RECALLING Article 15(j) of the Convention on the International
Maritime Organisation concerning the functions of the Assembly in
relation to regulations and guidelines concerning maritime safety.
NOTING that the International Association of Classification
Societies (IACS) has issued the Unified Requirement S8 for Bow Doors
(as amended in 1995) related to the strength and to the securing and
locking arrangements of bow doors.
NOTING ALSO that this Unified Requirement will be applied
not only to new ro-ro passenger ships but retrospectively, by Unified
Requirement S16 on application of the relevant sections of S8, to
existing ro-ro passenger ships as well,
BEING OF THE OPINION that the said requirement should apply
to all ro-ro passenger ships,
HAVING CONSIDERED the recommendation made by the Maritime
Safety Committee at its sixty-fifth session,
URGES IACS to urgently review similar Unified Requirement
for all other shell doors leading on to the car deck for application
to all ro-ro passenger ships as necessary and to submit the result
of that review to the sixty-sixth session of the Maritime Safety Committee,
URGES Governments to ensure that all ro-ro passenger ships,
whether or not they are classed with classification societies being
members of IACS, comply with the IACS Unified Requirements S8 for
bow doors (as amended in 1995) and the Unified Requirements applicable
to all other shell doors, as they may be accepted by the Maritime
Safety Committee.