13 MAI 2003. - An Act to Accredit the International Convention on Assistance, made in London on April 28, 1989 (1) (2)

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 Constution.
Art. 2. The International Convention on Assistance, made in London on 28 April 1989, will come out with its full effect.
Promulgation of this law, let us order that it be clothed with the seal of the State and published by the Belgian Monitor.
Given in Brussels on 13 May 2003.
ALBERT
By the King:
Minister of Foreign Affairs,
L. MICHEL
The Minister of Employment, responsible for Mobility and Transport,
Ms. L. ONKELINX
Seal of the state seal:
Minister of Justice,
Mr. VERWILGHEN
____
Notes
(1) Session 2003-2004.
Senate:
Parliamentary documents. - Bill tabled on 26 February 2003, No. 2-1502/1. - Report, no. 2-1502/2.
Annales parliamentarians. - Discussion, meeting of 20 March 2003. - Vote, meeting of 20 March 2003.
Chamber of Representatives:
Parliamentary documents. - Project transmitted by the Senate, No. 50-2394/1. - Text adopted in plenary and subject to Royal Assent, No. 50-2394/2.
Annales parliamentarians. - Discussion, meeting of 3 April 2003. - Vote, meeting of 3 April 2003.
(2) See Decree of the Flemish Region of 7 May 2004 (Moniteur belge du 14 juillet 2004), decree of the Walloon Region of 29 January 2004 (Moniteur belge du 1^er March 2004), decree of the Brussels-Capital Region of 5 December 2003 (Belgian Monitor of 22 January 2004)

1989 International Convention on Assistance
THE STATES PARTIES TO THE CONVENTION,
Acknowledging the desirability of establishing uniform international rules on assistance operations by convention,
Noting that important new elements and, in particular, greater concern for the protection of the environment, have demonstrated the need to review the international rules currently contained in the Convention for the Unification of Certain Marine Assistance and Rescue Rules, made in Brussels on 23 September 1910,
Recognizing the considerable contribution that efficient and timely assistance operations can make to the safety of ships and other assets at risk and to the protection of the environment,
Convinced of the need to ensure that there are adequate incentives for persons engaged in assistance operations with respect to ships and other dangerous goods,
agreed that:
CHAPTER I^er. - General provisions
Article 1^er
Definitions
For the purposes of this Convention:
(a) Assistance means any act or activity undertaken to assist a vessel or other property in danger in water or in any other water.
(b) Navire means any marine building, boat or equipment, or any structure capable of navigating.
(c) Well means any property that is not permanently and intentionally attached to the shoreline and includes the cargo at risk.
(d) Damage to the environment means material damage to human health, marine fauna or flora or sea resources in coastal or inland waters or adjacent areas, caused by pollution, contamination, fire, explosion or similar serious events.
(e) Payment means the settlement of any remuneration, reward or compensation payable under this Convention.
(f) Organization means the International Maritime Organization.
(g) Secretary General means the Secretary General of the Organization.
Article 2
Implementation of the Convention
This Convention shall apply whenever judicial or arbitral proceedings relating to matters dealt with in this Convention are brought into a State Party.
Article 3
Platforms and drilling units
This Convention does not apply to fixed or floating platforms or to mobile offshore drilling units where these platforms or units are assigned, where they are located, to the exploration, exploitation or production of mineral resources from the seabed.
Article 4
State-owned vessels
1. Without prejudice to the provisions of Article 5, this Convention shall not apply to war vessels or other non-commercial vessels owned or operated by a State and entitled, in the course of assistance operations, to sovereign immunity under generally recognized principles of international law, unless that State decides otherwise.
2. When a State Party decides to apply the Convention to its warships or other vessels described in paragraph 1, it shall notify the Secretary-General of the procedure and conditions of such application.
Article 5
Assistance operations
carried out under the control of public authorities
1. This Convention shall not affect any of the provisions of national legislation or an international convention relating to assistance operations carried out by or under public authorities.
2. However, assistants conducting such operations are entitled to avail themselves of the rights and remedies provided for in this Convention for assistance operations.
3. The extent to which a public authority that is obliged to perform assistance operations may avail itself of the rights and remedies provided for in this Convention is determined by the law of the State in which that authority is located.
Article 6
Assistance contracts
1. This Convention applies to any assistance transaction except where a contract otherwise provides, either expressly or implicitly.
