Korean Ship Safety Act). Therefore, the 1972 COLREGS and the KMTSA (a part of
2012 Ship Safety Act) are two major governing laws in Korea with which the
navigator must comply in order to avoid collision at sea.
3.2 COLREGS
The COLREGS of 1972 is a treaty even though the word “Convention” is not
mentioned in the full title. The convention represents the single uniform set of
rules for serving the purpose of collision avoidance in navigable waters worldwide.
The Korean Constitution stipulates that a convention or treaty which is ratified by
Korea pursuant to the approval of Parliament has the same status in law as domestic
legislation. Thus, every navigator in a Korean flagged vessel must treat the 1972
COLREG as having the force and status of Korean national law.
3.3 The KSSA
This Act is not identical to the 1972 COLREG. It has a variety of applications and
includes not only collision avoidance rules but also incorporates other instruments
such as the International Safety Management (ISM) Code as well as other regulations for ships’ safety besides collision. The Korean government incorporated the
COLREG into this Act as a part of the law. Almost all of the provisions are identical
to those in the COLREG. However, some special rules for avoiding collision have
been added in the Act such as the Special Traffic Safety Area regime, in which the
special collision avoidance rules are stipulated. The scope of application of the Act is
narrower than that of the COLREG in that it is applicable only within Korean
territorial waters while the COLREG is applicable in all waters where seagoing
vessels can navigate.
2
3.3.1 Rules in Respect of Vessels in Sight of Each Other
The collision avoidance rules are divided in accordance with the status of visibility in
the vicinity of the vessel around the time of the collision. In good visibility, vessels
are in sight of one another. The crossing rules, head-on rules and overtaking rules are
three basic rules. When the vessels meet in a crossing situation, the vessel which has
the approaching vessel on her starboard side is a give-way vessel and the other vessel
2 The provisions in the KSSA impose obligation upon the foreign navigators to observe the
navigation rules when they sails within the Korean territorial waters or open port areas and upon
the Korean navigators to observe the navigation rules wherever they sails (Art. 3).
Korean Collision Avoidance Rules and Apportionment of Liability
379
2012 Ship Safety Act) are two major governing laws in Korea with which the
navigator must comply in order to avoid collision at sea.
3.2 COLREGS
The COLREGS of 1972 is a treaty even though the word “Convention” is not
mentioned in the full title. The convention represents the single uniform set of
rules for serving the purpose of collision avoidance in navigable waters worldwide.
The Korean Constitution stipulates that a convention or treaty which is ratified by
Korea pursuant to the approval of Parliament has the same status in law as domestic
legislation. Thus, every navigator in a Korean flagged vessel must treat the 1972
COLREG as having the force and status of Korean national law.
3.3 The KSSA
This Act is not identical to the 1972 COLREG. It has a variety of applications and
includes not only collision avoidance rules but also incorporates other instruments
such as the International Safety Management (ISM) Code as well as other regulations for ships’ safety besides collision. The Korean government incorporated the
COLREG into this Act as a part of the law. Almost all of the provisions are identical
to those in the COLREG. However, some special rules for avoiding collision have
been added in the Act such as the Special Traffic Safety Area regime, in which the
special collision avoidance rules are stipulated. The scope of application of the Act is
narrower than that of the COLREG in that it is applicable only within Korean
territorial waters while the COLREG is applicable in all waters where seagoing
vessels can navigate.
2
3.3.1 Rules in Respect of Vessels in Sight of Each Other
The collision avoidance rules are divided in accordance with the status of visibility in
the vicinity of the vessel around the time of the collision. In good visibility, vessels
are in sight of one another. The crossing rules, head-on rules and overtaking rules are
three basic rules. When the vessels meet in a crossing situation, the vessel which has
the approaching vessel on her starboard side is a give-way vessel and the other vessel
2 The provisions in the KSSA impose obligation upon the foreign navigators to observe the
navigation rules when they sails within the Korean territorial waters or open port areas and upon
the Korean navigators to observe the navigation rules wherever they sails (Art. 3).
Korean Collision Avoidance Rules and Apportionment of Liability
379