Thailand’s Maritime Agencies and Authorities
Thailand has various functional maritime agencies under different ministries. They main agencies are the Royal Thai Navy, the Marine Department, the Department of Fisheries, the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources, the Customs Department, and the Marine Police Division.
The Royal Thai Navy is a naval warfare service branch of the Royal Thai Armed Forces, the Ministry of Defense. It has authority to defend Thailand’s sovereignty and sovereign rights within the country’s maritime zones. Furthermore, it has authority to protect the country’s maritime interests in both Thailand maritime zones and international waters. The latter authority is implemented according to the Act Empowers the Navy to Suppress Certain Illegal Actions 2490 B.E. (1947 A.D.) together with its amendment in 2522 B.E. (1979 A.D.), 2525 B.E. (1982 A.D.), and 2534 B.E (1991 A.D.).
The Marine Department is a department under the Ministry of Transport. It has authority to implement various maritime transportation related acts which include the Navigation in Thai Waters Act 2535 B.E. (1992 A.D.), the Thai Vessels Act (the 7th amendment) 2550 B.E. (2007), the Prevention of Ship Collision Act 2522 B.E. (1979 A.D.), and the Mercantile Marine Promotion Act (the 2nd amendment) 2548 B.E. (2005 A.D.). In addition, it has authority to conduct the study for the development of water transport infrastructure and to regulate water transport and shipping industry. However, its jurisdiction covers internal waters and territorial seas only.
The Department of Fisheries is a department under the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives. It has authority to implement various relating acts which include Fisheries Act 2558 B.E. (2015 A.D.), Wildlife Conservation and Production Act 2535 B.E. (1992 A.D.), Enhancement Conservation of National Environmental Quality Act 2535 B.E. (1992 A.D.), and Hazardous Substance Act 2535 B.E. (1992 A.D.). In addition, it has authority to conduct study, research, and experiment in every field of fisheries together with to explore, analyze, research for fishing grounds beyond the Thai waters, as well as to promote fisheries cooperation with other states. Hence, its jurisdiction covers internal waters, territorial seas, contiguous zone, exclusive economic zones, and continental shelf.
The Department of Marine and Coastal Resources is a department under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment. It is the new maritime agency which was established by reorganizing some functions relating to marine and coastal resources from the Department of Fisheries, the Department of Forest, and the Land Development Department. It has authority to conserve, restore, and manage coastal and marine resources particularly coastal areas, mangroves, coral reefs, seagrass, as well as soil and marine mammals in order to balance and strengthen the social and economic sustainability. The jurisdiction of the department covers only internal waters and territorial seas.
The Customs Department is a department under the Ministry of Finance. Normally, it has authority to facilitate trade and collect revenue. It also has authority to suppress contraband both on the land and in the sea. In the sea its jurisdiction covers internal waters, territorial seas, and contiguous zone.
The Marine Police Division is a division under the Central Investigation Bureau, the Royal Thai Police. It has authority to suppress crimes in the sea and protect national maritime interests. However, its jurisdiction covers only internal waters, territorial seas, and contiguous zone.
It is noticed that Thailand does not have Coast Guard to take responsibilities directly for search and rescue, enforcement of maritime law, safety of vessels, maintenance of seamarks, and border control. Such responsibilities are mainly assigned by the aforementioned acts to the Royal Thai Navy such as search and rescue, enforcement of maritime law, maintenance of seamarks, and border control. The rest of the responsibilities such as enforcement of maritime law, safety of vessels, and maintenance of seamarks are assigned by relating acts to the Marine Department, the Marine Police Division, the Department of Fisheries, the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources, and the Customs Department. However, the jurisdiction of such maritime agencies is overlapped and lacks of cooperation to conduct such responsibilities which causes them to waste time and constrained resources. In 1997, the Thai government established the national Maritime Enforcement Coordinating Center (MECC) to solve the problem. The MECC operates under leadership of the Royal Thai Navy which acts as the MECC headquarters and reports directly to the National Security Council of Thailand. It includes all aforementioned main maritime agencies. It is the significant step of the effort to integrate maritime operations.