Petition
The Petition
To the Government of Lebanon and the competent maritime, security and municipal authorities.
Petition text
Every summer, Lebanese families swim off beaches, rocks and public shorelines that have no marked swimming zones, no marked boat corridors, and no visible enforcement. Motorboats of any size, sightseeing boats and jet skis operate in the same water at speed — small or large, recreational or commercial. When someone is hurt, no single authority is clearly answerable.
This is not a call to ban boats or to shut down maritime tourism. It is a call for separation, marking and enforcement — the same basic safety architecture used on every organised coast in the Mediterranean.
We, the undersigned, call on the Government of Lebanon and the competent authorities to identify in writing who is responsible for the near-shore water, to establish marked swimming zones and marked boat corridors, to enforce existing rules including the jet-ski distance rule, to publish an implementation timetable, and to report serious near-shore incidents transparently.
We ask for particular urgency at Raouché / Pigeon Rocks in Beirut, where swimmers, cliff divers, motorboats of any size, sightseeing craft and jet skis share a narrow, unmarked and heavily used stretch of water.
The twelve demands
- 01
Enforce the existing jet-ski 200 m rule
Enforce the published summer safety guidance requiring jet skis to stay out of swimming areas, remain at least 200 metres from shore, and enter and exit only through designated marked corridors.
- 02
Protected buoyed swimming zones
Physically buoy and mark swimming zones at every public beach, resort beach and recognised swimming rock area, maintained for the full swimming season.
- 03
Mandatory marked boat corridors
Every marina, harbour, boat ramp and rental point must have a marked entry/exit corridor that does not cross a swimming zone.
- 04
Proposed 5-knot / no-wake zone within 300 m of the coast
CAMPAIGN PROPOSAL — not current Lebanese law. Adopt a national near-shore standard: all powered craft operate at no more than 5 knots and produce no wake within 300 metres of the coastline. The rule is propulsion-neutral and covers motorboats of any size (small or large, recreational or commercial), tourist, sightseeing and excursion boats, speedboats, outboard-powered craft, waterjet / jet-drive craft even with no exposed propeller, and jet skis / personal watercraft. Inside a designated sightseeing/swimmer interaction zone such as Raouché / Pigeon Rocks we propose a stricter 3-knot, bare-steerage, no-wake limit where operationally feasible, with marked sightseeing routes kept separate from swimmer zones: no acceleration, planing, sharp turns or wake-producing manoeuvres inside marked interaction zones, and approach only through clearly marked corridors. Emergency, rescue, security and specifically authorised operations are excepted. Sailing and non-powered craft are outside this rule unless running under engine power at the time.
- 05
Operator licensing and insurance
Require a valid operator licence and third-party liability insurance for every commercial and recreational powered craft operating near swimmers — motorboats of any size, tourist/sightseeing and excursion boats, speedboats, outboard-powered craft, waterjet / jet-drive craft with no exposed propeller, and jet skis alike. Licensing should test proper look-out, safe speed and swimmer separation, not only vessel handling. CAMPAIGN PROPOSAL — licensing conditions for small tourist, sightseeing and excursion craft should also cover: never carrying more persons than the vessel's certified, licensed or manufacturer-rated capacity, whichever limit governs the vessel; a visibly posted maximum passenger count; a recorded pre-departure passenger headcount; properly fitted lifejackets/PFDs worn (not merely carried) by every passenger and crew member while underway; correctly sized child PFDs for children; and a pre-departure safety briefing.
- 06
Visible vessel registration
Registration numbers must be large, legible from shore and unobstructed, so any witness can identify a vessel involved in an incident.
- 07
Mandatory incident reporting
Any collision, near miss with injury risk, or wake injury involving a swimmer must be reported by the operator and the beach/marina management within 24 hours. This applies to every powered craft regardless of propulsion: motorboats of any size, tourist/sightseeing and excursion boats, speedboats, outboard-powered craft, waterjet / jet-drive craft with no exposed propeller, and jet skis.
- 08
Seasonal patrols
Deploy visible seasonal maritime patrols at the highest-risk coastal segments during the swimming season, with published patrol coverage.
- 09
Penalties and licence suspension
Graduated penalties for near-shore speeding and swimming-zone incursion, including suspension of operator and rental licences for repeat or injury-causing violations.
- 10
Resort, marina and rental safety plans
Every resort, marina, diving club and boat/jet-ski rental must file a written safety plan: zone marking, lifeguard cover, operator briefing, and an incident log. CAMPAIGN PROPOSAL — for small tourist, sightseeing and excursion craft the plan should also record: certified/licensed passenger capacity and a no-overcrowding rule, a visibly posted maximum passenger count, a pre-departure passenger headcount, properly fitted lifejackets/PFDs worn by all passengers and crew while underway, correctly sized child PFDs, and a pre-departure safety briefing covering lifejacket fastening and emergency instructions.
- 11
Public authority responsibility matrix
Publish, in writing, which authority is responsible for regulation, marking, patrolling, rescue and investigation in the 0–300 m coastal band — and who answers when an incident occurs.
- 12
A Raouché Maritime Safety Zone
Create a named, mapped safety zone at Raouché / Pigeon Rocks with buoyed swimming water, a single marked sightseeing corridor, a posted speed limit, seasonal patrol presence and bilingual signage.
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