2. The master has the authority to enter into assistance contracts on behalf of the vessel's owner. The master or owner of the vessel has the authority to enter into such contracts on behalf of the owner of the property on board the vessel.
3. Nothing in this section affects the application of section 7 or the obligation to prevent or limit damage to the environment.
Article 7
Cancellation and amendments to contracts
A contract or any of its clauses may be cancelled or amended if:
(a) the contract was concluded under improper pressure or under the influence of danger and its clauses are not fair; or if
(b) the payment agreed under the contract is far too high or too low for the services actually rendered.
CHAPTER II. - Implementation of assistance operations
Article 8
Obligations of Assistant, Owner and Captain
1. The Assistant has the obligation to:
(a) perform the assistance operations with due care;
(b) where the obligation referred to in paragraph (a) is fulfilled, act with appropriate care to prevent or limit damage to the environment;
(c) whenever the circumstances reasonably require, to seek assistance from other assistants; and
(d) accept the intervention of other assistants when reasonably requested to do so by the master or owner of the vessel or other assets in danger; However, it is understood that the amount of his remuneration is not affected if it turns out that the claim was not reasonable.
2. The master and owner of the vessel or owner of the other dangerous goods shall, in respect of the assistant, be obliged to:
(a) cooperate fully with him during assistance operations;
(b) in doing so, act with appropriate care to prevent or limit damage to the environment; and
(c) where the vessel or other property has been taken in a safe place, to accept the return of the vessel when the assistant reasonably requests it.
Article 9
Rights of coastal States
No provision of this Convention shall affect the right of the coastal State concerned to take measures, in accordance with the generally recognized principles of international law, to protect its coastline or related interests against pollution or a threat of pollution resulting from a sea accident, or acts related to such an accident, which may reasonably be expected to have serious adverse consequences, including the right of a coastal State to give instructions on assistance operations.
Article 10
Duty to provide assistance
1. Every captain is obliged, as far as he can do so safely for his ship and the people on board, to assist any person in danger of disappearing at sea.
2. States Parties shall take the necessary measures to observe the obligation set out in paragraph 1.
3. The owner of the vessel is not responsible for the violation by the master of the obligation set out in paragraph 1.
Article 11
Cooperation
Each time it enacts rules or makes decisions on matters relating to assistance operations, such as the admission of ships to be constituted or the provision of means to assistants, a State Party shall consider the need for cooperation between assistants, other interested parties and public authorities, in order to ensure an effective and successful execution of assistance operations to save lives or property in danger,
CHAPTER III. - Rights of assistants
Article 12
Conditions for compensation
1. Assistance operations that have had a useful result are entitled to compensation.
2. Unless otherwise provided, no payment is due under this Convention if the assistance operations have not been successful.
3. The provisions of this chapter apply even if the assisted vessel and the assistant vessel belong to the same owner.
Article 13
Compensation assessment criteria
1. Compensation is set to encourage assistance operations based on the following criteria, regardless of the order in which they are presented below:
(a) the value of the vessel and other saved goods;
(b) the ability and efforts of assistants to prevent or limit damage to the environment;
(c) the extent of success achieved by the assistant;
(d) the nature and importance of danger;
(e) the ability and efforts of assistants to save the ship, other goods and human lives;
(f) past time, expenditures and losses incurred by assistants;
(g) risk of liability and other risks incurred by assistants or equipment;
(h) the promptness of the services rendered;
(i) the availability and use of vessels or other equipment for assistance operations;
(j) the condition of preparation and the effectiveness and value of the assistant's equipment.
2. The payment of compensation set out in paragraph 1 shall be made by all interested parties to the vessel and other assets saved in proportion to their respective value. However, a State Party may provide, in its national legislation, that payment of compensation must be made by one of the parties concerned, on the understanding that that party has a right of appeal against the other Parties for their respective share. Nothing in this section shall prejudice the exercise of any right of defence.
3. Compensation, excluding any recoverable legal interests and fees that may be due in this regard, does not exceed the value of the ship and other saved assets.
Article 14
Special allowance
1. If the Assistant conducted assistance operations in respect of a vessel that by himself or by his cargo threatened to cause damage to the environment and could not obtain compensation under section 13 equal to at least the special allowance calculated in accordance with this section, the Assistant shall be entitled to a special allowance equal to his or her expenses as defined in this section.
