The exclusive economic zone of Malaysia : a legal analysis

Abstract

The international law of the sea is a huge branch of public international law. The last century has brought about many developments in the law of the sea, in particular the adoption of the United Nations Conventions on the Law of the Sea 1982 (UNCLOS). The Exclusive Economic Zone is a new legal regime created by the Convention. It is a maritime zone having a maximum limit of 200 nautical miles where the coastal state has sovereign rights and jurisdiction over its natural resources. This study attempts to analyze how the EEZ regime of Malaysia is regulated and how the laws are being enforced. The main legal issues are whether the EEZ legislation of Malaysia is in compliance with the principles of the UNCLOS 1982 and how marine pollution is being tackled by the Malaysian government. The main strategy used by Malaysia in combating marine pollution is by adopting international conventions aimed to control marine pollution in the EEZ. This study evaluates the legislation of Malaysia relating to her EEZ. It also examines the efficiency and effectiveness of current maritime enforcement agencies of Malaysia. It is expected that the present study assist in facilitating improvement of the legal regime of the EEZ and the enforcement of laws for the better future of the EEZ of Malaysia.