WHEREAS, in
the interest of the national economy, it is imperative that Philippine
domestic shipping be expanded to meet the ever-increasing inter-island
cargo and passenger traffic; chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
WHEREAS, due to the heavy capital requirements of the shipping
industry, local ship owners and operators cannot raise sufficient
financial resources to acquire new tonnage to replace their uneconomic
and over aged fleet; and
WHEREAS, in order to alleviate the present plight of domestic shipping,
it is necessary to temporarily relax certain aspects of the restrictive
and constrictive legal framework under which vessels may be registered
in the Philippines; chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the Philippines,
by virtue of the powers in me vested by the Constitution, do hereby
order and decree the following as part of the law of the land:cralaw:red
Section 1. Any provision of law, decree, executive
order, or rules and regulations to the contrary notwithstanding, any
foreign-owned vessel under time charter or lease to a Philippine
national, as the term is defined in Section 3 of Presidential Decree
No. 474, may be issued a temporary certificate of Philippine registry
by the Maritime Industry Authority: Provided, That the said Charter or
lease (1) has had the prior written approval of the Maritime Industry
Authority, (2) shall be valid and effective for a period of not less
than five years, and (3) shall be used exclusively in the coastwise
trade in the Philippines: Provided, further, That the operation of the
vessel shall be entirely in the hands of Philippine nationals and free
from any participation or interference from the alien owner, except
insofar as such action shall be to directly protect his rights as owner
thereof: Provided, finally, That the registered vessel shall be manned
completely by a Filipino crew, except in the case of specialized
fishing vessel.
The effectivity of any charter or lease contract entered into pursuant
to this Decree shall not extend beyond the year 1990, unless otherwise
extended by the President of the Republic of the Philippines.
Section 2. Any vessel issued a temporary certificate
of Philippine registry as provided for in the section immediately
preceding shall be entitled to all the rights and privileges of a
vessel of a Philippine registry, as well as the protection of
Philippine law so long as its temporary certificate of registration is
valid and subsisting. Correspondingly, the vessel shall also be subject
to all requirements, limitations and all the duties and obligations
imposed upon vessels of Philippine registry. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Section 3. The Maritime Industry Authority shall
promulgate the rules and regulations, together with the procedures and
guidelines, for the implementation of this Decree, subject to approval
by the Office of the President.
Section 4. Any provision of law, decree, executive
order, or rules and regulations inconsistent with this Decree is hereby
repealed, amended or modified accordingly. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Section 5. This Decree shall take effect immediately.
Done in the City of Manila,
this 31st day of July, in the year of Our Lord, nineteen hundred and
seventy-five.
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