PIRACY AND SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY MAJOR CONCERNS OF OCEAN CONSULTATIONS TO BE HELD AT UN HEADQUARTERS FROM 7 TO 11 MAY

PIRACY AND SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY MAJOR CONCERNS OF OCEAN CONSULTATIONS

TO BE HELD AT UN HEADQUARTERS FROM 7 TO 11 MAY

The promotion of marine science and technology as one of the tools available to accelerate economic and social development and ensure food security, together with efforts to combat piracy and armed robbery at sea where incidents have in some cases increased dramatically in the past two years, will be the major concerns before the United Nations Open-Ended Informal Consultative Process on Ocean Affairs when it holds its second meeting at Headquarters from 7 to 11 May.

The Consultative Process was established by the General Assembly to facilitate the annual review by the Assembly of developments in ocean affairs.  It is to consider the Secretary-General’s report on oceans and the law of the sea, and suggest particular issues to be considered by the Assembly, with an emphasis on identifying areas where coordination and cooperation at the intergovernmental and inter-agency levels should be enhanced.  A perceived lack of coordination and cooperation in addressing ocean issues, under the legal framework of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, has been identified by the Secretary-General as one factor which has prevented the emergence of more efficient and results-oriented ocean policies.

At its first meeting, held at Headquarters from 30 May to 2 June 2000, the Consultative Process focused on:  responsible fisheries and illegal, unreported and unregulated fisheries; and economic and social impacts of marine pollution and degradation, especially in coastal areas.

At its fifty-fifth session, the General Assembly (resolution 55/7 of 30 October 2000) stressed the need to consider, as a matter of priority, the issues of marine science and technology and to focus on the best ways to implement the many obligations of States and competent international organizations under the relevant provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

The General Assembly recommended that one of the areas of focus of the Consultative Process, at its second meeting, would be on “marine science and development and transfer of marine technology as mutually agreed, including capacity-building”.

A second area of focus recommended by the General Assembly was coordination and cooperation in combating piracy and armed robbery at sea.

Marine Science and Technology

In his annual report to the General Assembly on oceans and the law of the sea (document A/56/58), made available to the Consultative Process for its consideration, the Secretary-General underlined the importance of marine science in understanding many complex issues associated with the sustainable use and management of the oceans and their resources.  He pointed to the need to adopt national rules, regulations and procedures to promote and facilitate the conduct of marine scientific research, as well as to develop guidelines and criteria to assist States in ascertaining the nature and implications of such research.

The Consultative Process also has before it a paper submitted by Norway (document A/AC.259/4) on marine science and the development and transfer of marine technology.  The paper analyzes and identifies possible plans of action to implement the marine scientific regime contained in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.  It also contains Norwegian model legislation as an example of how the marine scientific provisions could be implemented at the national level.

Provisions of Convention on Law of the Sea

The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea lays down a comprehensive regime for the conduct and promotion of marine scientific research.  It strikes a balance between the rights of coastal States to regulate and authorize the conduct of research in maritime zones under their jurisdiction and the rights of researching States to carry out research as long as it does not have any bearing on exploration and exploitation of resources.

States and competent international organizations are called upon by the Convention to promote international cooperation in marine scientific research, as well as to cooperate so as to create favourable conditions for the conduct of such research, and to publish and disseminate information on proposed major programmes and their objectives, as well as knowledge gained from such programmes.  Cooperation would also entail the strengthening of research capabilities of developing countries through, among other things, programmes to provide adequate education and training.

The Convention on the Law of the Sea elaborates a “consent regime” that governs requests to coastal States for the conduct of research in maritime areas under their jurisdiction, and the clearly specified circumstance under which the consent of the coastal State should be granted or withheld.

Although the Convention specifies that marine scientific research in the exclusive economic zone and on the continental shelf be to be conducted only with the consent of the coastal State concerned, it also obligates the coastal State, under normal circumstance, to grant its consent for the conduct of such research.

Coastal States may withhold their consent to the conduct of marine scientific research if the proposed research is of direct significance to the utilization of the natural resources of the exclusive economic zone or the continental shelf; involves drilling into the continental shelf, the use of explosive or the introduction of harmful substances into the marine environment; involves the construction, operation or use of artificial islands, installations and structures; or if inaccurate information concerning the nature or objective of the research is provided or if the researching State or competent international organization has outstanding obligations to the coastal State from a prior research project.

To further facilitate research, the Convention contains an “implied consent” rule that allows States or competent international organizations to proceed with a research project six months after pertinent information has been supplied to the coastal State, unless within four months of the receipt of the information the coastal State has informed the State or organization concerned that it has not met certain conditions.  

Part and parcel of the Convention’s provisions with respect to marine scientific research are its provisions regarding the development and transfer of marine technology.  The Convention places an obligation on States to promote the development of the marine scientific and technological capacity of other States, particularly developing States.  States are obligated to promote, among other things, the acquisition, evaluation and dissemination of marine technological knowledge; the development of appropriate marine technology; the development of the necessary technological infrastructure; and the development of human resources through training and education.

States are obligated under provisions of the Convention to foster favourable economic and legal conditions for the transfer of marine technology for the benefit of all parties concerned on an equitable basis.

Crimes at Sea

At its fifty-fifth session (resolution 55/7), the General Assembly urged all States to take all necessary and appropriate measures to prevent and combat incidents of piracy and armed robbery at sea.  States were urged to cooperate with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) by reporting on incidents to the organization and by implementing its guidelines on preventing attacks of piracy and armed robbery.

In his report on oceans and the law of the sea (document A/56/58), the Secretary-General pointed out that criminal activities at sea include piracy and armed robbery against ships, terrorism, smuggling of migrants, and illicit traffic in persons, narcotic drugs and small arms.

According to the International Maritime Bureau, the number of incidents of piracy and armed robbery against ships in 2000 had risen by 57 per cent as compared with 1999 and was nearly four and half times as high as that of 1991.  A total of 469 attacks on ships either at sea, at anchor or in port were reported to the Bureau during 2000.

The figures compiled by the Bureau show an alarming increase in the number of incidents of piracy and armed robbery:  in the straits of Malacca, 75, compared with 2 in 1999; in the Red Sea, 13, compared with 2 in 1999.  Similarly, global statistics show that the problem of smuggling of migrants is increasing.  Other crimes at sea are also on the rise.

The Legal Framework for addressing the issue of crimes at sea is provided by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, especially articles 100 to 107 and article 110, as well as article 58, paragraph 2, which refers to the application of the rules of the high seas to the exclusive economic zone.  These provisions are supplemented by the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Maritime Navigation and its Protocol.

With respect to piracy and armed robbery at sea, the Consultative Process will address a number of issues, including the adequacy of actions being taken at the regional level to ensure close coordination and cooperation among maritime authorities and the law-enforcement agencies of the States concerned. 

Coordination and Cooperation

Pursuant to its mandate, the Consultative Process, at its second meeting, will attempt to devise ways and means to enhance international coordination and cooperation in ocean matters.  In addition to the two areas of focus, in which the Consultative Process will benefit from presentations by international panelists, it will deal with matters related to cooperation and coordination among States and at the interagency level in dealing with those issues.  Further, the Consultative Process will address other matters related to ocean affairs and the use and management of the oceans and their resources.

A number of presentations on marine science and technology and piracy and armed robbery at sea will be made by States, as well as international organizations and non-governmental organizations.

The Consultative Process is co-chaired by Tuiloma Neroni Slade (Samoa) and Alan Simcock (United Kingdom).

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