MV Avant Garde violated port security

Lied about goods on board, says Navy Commander:

by Ranil Wijayapala

MV Avant Garde, laden with arms and detected off the Gall Harbour by Sri Lanka Navy on Thursday has violated internationally accepted rules and regulations on port security, Navy Commander Vice Admiral Ravindra Wijegunaratne told the Sunday Observer. He said the vessel had violated port security by making false declarations to the Navy when questioned about the goods on board.

Vice Admiral Wijegunaratne said MV Avant Garde has violated the International Ship and Port Facility Security Code (ISPS Code) on port security, which was globally agreed upon, following the 9/11 attack in the US.

Port Security Law (ISPS Code) is a comprehensive set of measures that enhances the security of ships and port facilities, mandated to address the security responsibilities of the shipper and the port facility, including weapons and explosive interdiction and security threat notification.

The ISPS Code is intended to provide improved protection from terrorist attacks for all port facilities receiving seagoing ships larger than 500 Gross Ton on international routes. "The vessel has furnished wrong information to the Navy, saying there were no weapons and ammunition on board the vessel when Navy inquired about the goods on board", the Navy Commander said.

Further, it has been discovered that although the vessel claimed to have a Sri Lankan skipper, it was navigated by a Ukranian national.The Navy during its search had found 813 weapons and over 150,000 rounds of ammunitions. Vessel staff had claimed the weapons belonged to the Rakna Arakshaka Lanka security firm. "We are checking the weapon and ammunition numbers with the Rakna Arakshaka Lanka inventories to verify this claim," the Navy Commander said.

"If they are found guilty of carrying illegal arms and ammunition, the law will be invoked against them," the Navy Commander said.

He added the Navy is to complete the preliminary inquiries on the vessel - apprehended upon detecting its entry into the territorial waters without permission - and is most likely to be handed over to the Defence Secretary tomorrow (12)