Brussels, 25/01/2013 (Agence Europe) - There is as much EU legislation covering the use of security guards in the merchant navy as there are member states, but this may be about to change because, without indicating a timeline, the European Commission says it might suggest common EU standards for the employment of bodyguards on ships.
The employment of armed guards by the merchant navy, whether private individuals or professional soldiers seconded by countries, is today seen as a necessary evil. The low cost (for governments) and effectiveness for preventing would-be pirates boarding ship are seen as benefits for high-risk areas, like off the coast of Somalia and, recently, in the Gulf of Guinea.
European governments have widely differing rules on armed guards employed by private military companies. They are not allowed under Dutch, French and Portuguese legislation. Spain has recently changed its laws to allow them on ships flying the Spanish flag, and Denmark decides such matters on a case-by-case basis. This wide variety of rules is slammed by ship-owners and the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), which held a conference in Brussels on piracy on 24 January. It issued an opinion on piracy and boosting the EU's reaction to it at a plenary sitting on 15 January 2013.
This EESC opinion calls on member states to allow the use of private armed guards “subject to a strict legal framework which makes the training of guards, inter alia, the responsibility of the member state of their establishment and lays down the terms of the master's responsibility, particularly in the event of shots being fired”. The International Maritime Organisation is working on this issue because its fallout will be extensive. At present, international talks are at a deadend, but it may be possible all the same to introduce EU rules, said Marieta Jager, head of security at the European Commission's Directorate-General for Energy and Transport. (JK/transl.fl)