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The ocean has long been subjected to the freedom of the sea principles that were put forth in the seventeenth century that limit national rights and jurisdiction over the ocean to a narrow board of sea that surrounds the nation’s coastline. It is also a reminder that the sea is proclaiming free to all and belongs to none. With the time, this situation won in the twentieth century by mid-century it was an impulsion to extend the nation’s claim over the offshore resources.
What is the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea
The United Nations Convention on the law of the sea was adopted in the year 1982; it tells complete rules and regulations of the law and order in the world’s ocean and seas to use oceans and their resources. It incorporates one traditional ruler for the use of the ocean and at the same time introduces new rules and concepts for new concerns. The division for ocean affairs and the laws of seas is the office of legal affairs of the United Nation, serves as the secretariat of the law of the sea, and provides information to states with a view of better understanding of the convention and the related agreement and their effective implementation. The division monitors all the development that is relating to convection to the General Assembly of the United Nation regarding the development.
The objective of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea
The different objectives of the United Nations Convention on the law of the sea are as follows:
- To promote the peaceful use of ocean and seas
- To facilitates international communications
- Equitable and systematic use of ocean resources
- To safeguard and maintain the marine environment
- To encourage maritime safety
Importance of United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea
The importance of the United Nations Convention on the law of the sea provides a comprehensive framework that governs all the activities and the use of the world oceans and sea, the main purpose of the study is to safeguard the marine environment and protect the scientific research on the high seas.
Principles of the law of the sea
There are mainly three different kinds of principles relating to the law of the sea:
Principle of Freedom
This principle tells about the visit and search of foreign merchants on the high vessel on the sea in time of peace, the freedom exercised in the sea that tells the overall commercialization of the sea in the international boundaries for trade and commerce that ensure the navigational rights of the state. The freedom implanted in the sense that ensures commercialization of the sea to open boundaries for international trade.
Principle of sovereignty
These principles are implemented to safeguard the interest of coastal states of the ocean that imply exclusive rights over maritime zones. This principle has incorporated two-aspect regarding the sea concerning coastal states: the 1st aspect deals with a territorial sea that deals with all the marine spaces that fall under the national jurisdiction of the state and the 2nd aspect deals with the marine spaces beyond the territorial sea to high sea where the freedom applies.
Principle of Common heritage of humankind
The principle of the common heritage of humankind comes out from the converse of the principle of sovereignty and the principle of freedom. It differs from both the two principles that states on the contrary of the common heritage that includes mankind as a whole, this principle helps to recognize that humanity is playing a crucial role to the sea. This concept has resulted from the state to an individual in the ambit of the sea law.
The different sea areas covered by the UNCLOS
The areas to cover by UNCLOS are:
Internal water: The area that is covered by all the water and waterways on the side of the baseline, this area is free to set laws and regulations of any kind of resource.
Territorial water: It is the 12th nautical mile zone from the lower water line along the coast. It is also concerned about the safety of navigation to preserve the environment and resources.
Archipelagic water: The baseline is drawing between the outermost points of the island that are sufficiently close to each other.
Contiguous zone: Beyond the 12 nautical mile limit, there are nautical miles of the territory that cover the contiguous zone.
Exclusive economic zone: this area covers the coastal nation and has the sole right over all other natural resources.
Conclusion
The whole discussion on the United Nations Convention on the law of the sea, when it was introduced, the important aspects of the law, the objective of the study, and the different kinds of principles that are being implemented by the UNCLOS. The purpose of the study helps to save the resources that are found on the sea, ocean, and marine life that is underwater. With the help of UNCLOS, we can define coastal and marine life boundaries to regulate exploration and not with territorial claims and to distribute the revenue that is being extracted from regular exploration.
