HC eases restrictions on foreign vessels transporting Bangladeshi goods

The High Court has temporarily suspended the mandatory requirement for foreign flag vessels to obtain a waiver certificate or NOC (No Objection Certificate) for transporting Bangladesh's import-export goods. 

This decision, effective for six months, means that these vessels no longer need approval from the Mercantile Marine Office to carry goods on international routes to and from Bangladesh. 

The ruling was issued by a joint bench of Justice Sheikh Hassan Arif and Justice Md Bazlur Rahman on Tuesday in response to a writ petition filed by the Bangladesh Container Shipping Association.

Additionally, the court issued a rule nisi, prompting respondents to justify why the mandatory waiver certificate provisions should not be deemed unlawful.

The writ petition targeted several high-ranking officials including the secretaries of the Ministry of Shipping and Ministry of Law, the Director General of the Department of Shipping, the CEO of the Mercantile Marine Department, and the chairpersons of Chattogram Port Authority, Mongla Port Authority, Payra Port Authority, and managing director of the Bangladesh Shipping Corporation.

Additionally, the High Court instructed the director general of the Department of Shipping to refrain from verifying the waiver certificates for goods transported by foreign vessels.

The Bangladesh Flag Vessels (Protection of Interests) Act, 2019, also known as the Flag Protection Act, was introduced to prioritise Bangladeshi flag vessels. Under this law, it mandates that 50% of goods in Bangladesh's foreign trade must be carried on Bangladeshi flag vessels.

To enforce the Flag Protection Act, the government enacted the Bangladesh Flag Vessels (Protection of Interests) Rules 2023. These rules make it illegal to transport goods without first obtaining a waiver certificate from the Mercantile Marine Office.

Following the implementation of these rules, foreign vessels carrying Bangladesh's import-export goods at ports like Chattogram, Singapore, Port Klang, and Colombo faced challenges. 

Despite having bookings, some ships had to depart ports without loading goods due to non-compliance with the waiver certificate requirement. The Mercantile Marine Office also imposed fines on several vessels for transporting goods without the necessary certification.

The Mercantile Marine Office fined the ship X-press Lhotse Tk72.25 lakh for multiple instances of transporting goods without a waiver certificate. 

The ship was held at Chattogram port on 15 May by Mercantile Marine Office officials when it was preparing to depart for Colombo, but it was released after the fine was paid. Sea Consortium acts as the shipping agent for the vessel.

Shamsuddin Ahmed Chowdhury, secretary of the Bangladesh Container Shipping Association, said that the waiver certificate was causing unfair competition in sea transportation. Foreign ships could not carry goods even with bookings, leading to some ships being withdrawn from the Bangladesh transhipment route.

"The High Court's order has raised hopes that these obstacles will be removed, and we expect the relevant government departments to follow the court's directive," Shamsuddin added.

Captain Sabbir Mahmud, principal officer of the Mercantile Marine Office, did not respond when contacted.

Director General of the Department of Shipping Commodore Mohammad Maksud Alam said, "We have not yet received a copy of the High Court order, so we do not want to comment. We also haven't received letters from BGMEA (Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association) and the Container Shipping Association."

On Thursday (13 June), BGMEA and the Bangladesh Container Shipping Association sent a letter to the director general of the Department of Shipping and the principal officer of the Mercantile Marine Office, calling the waiver certificate requirement for sea transport illegal.

Previously, the World Shipping Council, based in Washington, expressed concern over the waiver certificate's complications and called for relaxing some clauses of the law. 

BGMEA and foreign ship owners' organisations also requested a review of the law's strictness and suggested limiting the Flag Protection Act to origin-to-origin cargo transportation.