International

Fisheries Law (IFL)

Dr Abdullah Al Arif
JSPS Postdoctoral Fellow
Yokohama City University, Japan
Ocean conservation and
fisheries management

• Fish are great sources of animal protein

• Seafood are delicious
• Many people work in the fisheries sector – fishing, fish
processing, etc.
• UN Sustainable Development Goals
• To make the planet more more livable
• Use of natural resources sustainably
• To leave a better place for future generations
• SDG 14: Conserve and sustainably use the
oceans, seas and marine resources
Let us watch this video on
International Fisheries Law
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWZkp_NqEQU&
ab_channel=EnvironmentalDefenseFund
Let us now imagine if
there is no IFL
Every fisher would Every fisher would
think, “I am taking only think, “I will take what I
a few fish compared to catch today, will think
their massive amount in about conservation
the ocean.” tomorrow.”

Every fisher would Result: Fish stocks

think, “I do not need to decline as nobody cared
care for conservation, for them. Everybody’s
because others do care, business becomes
and that is enough” nobody’s business.
The ocean has
borders and
partitions, like land!

Coastal states/Landlocked states

Territorial Sea

Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ)

High Seas

Marine Regions, e.g., South China Sea,

Bay of Bengal, Indian Ocean, etc.
Maritime zones
and boundaries
• These borders are imaginary
• Fish do not know these borders
• They cross these borders many times
without passports and visas
• No immigration office at the
borders/ports to regulate arrival and
departure
• These areas are connected
• Many scholars said there is only one
ocean
• So, unsustainable fishing in one part
may affect other areas
 Most countries had 3 nautical miles Territorial
Sea (TS)

Before 1994, Other countries’ fishing boats could not go into

one could fish the TS

almost No EEZs
anywhere
Other countries’ fishing boats could come and
fish outside the TS

Some countries had large fishing boats/ships that

could catch huge amount of fish
 This meeting is known as 3rd UN Conference on the Law
of the Sea

Many countries participated

The United
• Developed and less developed
Nations • Coastal and landlocked
convened a • Powerful and weak

meeting in 1973 Aim was to save the ocean fisheries, among other things

Ocean was partitioned in TS, EEZ and HS

Coastal states were given the right (and the

responsibility) to fish in the EEZ
 Country B’s
Country A fishing ship

Imaginary borders of the ocean

 The 3rd UN Conference, after a long
negotiation, adopted in 1982
• United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea
• With many provisions related to fisheries
• The convention came into force in 1994

UNCLOS According to this Convention

• Only coastal states can fish in its – TS and EEZ

• All states can fish – on the High Seas
• With the right to fish – states bear the
responsibility to conserve fish where they fish
 Coastal states shall

• Catch fish in their EEZ

• Catch sustainably so that enough
fish are left for the future
According to • Take care of the marine environment
UNCLOS • Keep records of the amount of fish
caught
• Give away any unharvested amount
to other countries
• Share information with other
countries where appropriate
 Regional Fisheries Management
All countries
Organizations (RFMOs)

According to • Can catch fish on the High Seas

• Shall do it responsibly
• Are group of states fishing on a specific
High Seas region, e.g., South Pacific

UNCLOS • Respect any regional fisheries

management measures
• Should become members of concerned
RFMOs
• Have scientific data on abundance and
marine ecosystems
• Divide the allowable catch among
members (quota)
 Straddling species
Straddling and
Highly • Species that are found in the EEZs of country A and
on adjacent the high sea
Migratory
Species Highly migratory species

• Species that are found in the EEZs of A, B, X, Y, Z

and on the high Seas
The fish species is UNCLOS prescription for the conservation
found in multiple of these species
countries’ EEZ and • Cooperation (direct or through organizations)
on the high seas • Between all concerned states (coastal and fishing)
Southern Bluefin
Tuna

CCSBT: Convention on the conservation of Southern Bluefin Tuna

Cooperation Formed in 1984

Example Japan, Australia and New Zealand were original members

Now Taiwan, South Korea, Indonesia and South Africa are also members

CCSBT All waters where SBT are found, including national waters, e.g., EEZs, are covered by the organization
 Some useful The precautionary principle
principles
(UN Fish Stocks • Be careful, because there is high risk
Agreement 1995) • Do not go to the last point, you might ruin it
• Be careful, even if you do not know the risk

The ecosystem-based fisheries

management (EBFM) principle
Fishing activities
should be • Marine environment is complex and sensitive
• It contains fish, mammals, seaweeds, corals,
conducted other organisms and their habitats
considering these • They are dependent on each other
principles • Removing one element may have a significant
impact on other elements
 Apart from fishing legally and responsibly, there is
IUU fishing
• Illegal fishing
• Unregulated fishing

Problems - • Unreported fishing

• This is a very big concern, and the international community is still

IUU fishing working to address this issue.

and others Reflagging or using flags of convenience

Piracy

Bycatch and discards

Some ways to protect
fish stocks
• All states involved in fishing activity should act
responsibly
• Port states
• Flag states/fishing state
• Coastal states
• Market states
• Making fisheries decisions (national/international)
based on the best scientific information
• Consume responsibly
• Seafood Certifications, e.g., MSC (checking
sustainability labels on the packaging while
buying seafood)
 International Treaties – UNCLOS, UNFSA, PSMA

IFL in Brief: Regional Fisheries Management Organizations –

CCSBT
International Courts - ITLOS, ICJ
Some
important International Organizations – UN, FAO, IUCN

things to National Laws – Japanese Fisheries Act

know
Bilateral/trilateral treaties/understandings (MoUs),
e.g., Japan-Korea, Japan-China
Latest Developments -
Climate Change

• Fish redistribution
• Sea level rise and
disappearance of land
• Disappearance of maritime
boundaries
• Ocean acidification
Thank You Questions?