ratification, acceptance or approval of this Convention, or of accession to this Convention, after the conditions governing its entry into force have been met but before the date of its entry into force, ratification, acceptance, approval or accession takes effect on the date of the entry into force of this Convention, or three months after the date of the deposit of the instrument, if the latter
3. Any instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession deposited after the date of entry into force of this Convention shall take effect three months after the date of deposit of the instrument.
4. Any instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession deposited after the date on which an amendment to this Convention is deemed to have been accepted under section 18 applies to this Convention as amended.
Article 18
Amendments
1. This Convention may be amended by one of the procedures defined in the paragraphs below.
2. Amendments after review within the Organization:
Any Party may propose an amendment to this Convention. The proposed amendment shall be submitted to the Secretary-General who shall distribute it to the Parties and Members of the Organization at least six months before its consideration.
.2 An amendment proposed and circulated in the manner provided above shall be referred to the Committee for consideration. Parties, whether or not they are Members of the Organization, are authorized to participate in the deliberations of the Committee for the purpose of reviewing and adopting the amendment.
.3 The amendments shall be adopted by a two-thirds majority of the Parties present and voting in the Committee, provided that at least one third of the Parties are present at the time of the vote.
.4 Amendments adopted pursuant to paragraph 3 shall be communicated by the Secretary-General to the Parties for acceptance.
.5 An amendment is deemed to have been accepted in the following cases:
.5.1 An amendment to an article of this Convention shall be deemed to have been accepted on the date on which its acceptance was notified to the Secretary-General by two thirds of the Parties.
.5.2 An amendment to the Appendix shall be deemed to have been accepted upon the expiry of a time limit set by the Committee at the time of its adoption, which is not less than ten months after the date of its adoption. However, if, within this period, more than one third of the Parties notified the Secretary-General that they raise an objection to this amendment, the amendment is deemed not to have been accepted.
.6 An amendment shall enter into force under the following conditions:
.6.1. An amendment to an article of this Convention shall enter into force with respect to Parties that have declared that they have accepted it six months after the date on which it is deemed to have been accepted in accordance with paragraph .5.1.
.6.2 An amendment to the Annex comes into force for all Parties six months after the date on which it is deemed to have been accepted, with the exception of any Party that has:
.6.2.1 notified its objection to the amendment in accordance with paragraph .5.2. and did not withdraw that objection; or
.6.2.2 notified to the Secretary-General, prior to the entry into force of this amendment, that the amendment will enter into force only after further notification of its acceptance.
.6.3. A Party that has notified an objection under paragraph .6.2.1. may subsequently notify the Secretary-General that it accepts the amendment. This amendment comes into force for that Party six months after the date of notification of acceptance, or the date of entry into force of the amendment, if the latter date is later.
.6.4 If a Party that has sent a notification referred to in paragraph .6.2.2 shall notify the Secretary-General that it accepts an amendment, that amendment shall enter into force in respect of that Party six months after the date of notification of acceptance, or the date of entry into force of the amendment, if the latter date is later.
3. Amendment by conference:
1. At the request of a Party, supported by at least one third of the Parties, the Organization shall convene a conference of the Parties to consider amendments to this Convention.
2. An amendment adopted by the Conference by a two-thirds majority of the Parties present and voting shall be communicated by the Secretary-General to all Parties for acceptance.
3. Unless the Conference decides otherwise, the amendment shall be deemed to have been accepted and come into force in accordance with the procedures set out in paragraph 2.5. and 2.6., respectively.
4. Any Party that has not accepted an amendment to the Annex shall be considered not a Party for the sole purpose of applying this amendment.
5. Any notification under this article shall be sent in writing to the Secretary-General.
6. The Secretary-General shall inform the Parties and Members of the Organization:
1. any amendment that comes into force and the date of its entry into force in general and in respect of each Party; and
2. any notification made under this article.
Article 19
Denunciation
1. This Convention may be denounced by any of the Parties at any time after the expiration of a period of two years from the date on which it comes into force with respect to that Party.
2. The denunciation shall be made by written notification to the Secretary General and shall take effect one year after the date on which the depositary has received the notification or at the expiry of any other longer period specified in that notification.
Rule 20
Depositary
1. This Convention shall be deposited with the Secretary-General, who shall send certified copies to all States that have signed or acceded to it.
2. In addition to the functions specified in other provisions of this Convention, the Secretary-General shall:
informs all States that have signed or acceded to this Convention:
.1.1 any new signature or deposit of a new instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession, as well as their date;
.1.2. the effective date of this Convention; and
.1.3 the deposit of any instrument of denunciation of the Convention, as well as the date on which it was received and the date on which the denunciation takes effect; and
other declarations and notifications received under this Convention; and
2. Upon the entry into force of this Convention, the text shall be forwarded to the secretariat of the United Nations for registration and publication in accordance with Article 102 of the Charter of the United Nations.
Article 22
Languages
This Convention is prepared in a single original copy in the English, Arabic, Chinese, Spanish, French and Russian languages, each text being equally authentic.
DID HONG KONG this 15th May two thousand nine.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned, duly authorized to do so by their respective Governments, have signed this Convention.
Statement by the Kingdom of Belgium
In accordance with Article 16.6 of the Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships, Belgium states:
"Belgium states that a ship's recycling plan must be expressly approved so that the vessel can be recycled at its vessel recycling facilities."

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