Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2009, published 99th ILC session (2010)

Minimum Age (Fishermen) Convention, 1959 (No. 112) - Liberia (Ratification: 1960)

Article 1 of the Convention. Scope of application. The Committee notes with regret that the Government’s very brief report does not reply to its previous observations and that, 49 years after its ratification, the Convention has still not been given effect in its entirety. It recalls that, under the terms of Article 1 of the Convention, the term “fishing vessel” includes all ships and boats, of any nature whatsoever, whether publicly or privately owned, which are engaged in maritime fishing in salt waters. Only fishing in ports or in river estuaries, and individuals fishing for sport or recreation, are excluded from the scope of the Convention. However, the Committee observes that section 326 of the Maritime Act of Liberia, which establishes the minimum age for work on board vessels (including fishing vessels) at 15 years, only applies to vessels registered under the Act. Section 51 of the Maritime Act limits the registration procedure to certain types of vessels. This procedure is open to any vessel under 20 tonnes, the owner of which is a national of Liberia and which only makes voyages between Liberian ports or between Liberia and other West African countries, as well as any vessel of over 1,600 tonnes engaged in international trade, the constructor or owner of which is a national of Liberia. Furthermore, by virtue of section 290 of the Maritime Act, Chapter 10 of the Act, which covers seafarers and includes, among its provisions, the rules respecting minimum age, only applies to persons engaged on board vessels of at least 75 tonnes. The Committee wishes once again to draw the Government’s attention to the fact that the scope of the provisions of the national legislation respecting the minimum age required for work on board fishing vessels is much narrower than that of the Convention. The Committee urges the Government to adopt the necessary measures without further ado to bring its legislation into conformity with the Convention on this point. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the manner in which the Convention is applied in practice including, for instance, extracts from the reports of the inspection services and, if such statistics are currently available, information on the number and nature of the contraventions reported and the measures taken as a consequence. It further requests the Government to indicate the number of fishing vessels and fishers who are currently excluded from the scope of application of the Convention.

Finally, the Committee understands that the tripartite representatives of Liberia participated in a subregional workshop organized in Accra (Ghana) in October 2009 which was intended to promote the ratification of the Work in Fishing Convention, 2007 (No. 188). It requests the Government to keep the Office informed of any measure that may be taken, in the context of the follow‑up to this workshop, with a view to the ratification of Convention No. 188.

[The Government is asked to reply in detail to the present comments in 2010.]