Government awards 65 marine experts
Government awards 65 marine experts
JAKARTA (JP): The government has given awards to members of
the Indonesian delegation which took part in the campaign to win
international recognition for the archipelagic state concept.
The plaques were presented to 65 people including the chief
delegate Prof. Dr. Mochtar Kusuma-Atmadja, who is also a former
foreign minister.
Indonesia fought for nearly 20 years to have the archipelagic
state concept included in the 1982 United Nations Convention on
the Sea of Law which only became enforceable on Nov. 16.
Under the concept, which earlier met resistance from developed
countries, Indonesia's sovereignty stretches to include all the
waters that lie between the 17,000 islands that span across the
archipelago, including the straits that have up to now been
considered international sea passages.
The awards were given by Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali
Alatas at a dinner reception at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel on
Sunday night to mark the start of the implementation of the UN
convention.
"This success is one of the pinnacle accomplishments of
Indonesia's diplomatic struggle," Alatas said.
Alatas symbolically presented the plaques to six members of
the delegation, including Mochtar, retired Vice Marshal
Soedarmono, Mrs. Abdullah Kamil, Hasyim Djalal, TG Napitupulu and
Chaerul A. Sani who represented the late Chaidir A. Sani.
Alatas in his address said that with the international
recognition of the archipelagic concept, Indonesia needs to study
the implementation of the sea laws.
He said an inter-ministerial team is now taking inventory of
the various aspects of the law.
According to Mochtar Kusuma-Atmadja the international
recognition of Indonesia's seas was just an initial step to a
larger responsibility for the nation. "What we need to enhance is
our ability to manage and exploit it responsibly."
Under the UN convention Indonesia's sovereignty, which
originally covered five million square kilometers, has now
expanded to eight million with the inclusion of 200-mile
Exclusive Economic Zone and the continental seabed.
"The archipelagic concept is extremely vital to
Indonesia...The seas no longer function as a separator anymore;
on the contrary, it is now a unifying factor," Alatas remarked.
The developed countries's prime objection to the convention
was primarily over the question of who has authority to regulate
the exploration and exploitation of the undersea resources,
particularly in the continental seabed.
Apart from Indonesia, countries such as the Philippines,
Mauritius and Fiji will also benefit from the internationally
recognized archipelagic concept. (emb/mds)