2009年，贾宇副所长在国际海底管理局理事会会议上，就维护人类共同继承遗产原则做学术报告。
The third presenter was Professor Jia Yu, Deputy Director of the China Institute for Marine Affairs (CIMA). Her presentation, entitled “Safeguarding the Common Heritage of Mankind”, began with a brief overview on the principle of the Area and its resources being the common heritage of mankind as set out in Articles 136 and 137 of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
The distinction between the extended continental shelf and the Area was outlined in the presentation: the Area was beyond national jurisdiction and as such no State shall claim or exercise sovereignty over any part of the Area or its resources. On the other hand the “extended continental shelf” was within the jurisdiction of coastal States in areas over which they exercised sovereign rights. The legal regime for the “extended continental shelf” was provided for in Part VI and Annex 2 of the Convention. An important principle was natural prolongation: if the submerged prolongation of the land mass of a coastal State went beyond 200 nautical miles, the State might make a submission to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS). The CLCS was the body mandated to make recommendations to coastal States on matters related to their establishing outer limits of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles.
Professor Jia said that the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf had received 50 submissions from coastal States. She expressed doubts about the legitimacy of the claims made by some states, which contained “obvious deviations from the principles and relevant articles of UNCLOS.” According to Article 121, paragraph 3 of the Convention, “Rocks which cannot sustain human habitation or economic life of their own shall have no exclusive economic zone or continental shelf.” Some submissions to the CLCS made claims on the continental shelf using a remote, isolated and very small rock as the base point, she said.
The presenter expressed the view that the CLCS should not consider those submissions in which the coastal States made groundless claims of continental shelf. Using rocks to claim continental shelf constituted an “excessive claim” and an abuse of the right of the coastal States to establishing the limits of their continental shelf, she observed. Those excessive claims, she argued, would reduce the scope of the Area and its resources which were the common heritage of mankind.
Indonesia’s representative explained that four factors distinguished islands from rocks. Islands must: sustain and maintain fresh water; be able to grow vegetation that can sustain human habitation; produce some material that can be used for human shelter; and be able to sustain a human community of at least fifty people.
Leading the discussion following Professor Jia’s presentation, the representative of Japan described it as a well-planned presentation “of a political nature”. He said that the sessions of the Authority were not the appropriate forum for the discussion of individual submissions to the CLCS, since the Authority had no jurisdiction on those matters. By sending an official note to the Commission, China had already lodged its objections to the submission. The representative urged members not to allow the Authority to be used for political campaigning.
China’s representative noted that Professor Jia had spoken in her capacity as an expert presenting her own views. The representative endorsed her assertion that safeguarding the common heritage of mankind was the joint responsibility of the members of the International Seabed Authority. His delegation had never considered the question a political one.
The Republic of Korea’s representative suggested that the discussion of the issue in the Council was appropriate since the recommendations of the CLCS would eventually affect the work of the Authority. Cote d”Ivoire agreed that this was the ideal forum for the exchange of views on any matters affecting the protection and preservation of the common heritage of mankind. Uganda, speaking as a land-locked nation, pointed out that countries like his depended on the Authority to look after their interests.
The Council will this afternoon resume its consideration of outstanding issues relating to the draft regulations on polymetallic sulphides.