Canada has ratified the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. Prime Minister Jean Chretien called the move “a good thing” for the country, but a Member of Parlia-ment from Newfoundland/Labrador saw it as Canada’s loss.
On Nov. 6, Minister of Foreign Affairs Bill Graham signed the document, and it was deposited with the UN Secretary General.
“By ratifying UNCLOS [the Law of the Sea convention], we are affirming our belief in the application of the rule of law to our oceans,” Graham said. “UNCLOS ratification will provide a strong foundation for Canada to continue its collaborative and innovative approach to oceans issues.”
Graham continued, “Ratification of the Convention will allow Canada to enjoy the benefits of UNCLOS, including acquisition of the means to delimit the outer edge of its continental shelf. Canada is also gaining a voice in UNCLOS institutions, such as the International Seabed Authority. Canada will now be able to speak on oceans issues on an equal footing with its peers and participate in decisions of importance to Canada.”
But M.P. John Efford, from the Bonavista-Trinity-Conception riding in Newfoundland and a former provincial fisheries minister, said that Canada has lost any opportunity to extend fisheries custodial management beyond the current 200-mile limit.
“Up to now, we’ve had the right to arrest foreign vessels guilty of fishing violations,” Efford said. “Now that we’ve signed the Law of the Sea, all we can do in inspect vessels and report them to NAFO [Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization] or whoever.”
Efford is a member of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans, which presented a report to Fisheries and Oceans Minister Robert Thibault last June recommending that Canada withdraw from NAFO. Thibault declined to follow the committee’s recommendation.