The move brings The Bahamas in line with the UN convention defining the rights and responsibilities of nations in their use of the world's oceans, establishing guidelines for businesses, the environment, and the management of marine natural resources.
The Legal Affairs Division in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs made the announcement on Wednesday, stressing the manifold significance of the formal declaration.
"First, it definitively sets out the extent of our archipelagic waters to which the full sovereignty of The Bahamas extends, subject only to certain rights of other States, such as "innocent passage,"" the ministry said.
"Second, the baselines provide a well-defined starting point for measuring the seaward extent of the other maritime zones of The Bahamas, including the 12 nautical mile territorial sea and the 200 nautical mile Exclusive Economic Zone."
"Third, the baselines provide a clearer basis for the continuation of discussions respecting our maritime boundaries with our neighbouring States."
The foreign ministry said this aspect of the declaration was critical since discussions and negotiations with Cuba and the United Kingdom in respect of Turks and Caicos Islands are expected to recommence in 2009.
"The legal certainty that is attendant with the formal determination of maritime borders will only lead to more effective management of The Bahamas’ rich maritime resources and the greater protection and preservation of the marine environment. Furthermore, the ability of The Bahamas’ security forces to more effectively patrol and protect the maritime borders of The Bahamas will be greatly enhanced, thereby strengthening the national security of The Bahamas," the ministry said.
In a press statement issued on Wednesday, it was announced that on December 11, 2008, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs formally submitted the official archipelagic baselines of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas to the Secretary-General of the United Nations in accordance with Article 47(9) of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
The foreign ministry said this affirmation of the official maritime borders of The Bahamas had been achieved through many years of research, analysis and collaboration between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Attorney-General’s Office, the Royal Bahamas Defence Force and the Bahamas National Geographic Information Systems Centre. The ministry also recognized the "invaluable contribution" of the late George P. Stewart, former Director General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Law Of The Sea
The Legal Affairs Division of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained that the Convention introduced a number of provisions, the most significant of which were the setting of limits, and provisions governing navigation, archipelagic status and transit regimes, exclusive economic zones (EEZs), continental shelf jurisdiction, deep seabed mining, the exploitation regime, protection of the marine environment, scientific research, and settlement of disputes.
"Of particular significance is the fact that prior to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, there was no recognition of the special characteristics, and consequently, the particular legal rights and obligations of archipelagic States," the ministry said.
"It was only through intense negotiations at the UN by archipelagic countries such as The Bahamas that the legal concept of the archipelagic state was accepted by the international community."
"The result was that the Convention set the definition of Archipelagic States, which also defines how the state can draw its territorial borders," the ministry explained.
Innocent Passage
According to Foreign Affairs, a baseline is drawn according to set criteria and all waters inside this baseline are designated Archipelagic Waters. Like the territorial waters, the state has full sovereignty over its archipelagic waters, but foreign vessels have the right of "innocent passage."
Innocent passage is defined by the Convention as the ability to pass through those waters in manner which is not "prejudicial to the peace, good order or the security" of the coastal state. This means that states can suspend innocent passage in specific areas of their territorial seas for the protection of its security. Fishing, polluting, weapons practice, and spying, for example, are not "innocent" passage.
UNCLOS I, II & III
The foreign ministry explained that the affirmation of The Bahamas’ official maritime borders has ensured that The Bahamas is in compliance with its obligations under international law, namely the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), to which The Bahamas is a state party.
The present Convention is the result of a series of treaties and agreements negotiated over several decades beginning with UNCLOS I which was negotiated at the First Conference on the Law of the Sea held in 1956 and finalised in 1958. Although UNCLOS I was considered a success, the United Nations held a second conference in 1960, UNCLOS II, because UNCLOS I left open the important issue of breadth of territorial waters.
No further agreement, however, was reached.
It was not until 1967 when the question of varying claims of territorial waters was raised in the United Nations by Arvid Pardo, Permanent Representative of the island-state of Malta to the United Nations, that the issue gained momentum once again and in 1973 the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS III), was convened in New York.
With more than 160 nations participating, the third conference took place from 1973 through 1982. In an attempt to reduce the possibility of groups of nation-states dominating the negotiations, the conference used a consensus process rather than majority vote.
The result of the third conference was the final text of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea which came into force on November 16, 1994.
