EDITOR'S NOTE



EDITOR'S NOTE

This Issue of China Oceans Law Review is informative. It contains both scholarly articles and those having a closer relation to practice. These articles deal with a wide range of issues， including the law of the sea issues that are particular to China， and the challenges that are common globally.

The international legal regimes designed to regulate the exploration and exploitation of resources in the Area， apart from the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea （UNCLOS） and the Agreement Relating to the Implementation thereof， include regulations adopted on prospecting and exploration for polymetallic nodules， cobalt-rich crusts and polymetallic sulphides. The “Advisory Opinion”， which was rendered by the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea with respect to Case No. 17， has prompted some States to promulgate national laws in this regard. Against this backdrop，China enacted the Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Exploration and Exploitation of Resources in Deep Seabed Area in February this year. Before embarking on the contents of this law， JIA Yu， a Chinese researcher， first reviews its background. She then argues that this law has strongly underpinned the Chinese enterprises’ participation in the exploration and exploitation activities in the international seabed area.

FEI Jie and LAI Zhongping report the new discovery of 14 maps from the 18-19th centuries （prior to 1895） concerning Diaoyu/Senkaku Island and its affiliated islands in English and French. Each of these maps refers to the Diaoyu Islands by using transliterations of their Chinese place names. This newly discovered， third party historical cartographic and toponymic evidence supports the claim that the Diaoyu Islands were discovered and named by the Chinese prior to the 1895 Treaty of Shimonoseki， and this fact was widely known in Europe and America.

LI Rongcun and LI Lan， two Chinese lawyers， attempt to clarify the definition of ships sailing beyond their designated navigation zones in respect to insurance claims disputes over the past two years. Considered as an illegal act under administrative law， sailing beyond navigation zones will give rise toa corresponding administrative liability. Meanwhile， such sailing would likely risk the insurer repudiating any claims made by the insured ship and its owners. In China’s maritime judicial practices， ships sailing beyond navigation zones are often identified as unseaworthy. If the insurer intends to refuse claims on these grounds， it should provide evidence to prove that the ship has sailed beyond its navigation zone and should causally link such sailing and the accident under investigation.

Facing the rampant piracy and armed robbery at sea off the coast of Somalia， the Security Council has called on all States to criminalize such offenses in their domestic laws and prosecute the presumed pirates， so as to combat impunity of the crimes. However， the current domestic legislation of China might not be sufficient to meet this need. First， piracy is not criminalized by the criminal law of China. Additionally， the criminal procedural law of China makes it difficult to prosecute offenders caught on the high seas or in a place beyond national jurisdiction. In order to solve these problems， LIN Zhen puts forward some proposals on the revision to the criminal law and criminal procedural law of China.

Submarine cable network has become key facilitators of modern life. However， the communications revolution has resulted in great pressure on vulnerable marine ecosystems and biodiversity， although not apparent currently. Against this background， Kingsley Ekwere， a scholar from Nigeria， explores the interactions of submarine cables with seabed ecosystems. In his view，the key challenge for conservation， protection and sustainable management/ use of coastal seas and deep offshore waters is to balance the benefits of the communications revolution against any potential environmental impact. Demonstrating that cable operations are benign to the marine environment， the author further contends that the harmonious interactions between operators of telecommunication cables and other seabed users are critical in advancing the goals to reach environmental sustainability， and protect and conserve the marine environment.

Prior to the 1982 UNCLOS， a port State was only granted the power to investigate a foreign vessel within one of its ports， while the flag State had the right to institute proceedings against the vessel. UNCLOS expanded the responsibilities of port States in this regard， saying that port States could enforce applicable international law against visiting foreign vessels for pollution offences committed on the high seas or in the waters under thejurisdiction of other States. Moreover， the port State control regime has played a positive role in preventing and controlling vessel-source pollution. JIANG Jiadong and JIANG Wei believe that Port States have unparalleled advantages over flag and coastal States in vessel-source pollution prevention， reduction and control. However， there are still deficiencies in port State control of vesselsource pollution； and these deficiencies desperately need to be improved.

We have consistently committed to providing a platform for researchers and scholars to exchange their academic views in the realm of oceans law. And we hope readers will find these articles useful and beneficial.

COLR Editorial

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