2. If, under the circumstances set out in paragraph 1, the Assistant has notified or limited damage to the environment through its assistance operations, the special allowance payable by the owner to the Assistant under subsection 1 may be increased to a maximum of 30% of the expenses incurred by the Assistant. However, if the court considers it fair and fair, given the relevant criteria set out in paragraph 1 of Article 13, it may still increase this special allowance, but the total increase must in no case represent more than 100% of the expenses incurred by the assistant.
3. The Assistant's expenses are, for the purposes of paragraphs 1 and 2, the disbursements reasonably incurred by the Assistant in the assistance operations and a fair amount for the equipment and personnel actually and reasonably used in the assistance operations, taking into account the criteria set out in subparagraphs (h), (i) and (j) of section 13, paragraph 1.
4. The total compensation referred to in this section shall be paid only in the case and to the extent that it exceeds the remuneration that may be obtained by the Assistant under section 13.
5. If the Assistant has been neglected and has been unable to prevent or limit damage to the environment, the Assistant may be deprived of all or part of any special allowance payable under this section.
6. Nothing in this article shall affect the rights of appeal of the owner of the ship.
Article 15
Distribution of assistants
1. The distribution of compensation in accordance with section 13 shall be based on the criteria set out in that section.
2. The distribution between the owner, the master and other persons serving each assistant ship is determined by the vessel's flag legislation. If the assistance has not been made from a ship, the distribution is made in accordance with the legislation governing the contract between the assistant and his attendants.
Article 16
Rescue of people
1. No remuneration is payable by persons whose lives have been saved, but no provision in this article affects the provisions of national legislation in this regard.
2. The human life savior who participated in the services rendered on the occasion of the accident that gave rise to the assistance operations is entitled to a fair share of the payment to the assistant for saving the ship or other goods or for preventing or limiting damage to the environment.
Article 17
Services rendered under existing contracts
No payment is payable under the provisions of this Convention unless the services rendered exceed what may reasonably be considered to be the normal performance of a contract entered into before the danger occurs.
Article 18
Consequences of the wizard's fault
An assistant may be deprived of all or part of the payment due under this Convention to the extent that assistance operations have been made necessary or more difficult by his or her fault or negligence, or if he or she has committed fraud or dishonesty.
Article 19
Defence to conduct assistance operations
Services rendered in spite of the express and reasonable defence of the owner or master of the ship or owner of any other property in danger that is not and has not been on board the ship do not qualify for payment under this Convention.
CHAPTER IV. - Claims and shares
Rule 20
Maritime privilege
1. Nothing in this Convention shall affect the maritime privilege of the assistant resulting from an international convention or national legislation.
2. The Assistant may not claim its maritime privilege when a sufficient guarantee has been duly offered or provided for the amount of its receivable, interest and expenses included.
Article 21
Obligation to provide a guarantee
1. At the request of the Assistant, the person responsible for a payment under this Convention shall provide a sufficient guarantee for the debt of the Assistant, interest and expenses included.
2. Without prejudice to the provisions of paragraph 1, the owner of the salvaged vessel shall do its best to obtain from the owners of the cargo, before it is released, a sufficient guarantee for claims against them, including interest and costs.
3. The vessel and other saved goods shall not, without the consent of the assistant, be removed from the first port or place where they arrived after the completion of the assistance operations, until a sufficient guarantee was made for the security of the assistant on the vessel or the property concerned.
Article 22
Provisional payment
1. The court competent to rule on the debt of the Assistant may, by a preliminary decision, order that the Assistant receive a fair and fair deposit, with terms and conditions, including a guarantee if necessary, that are fair and fair in accordance with the circumstances of the case.
2. In the event of a provisional payment under this section, the guarantee provided for in Article 21 shall be reduced proportionally.
Article 23
Action requirements
1. Any action in payment under this Convention shall be prescribed if a judicial or arbitral proceeding has not been initiated within two years. The short limitation period of the day the assistance operations were completed.
2. The person against whom a claim has been filed may at any time, during the limitation period, extend the claim by a declaration addressed to the creditor. The deadline can be extended again.
3. A recursory action may be brought even after the expiry of the limitation period provided for in the preceding paragraphs, if it is introduced within the time limit established by the law of the State where the proceedings are initiated.
