Although operational, the boat is apparently not used for actual voyages since it lacks a seaworthiness certificate.

They have a seaworthiness certificate which was granted to them before they left harbour – and they would not have left harbour unless they had it.

This is true, but it is not enough: we must also identify conditions of legal risk, if I may use that expression, in other words, issues of flags of convenience and seaworthiness certificates that are not worth the paper they are printed on.

The China Shipping Inspection Bureau became a member of the Suez Canal Authority in 1984, empowering China to sign and issue seaworthiness certificates for ships on the Suez Canal and confirming the good reputation and maturity of its shipbuilding industry.