The World Assembly,
Committed to the safety of international shipping and fishing operations in international waters,
Understanding the importance of maritime safety to all World Assembly member nations with coastlines,
Recognizing that there are few organizations established to deal with nautical accidents in international waters,
Believing that previously passed legislation does not go far enough in terms of coordinating disaster response in international waters,
Confident that saving lives and reducing financial losses from nautical accidents is possible with increased international cooperation,
Hereby
1. Requires that member states' navies, coast guards and any similar organizations capable of responding to a declared maritime emergency in international waters, do so, provided that
- they have vessels appropriate for the conditions at the accident site available,
- are able to dispatch their vessels to the accident site in a timely manner, and
- can do so without significant risks to their vessels and personnel;
2. Also requires civilian and commercial vessels and aircraft to lend aid if they are capable of doing so without endangering themselves or the official rescue efforts;
3. Requires that when a maritime emergency has been declared within their reach, member nations share all pertinent information available with the responders, including but not limited to
- last known location, cargo manifest and passenger list of the vessel or aircraft in distress,
- relevant communication frequencies,
- the relative positions of responders to each other and the accident site, and
- the nearest safe port available;
4. Clarifies that responders are not to be held responsible for any damage done to the vessel or aircraft that has declared emergency, when the damages occur in order to save lives.
November 8 2019 Draft:
October 27 2019 Draft: