LONDON (ISL News) - Ministry of Transportation cq. The Directorate General of Sea Transportation through the Directorate of Shipping and Maritime Affairs participated as the Delegation of the Republic of Indonesia at the 10th International Maritime Organization (IMO) Sub Committee on Human Element, Training and Watchkeeping (HTW) Session in London, United Kingdom.
Head of Sub Directorate of Maritime Affairs, Capt. Maltus, who participated as Head of Delegation of the Republic of Indonesia in the 10th HTW session which was held a week from Monday (5/2) to Friday (9/2/2024) yesterday explained that Indonesia submitted an intervention regarding the HTW 10/2024 document. 6/9 submitted by Ukraine regarding the accessibility of information on medical certificates of seafarers and medical practitioners recognized by the parties for the purpose of medical examination of seafarers by the Administration and other Bodies involved.
Capt. Maltus said that Indonesia expressed its general appreciation to Ukraine for proposing or submitting the HTW 10/6/9 document at this meeting. Indonesia supports the proposal and also informed that Indonesia has provided a list of medical institutions and medical practitioners recognized by the Indonesian government to assess the health of seafarers.
"This information can be accessed via the website contohpelaut.dephub.go.id," said Capt. Maltus
Apart from this, Indonesia has also provided access to check the validity of seafarers' health letters or certificates via the website bkkp.dephub.go.id/siskespi.
The intervention carried out by the Indonesian delegation, continued Capt. Maltus, is a form of commitment and responsibility of the Directorate General of Sea Transportation as Maritime Administrator which is recognized by the International Maritime Organization (IMO).
"Maritime Administration in Indonesia is mandated to the Director General of Sea Transportation, Ministry of Transportation in accordance with what has been mandated in Presidential Regulation number 23 of 2022 article 45 paragraph (1). "So that all maritime activities, and especially those related to the implementation of the IMO Convention, must be reported to IMO through the Directorate General of Sea Transportation," he said.
This is in line with what has been mandated in the Decree of the Minister of Transportation Number KP 985 of 2023 concerning the transfer of the function of public services in the field of seafarers' health from the Maritime Occupational Health Center to the Directorate of Shipping and Maritime Affairs.
Apart from that, Indonesia also intervened in agenda document 5 HTW 10/5, by informing that a new format for Seafarer's certificates, which takes effect from 1 December 2023, had been introduced and had been informed to IMO in January 2024 based on STCW.2/Circ.122 and had been informed to all IMO member states. This is a follow-up to the Decree of the Director General of Sea Transportation number KP-DJPL 747 of 2023 concerning the Use of Electronic Signatures (E-Sign) on Maritime Certificates which was stipulated on November 28 2023.
Furthermore, in discussing the second agenda, London's Transportation Attaché, Barkah Bayu Mirajaya, said that Indonesia would like to thank the secretariat for preparing the HTW 10/2 document and the results obtained from the previous Sub-Committee, Committee and Council with special matters on recommendations from the external auditor IMO (Financial Audit Agency of the Republic of Indonesia) in document C.129/5 (b) which contributes to improving the comprehensive review of the STCW Convention and the Code so that it can be taken into consideration in later discussions.
One of the External Auditor's recommendations for a comprehensive review of STCW, explained Barkah, was training on seafarers' general rights, including rights relevant to abandonment issues. These recommendations are in line with our commitment to continuous improvement and seafarer welfare.
“Training on the general rights of seafarers is an important component that not only addresses current challenges, but also strengthens Indonesia's pro-active approach for future considerations. "This is also in line with Indonesia's collective goal to ensure the highest standards of safety, security and welfare for the seafaring community," he said.
For information, the 10th HTW Session was held from February 5 to February 9 2024 with several session agendas discussing all matters related to Human Element, Training and Watchkeeping as well as the proposed Comprehensive Review of the STCW Convention and Code.
The Indonesian delegation consisted of the Directorate of Shipping and Maritime Affairs, Directorate General of Sea Transportation, PPKKI Ministry of Transportation, London Transportation Attaché, Pertamina Maritime Training Center, Indonesian Commercial Shipping Officers Corps Association, Maritime Transportation HR Center, Barombong Poltekpel, Surabaya Poltekpel, PIP Makasar, and PIP Semarang.
(Editor of ISL News/Hubla/email:islnewstv@gmail.com).