Article 24
Interest
The right of the assistant to interest on any payment due under this Convention shall be determined by the law of the State in which the court is sitting.
Rule 25
Cargaisons belonging to a State
Unless the proprietary State consents to it, no provision of this Convention may be invoked to seize, arrest or hold by any measure of justice any non-commercial cargo belonging to a State and entitled, in the course of the assistance operations, to sovereign immunity under generally recognized principles of international law, or to initiate an in remand action against such cargo.
Rule 26
Humanitarian leave
No provision of this Convention may be invoked to seize, stop or hold humanitarian shipments given by a State if that State has agreed to pay the assistance services rendered to these cargoes.
Rule 27
Publication of arbitral awards
States Parties shall encourage, to the extent possible and with the consent of the parties, the publication of arbitral awards in respect of assistance.
CHAPTER V. - Final clauses
Rule 28
Signature, ratification, acceptance, approval and accession
1. This Convention is open for signature at United Nations Headquarters of 1^er July 1989 to 30 June 1990. It then remains open to membership.
2. States may express their consent to be bound by this Convention by:
(a) unconditional signature of ratification, acceptance or approval; or
(b) signature subject to ratification, acceptance or approval, followed by ratification, acceptance or approval; or
(c) accession.
3. Ratification, acceptance, approval or accession shall be effected by the deposit of an instrument to that effect with the Secretary-General.
Rule 29
Entry into force
1. This Convention comes into force one year after the date on which fifteen States have expressed their consent to be bound by it.
2. For a State that expresses its consent to be bound by this Convention after the conditions of entry into force have been met, that consent takes effect one year after the date on which it was expressed.
Rule 30
Reservations
1. Any State may, at the time of signature, ratification, acceptance, approval or accession, reserve the right not to apply the provisions of this Convention:
(a) where assistance operations take place in inland waters and all vessels involved are inland navigation vessels;
(b) where assistance operations take place in inland waters and no vessel is involved;
(c) where all interested parties are nationals of that State;
(d) in the case of a cultural maritime property of prehistoric, archaeological or historical interest at the bottom of the sea.
2. A reservation made at the time of signature must be confirmed upon ratification, acceptance or approval.
3. Any State that has made a reservation to this Convention may withdraw it at any time by means of a notification addressed to the Secretary-General. This withdrawal takes effect on the date the notification is received. If it is indicated in the notification that the withdrawal of a reservation will take effect on a specified date and that that date is after the date of receipt of the notification by the Secretary-General, the withdrawal shall take effect on the date specified.
Rule 31
Denunciation
1. This Convention may be denounced by any of the States Parties at any time after the expiration of one year from the date on which this Convention comes into force with respect to that State.
2. Denunciation shall be effected by the deposit of an instrument of denunciation with the Secretary-General.
3. The denunciation takes effect one year after the date on which the Secretary-General has received the denunciation instrument or the expiry of any longer period set out in that instrument.
Rule 32
Revision and amendment
1. A conference may be convened by the Organization to revise or amend this Convention.
2. The Secretary-General shall convene a conference of the States Parties to this Convention to revise or amend the Convention, at the request of eight States Parties or one quarter of the States Parties, if the latter number is higher.
3. Any consent to be bound by this Convention expressed after the date of entry into force of an amendment to this Convention shall be deemed to apply to the Convention as amended.
Rule 33
Depositary
1. This Convention is deposited with the Secretary-General.
2. The Secretary-General:
(a) inform all States that have signed or acceded to this Convention and all Members of the Organization:
(i) any new signature or deposit of a new instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession, as well as their date;
(ii) the date of entry into force of this Convention;
(iii) the deposit of any instrument of denunciation of this Convention and the date on which it was received and the date on which the denunciation takes effect;
(iv) any amendment adopted in accordance with Article 32;
(v) the receipt of any reservation, declaration or notification made under this Convention;
(b) transmit certified copies of this Convention to all States that have signed or acceded to it.
3. Upon the entry into force of this Convention, a certified true copy shall be transmitted by the Depositary to the Secretary-General of the United Nations to be registered and published in accordance with Article 102 of the Charter of the United Nations.
Rule 34
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.
In faith, the undersigned, duly authorized to do so by their respective Governments, have affixed their signature to this Convention.
Done in London this twenty-eightth April nine hundred and ninety-nine.

International Convention on Assistance, made in London on 28 April 1989
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