The Sacred Cargoes act was a law passed by the Botchok Planetary Congress (BPC) in reference stardate 1/9504 (circa 2253).
Following the Laxala Incident during the Four Years War, the BPC reacted by issuing the Sacred Cargoes act, declaring that Orion merchants were to be untouchable by both the Federation and the Klingon Empire. To back this up, both the BPC and the Orion Frontier Mercantile Association threatened to destroy all dilithium on Rigel XII if either side disrupted their trade. Both sides complied with the ultimatum. The Orions profited off the secure trade, in the process saving their worlds and economies from collapse. The Federation also benefited from the supply of dilithium and other rare war resources, which they badly needed at the time. (FASA RPG modules: The Orions: Book of Common Knowledge, The Orions: Book of Deep Knowledge)