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Abstract

The Common Heritage of Mankind (CHM) has become a prevalent principle adopted in international treaties governing objects and resources situated beyond national jurisdictions. Despite this widespread adoption, it is still a subject of debate whether it constitutes something more than a mere treaty provision that only binds state parties. This paper aims to analyze the position of CHM in the sources of international law, with a focus on analyzing its existence as a customary norm and a general principle of international law. There has been no international dispute involving CHM, which leaves the question of its position in international law as it was never clarified by international court judges. This paper seeks to explore whether it would be legitimate for international courts to regard CHM as a law in settling disputes involving parties that are not bound to the relevant international treaties adopting CHM. The research was done normatively by assessing the historical and contemporary facts that could help clarify the position of CHM in international law. The research finds that CHM can be regarded as both a customary norm and a general principle of international law. CHM begins as a general principle rooted from natural law, which is then followed by consistent practices and opinio juris, indicating its acceptance as a customary norm. This paper argues that it would be legitimate for international courts to regard CHM as a law in resolving disputes relating to CHM objects irrespective of the parties’ involvement in the relevant international treaties.

Bahasa Abstract

Common Heritage of Mankind (CHM) telah menjadi prinsip yang lazim diadopsi dalam perjanjian internasional yang mengatur objek dan sumber daya yang terletak di luar yurisdiksi nasional. Terlepas dari adopsi yang meluas ini, masih menjadi bahan perdebatan apakah CHM lebih dari sekadar ketentuan perjanjian yang hanya mengikat negara pihak. Artikel ini bertujuan untuk menganalisis posisi CHM dalam sumber hukum internasional, dengan perhatian khusus diberikan untuk menganalisis keberadaannya sebagai norma kebiasaan dan prinsip umum hukum internasional. Belum adanya sengketa internasional berkaitan CHM membuat pertanyaan tentang posisinya dalam hukum internasional belum pernah diklarifikasi oleh hakim pengadilan internasional. Artikel ini mencoba untuk mengeksplorasi apakah sah bagi pengadilan internasional untuk menganggap CHM sebagai hukum dalam menyelesaikan sengketa yang melibatkan pihak-pihak yang tidak terikat pada perjanjian internasional yang mengadopsi CHM. Penelitian dilakukan secara normatif dengan mengkaji fakta sejarah dan kontemporer yang dapat membantu memperjelas posisi CHM dalam hukum internasional. Penelitian menemukan bahwa CHM dapat dianggap sebagai norma kebiasaan dan prinsip umum hukum internasional. CHM bermula sebagai prinsip umum yang berakar dari hukum alam yang kemudian diikuti oleh praktik-praktik yang konsisten dan opinio juris yang menunjukkan penerimaannya sebagai norma kebiasaan. Penelitian menunjukkan bahwa akan sah bagi pengadilan internasional untuk menganggap CHM sebagai hukum dalam menyelesaikan sengketa yang berkaitan dengan objek CHM terlepas dari keterlibatan para pihak dalam perjanjian internasional yang relevan.

References

Journal Articles and Periodicals

Arnold, Rudolph Preston. “The Common Heritage of Mankind as a Legal Concept.” International Lawyer 9, no. 1 (1975): 153-158.

Arrow, DW. “The Customary Norm Process and the Rules of International Law: An Outline.” Ocean Development and International Law 9 (1982): 1–59.

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Franckx, Erik. “The International Seabed Authority and the Common Heritage of Mankind: The Need for States to Establish the Outer Limits of Their Continental Shelf.” The International Journal of Marine and Coastal Law 25, no. 4 (2010): 546-557. https://doi.org/10.1163/157180810X525377.

French, Duncan. “From the Depths: Rich Pickings of Principles of Sustainable Development and General International Law on the Ocean Floor—the Seabed Disputes Chamber's 2011 Advisory Opinion.” The International Journal of Marine and Coastal Law 26, no. 4 (2011): 525-568. https://doi.org/10.1163/157180811X598691.

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Kammerhofer, Jörg. “Uncertainty in the Formal Sources of International Law: Customary International Law and Some of Its Problems.” European Journal of International Law 15, no. 3 (2004): 523-553. https://doi.org/10.1093/ejil/15.3.523.

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Talha, Ahmad. “The Preponderance of International Courts in the Conflict of Treaty Law and Customary International Law.” Annals of Human and Social Sciences 4, no. 2 (2023): 543-550. https://doi.org/10.35484/ahss.2023(4-II)50.

Van Hoof, GJH. “Legal Status of the Concept of the Common Heritage of Mankind.” Grotiana 7 (1986): 49-79.

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Books and Book Chapters

Asshiddiqie, Jimly. Pengantar Ilmu Hukum Tata Negara [Introduction to Constitutional Law]. Jakarta: Rajawali, 2015.

Banet, Catherine. The Law of the Seabed: Access, Uses, and Protection of Seabed Resources. Leiden: Brill Nijhoff, 2020.

Baslar, Kemal. The Concept of the Common Heritage of Mankind in International Law. The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, 1998.

Besson, Samantha and Jean D'Aspremont. “The Sources of International Law” in The Oxford Handbook on the Sources of International Law. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2017.

Delville, Philippe Lavigne. “Harmonising Formal Law And Customary Land Rights In French-Speaking West Africa” in Evolving Land Rights, Policy and Tenure in Africa, C. Toulmin and J. Quan, eds. 97–112. London: IIED, 2000.

de Wet, Erika and Jure Vidmar. “Conclusions” in Hierarchy in International Law The Place of Human Rights. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2012. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199647071.003. 0011.

Harsono, Boedi. Hukum Agraria Indonesia Sejarah Pembentukan Undang-Undang Pokok Agraria, Isi Dan Pelaksanaannya [Indonesian Agrarian Law: The History, Contents, and Application]. Jakarta: Djambatan, 2003.

Mertokusumo, Sudikno. Penemuan Hukum, Suatu Pengantar [Law Finding: An Introduction]. Yogyakarta: Liberty, 2010.

Millicay, María Fernanda. “The Common Heritage of Mankind: 21st Century Challenges of a Revolutionary Concept” in Law of the Sea, From Grotius to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, Lilian del Castillo, ed. Leiden: Brill Nijhoff, 2015.

Nandan, Satya N. and Michael W. Lodge. The Development of the Regime for Deep Seabed Mining. Virginia: Center for Oceans Law and Policy, 2002.

Shaw, Malcolm N. International Law, Sixth Edition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2008. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781139051903.

Treaties

Antarctic Treaty (opened for signature 1 December 1959, entered into force 23 June 1961).

The Agreement Governing the Activities of States on the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies. 1363 UNTS 22 (opened for signature 5 December 1979, entered into force 11 July 1984).

The Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space Outer Space Treaty, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies. 610 UNTS 205 (opened for signature 27 January 1967, entered into force 10 October 1967).

UN General Assembly. Resolution 2749 (XXV). Declaration of Principles Governing the Sea-Bed and the Ocean Floor, and the Subsoil Thereof, beyond the Limits of Nations Jurisdiction. A/RES/2749 (1970).

United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. 1833 UNTS 397 (opened for signature 10 December 1982, entered into force 16 November 1994).

Legal Documents

Draft of High Seas Treaty, The United Nations Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction Treaty (opened for signature 20 September 2023).

ILC. “Report of the 71st Session.” A/74/10. Geneva: International Law Commission, 2019.

Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea. “Letter Dated April 24, 1979 from the Chairman of the Group of 77 to the President of the Conference.” New York: United Nations, 1979. https://legal.un.org/diplomaticconferences/1973_los /docs/english/vol_11/a_conf62_77.pdf.

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