PHILIPPINES Trends and Developments Contributed by: Valeriano Del Rosario and Maria Francesca Bautista, VeraLaw
This Magna Carta offers protection not only to seafarers but also to employers in crew claims cases. Prior to the enactment of the Magna Carta, if a ship-owner lost a crew claims case and its motion for reconsideration was denied, seafarers were entitled to immediate compen - sation from their employers. If, on appeal, the employer won the case, it would usually be a difficult exercise to recover the award initially granted, because by then the funds would have already been used up. Under the new law, if an employer initially loses the case, it is no longer required to immediately issue full compensation. The employer must promptly pay the part of the judgment that is not being contested, but for the rest of it, the seafarer is now required to provide a bond to guarantee that the money will be returned to the employer, should it win the appeal. This now offers protection to ship-owner employers against baseless claims that have been caused by ambulance chasers. It is hoped that the Magna Carta will be a win- win scenario, as this law will now assist in strik - ing a balance between the needs and demands of the seafarers and their employers. The law will assist in further producing world-class seafar - ers, while the improved labour regime brought about by it will push the manning industry onto an upward trend. Support for Foreign Investments In 2013, the Philippines liberalised foreign invest - ments in various industries through the amend - ment of the Public Service Act. Previously, the shipping industry was limited to only Philippine- owned corporations, with a maximum foreign equity of only 40%. With the government’s goal of providing “efficient, reliable and affordable basic services to all”, as well as revitalising the
country’s economy damaged by the COVID-19 pandemic, a need was found to increase and diversify investment sources. The Philippine shipping industry was one of those removed from classification as a “public utility”, which is still limited to Filipino-controlled corporations (60% Filipino equity). Thus, with the amendment of the law, restrictions on foreign ownership in the domestic shipping sector were modified. So long as a corporation, though 100% foreign- owned, is registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission and obtains accredita - tion as a domestic shipping company or a mari - time enterprise, it can participate in the industry. In fact, to further encourage investments from both the domestic and foreign sectors, MARINA has made efforts to improve its services through streamlining and digitalisation of application pro - cesses. While foreign entities have not fully capitalised on this privilege, the foundation has been set for its immediate use (“Foreign shipping firms interested, but in no rush to enter PH”, Roumina Pablo , 1 March 2024). Future Trends and Threats The Philippines economy has been experiencing robust growth, and with that growth, the country has a voracious appetite for power. To power the economic growth, the Philippines continues to rely on coal-fired power plants. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), in its annual coal report, the Philippines’ consump - tion of coal is likely to grew by 5%, to 42 mil - lion tons in 2024 from 40 million tons in 2023. The IEA said: “Power generation primarily drives coal consumption, with most coal imported from Indonesia.” The IEA projects, based on the Phil - ippines growth rate, that in the next three years the Philippines will reach 47 million tons. “Coal-
479 CHAMBERS.COM
Powered by FlippingBook