In a few days, Wilton Park will bring together selected experts and practitioners to explore tensions between the fundamental concepts underpinning the law of the sea and those underpinning international human rights protection.
Human Rights at Sea Advisory Board Member Professor Sir Malcolm D Evans, KCMG, OBE, FLSW, has worked with Wilton Park on the conference, which is a direct response to the 2021 House of Lords United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea inquiry (UNCLOS), and whether it was fit for purpose in the 21st Century.
Lord Teverson will also attend the three-day event along with HRAS Trustee Professor Irini Papanicolopulu to examine: UNCLOS and Human Rights Law: What are the jurisdictional barriers to protecting human rights at sea?
The Report was recently discussed by the Grand Committee in the House of Lords. At the timely debate, Human Rights at Sea Patron Lord Teverson addressed members, adding: "Human Rights at Sea is pushing ahead with a document called the Geneva Declaration on Human Rights at Sea."
The Geneva Declaration on Human Rights at Sea is focused on human rights at sea development at UN level, and hard copies will be available to all participants at the conference.
On day 2, HRAS Board of Trustees member Dr Natalie Klein will address experts and stakeholders to discuss: What are the practical and operational issues that limit effective enforcement and how to overcome these? How to improve monitoring and oversight of human rights violations at sea, and who or what entities are best placed to drive these activities? In addition to existing frameworks and conventions, what further tools and interventions could be deployed?
The conference aims to:
• Explore the tensions between the fundamental concepts underpinning the law of the sea and those underpinning international human rights protection.
• Identify and explore practical ways in which the law of the sea might be developed in order to better address the enforcement, monitoring, and protection of human rights at sea.
• Consider how the language of human rights protection can better reflect the different approaches to the allocation of jurisdiction and responsibility found at sea.
• Generate practical strategies for enhancing human rights protection at sea and, recommendations which can be taken in furtherance of this objective.
The narrative of human rights at sea has been largely driven by Human Rights at Sea since 2014 in the civil society space, with extensive and supporting interdisciplinary work with international academic institutions and colleagues being concurrently undertaken.
We are delighted that our Patron Lord Teverson and Board members Dr Natalie Klein, Professor Steven Haines, Ruth Crowell and Professor Irini Papanicolopulu will be at the conference, along with HRAS Advisors Sir Malcolm Evans, Professor Anna Petrig and Dr Sofia Galani.
Human Rights at Sea CEO, David Hammond intends to join the event but is currently working at State-level in Qatar, building long-term human rights, and associated legal capabilities in the maritime sector, including during the FIFA World Cup period and beyond.
Human Rights at Sea looks forward to the event and looks forward to following up with its partners on detailed work at UN level.
Contact: Charlotte Rumbol, Communications Manager and Project Officer: charlotte.rumbol@humanrightsatsea.org
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