Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Shipping

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The Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Maritime Navigation (Engl. Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Maritime Navigation , short SUA ) is a convention within the jurisdiction of the International Maritime Organization , with which the signatory states committed themselves to prohibit and punish any behavior that could threaten the safety of shipping.

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The convention is based on the 1971 Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Civil Aviation and the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Occupation of Aircraft and criminalizes similar conduct in connection with maritime navigation.

The Convention criminalizes the following behavior:

  1. Taking control of a ship through violence or threats of violence.
  2. Committing an act of violence against a person on a ship which endangers the safety of the ship.
  3. Destruction of or damage to a ship or its cargo in a way that endangers the safe navigation of the ship.
  4. Depositing a device or substance on a ship that is likely to destroy or damage the ship or its cargo.
  5. Destruction or damage to the navigation systems of a ship or the disruption of their operation so that the safety of the ship is endangered.
  6. Transmission of information that is known to be inaccurate to impair the safety of the ship's navigation.
  7. Injury or death of a person when committing acts 1–6.
  8. Attempt to injure or kill a person while committing acts 1–7.
  9. Complicity in acts 1-8.
  10. Forcing third parties to commit acts 1–9.

The convention lays down the principle of aut dedere aut judicare (Latin for: pursue or deliver ). A state as a party to the agreement must either

  • pursue a person who commits one of the crimes, or
  • extradite them for the prosecution of these crimes at the request of another state .

Resolution and entry into force

The Convention was adopted by the International Conference on Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Maritime Navigation in Rome on March 10, 1988. The convention came into force on March 1, 1992 after it was ratified by 15 states.

Contracting States

Since 2013, the convention has 161 contracting states , including 159 UN member states and the Cook Islands and Niue . The 161 states represent 94.7 percent of the gross tonnage of the world's merchant fleets.

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