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Shipmasters today and those in command of naval vessels have a unique authority which is different to that of the factory manager or civil servant. Ships, although under the jurisdiction of the Flag State, are treated in law as independent 'out-posts'. The master and commanding officer are expected to uphold the general rule of law and to ensure the safety of the crew and the ship using their best judgment.

Copyright © 2009 by Nova Science Publishers, Inc. The States Parties to this Convention, Prompted by the desire to settle, in a spirit of mutual understanding and cooperation, all issues relating to the law of the sea and aware of the historic significance of this Convention as an important contribution to the maintenance of peace, justice, and progress for all peoples of the world, Noting that developments since the United Nations Conferences on the Law of the Sea held at Geneva in 1958 and 1960 have accentuated the need for a new and generally acceptable Convention on the law of the sea, Conscious that the problems of ocean space are closely interrelated and need to be considered as a whole,

The International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea ( S O L A S ) , 1 9 7 4 , currently in force, was adopted on 1 November 1974 by the International Conference on Safety of Life at Sea, which was convened by the International Maritime Organization ( I M O ) , and entered into force on 25 May 1980. It has since been amended twice by means of protocols:

1. by the Protocol adopted on 17 February 1978 by the International Conference on Tanker Safety and Pollution Prevention ( 1 9 7 8 SOLAS Protocol), which entered into force on 1 May 1 9 8 1 ; and
2. by the Protocol adopted on 11 November 1 9 8 8 by the International Conference on the Harmonized System of Survey and Certification (1988 SOLAS Protocol), which entered into force on 3 February 2 0 0 0 and replaced and abrogated the 1978 Protocol, as between Parties to the 1988 Protocol.