Doctoral thesis in law, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, Sorbonne Doctoral School of Law, defended on 22 November 2019. Title: Piracy and armed guards: the interplay between French law and the Maritime Labour Convention, 2006. Supervisor: Professor Philippe Delebecque. Record: theses.fr/2019PA01D093. Abstract written in 2019.
What characterizes the present Doctoral thesis in Law is, first of all, its purpose of social utility. It is also a research focused on technical aspects along with an interdisciplinary perspective. Through the prisms of International Law and European Law, it is necessary to question the attractiveness of French Law in the face of contractual professional practices oriented towards arms control and globalized economic interests. The study provides accurate data on the incidence of maritime piracy as well as concrete information on private maritime security activities. It also presents the relevant institutions and relevant national and international regulations. Thereafter, it deals with pirates and armed guards while equating the regulated profession of armed guards with the status of seafarers. Lastly, the study deals with the most relevant minimum requirements for seafarers to work on a ship and the conditions of employment. This unpublished research required the author to wear several hats: those of PhD candidate, legal consultant and UMMU president. The study has been presented at meetings organized by UNCTAD, NMIOTC, the French National Assembly, IRSEM and the Union des Avocats Européens (UAE). It also required having access to the port of Galle in Sri Lanka, the IMB in Malaysia, the ILO, the IMO and the Representation of France to said organization, as well as to the Paris courthouse (Palais de justice), the French General Secretariat for the Sea (SGMer), the CNAPS, the French Ministry for the Ecological and Inclusive Transition and the MICA Center. The results of the study show in particular the following: France is the only State to recognize armed guards as seafarers; the absence of representation of such workers does not allow the emergence of social dialogue; the GUARDCON standard contract takes precedence over French Law, which is nevertheless applicable; Flag State and Port State controls would be difficult to achieve; in the field of social security, agents should be attached to French Law (law of the Flag State); in individual employment contract matters, conflict of laws and jurisdiction rules are difficult to apply; detection of drugs is feasible through the medical check-up and aboard the ship as part of the labour case law; by the end of 2020, France should have incorporated in its national legislation the concept of “armed robbery against a ship”. This study highlights the importance of eliminating zones of legal uncertainty, establishing a social dialogue among workers, employers and their government and respecting the legal and regulatory framework for the private armed vessel protection activity so that it extends efficiently from the struggle against piracy to that against terrorism.