1 THE HISTORY OF THE CONVENTION

The relatively small number of ratifications of the Convention of 1926,1 and, in particular, the fact that none of the common law countries had ratified it, persuaded the CMI that it would be advisable to find out what had been the causes of dissatisfaction, take them into account and amend the text of the Convention or draft a new convention. The first draft of a revised convention2 was considered during the CMI Conference held in New York in 1965. The draft, as amended by the Conference,3 was subsequently considered, after further amendments by the drafting group,4 at the twelfth session of the Conférence Diplomatique de Droit Maritime held in 1967 and adopted on 27 May 1967.5 The most relevant changes were the abolition of the lien for contracts made by the master for the preservation of the vessel and the continuation of the voyage, and the addition of rules on the change of flag, on the liberty of contracting States to grant liens and rights of retention, and on the forced sale of vessels. That Convention was, however, ratified by a very limited number of States,6 and when it appeared that it was rather unlikely that it would enter into force, the CMI decided to carry out an in-depth revision of its rules, taking into account the criticisms that had been voiced in respect of several of its provisions. A CMI International Subcommittee, established with the mandate to consider the changes that appeared advisable, circulated a questionnaire to the national associations of the CMI, and, after considering the responses that had been received, decided to recommend several changes to the Convention. A report was then prepared by the chairman for consideration by the national associations, and subsequently by the CMI Conference held in Lisbon in May 1985.7 In the Annex to that report the text of the Convention of 1967 was accompanied by the changes that had been deemed advisable.8