Abstract Article 121(3) of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (unclos) provides for the legal definition of the term “rocks” in international law. This article focuses on key aspects of the interpretation of this provision by the South China Sea Arbitral Tribunal in its Award of 12 July 2016 taking into consideration the current state and prospects of development of international law regarding Article 121(3) of unclos. This research discusses in particular, the method of interpretation applied by the Arbitral Tribunal to define the terms established in Article 121(3) of unclos as well as the meaning given to those terms by the Arbitral Tribunal. In addition, this article examines the (potential) impact of the South China Sea Arbitral Tribunal Award of 12 July 2016 on future State practice and jurisprudence as regards the interpretation and application of Article 121(3) of unclos.

A part of Canada’s colonial history and constitutional order can be understood by considering the country’s Indigenous peoples’ ocean fisheries. Less than four decades after the creation of a modern constitution for Canada which offered protection of the rights of “first peoples” who had been present before colonial European contact, the scope of Indigenous fishing rights remains incomplete.1 Even as the country prepares to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, questions of their access and commercial trading rights to the fisheries of the Atlantic, Arctic and Pacific Oceans persist.2 In this

In this edition of the Asia Pacific Journal of Ocean Law and Policy, scholars have provided three important developments in State-based ocean law. In Canada, Professor Jeffrey Smith reports on the exercise by Sipekne’katik First Nation of its sovereign rights in 2020 to self-manage a Nova Scotia lobster fishery independent of national or provincial management. He explains in detail the historical evolution that has led to the reassertion of fishery-related trading rights suppressed by colonial managers but guaranteed by Peace and Friendship Treaties. The Sipekne’katik First Nation lobster fishery will be test of the recognition by the judiciary

Abstract China is a large State with a large population and an enormous fishing industry. The marine fishery labour force represents a significant proportion of Chinese labour market share. Due to the special nature of working in marine fisheries, female workers have long represented a significant proportion of the workforce but have been undervalued or even recognised. So far, there has been little research on the protection of female workers’ rights in this field. In 2017, the Secretary-General of the United Nations presented the issue of people on the ocean in a special chapter within the Oceans and the Law of the Sea Report, highlighting the protection of women’s rights in the field of marine fisheries. There is evidence that this issue has already attracted the attention of the international community. Studying the issue of female workers’ protection in this field encourages the standardisation of the marine fishery labour market, thus promoting sound future development. As a result, this article tries to address the necessity for the legal protection of female workers in the field of marine fishery, through an analysis of the evolution of the marine fishery labour force and the current situation as regards the issue of human rights. To date, there is still a lack of effective protection of women’s rights in marine fisheries, especially through legal means, which requires to be addressed.

Over the past few years, Canada has achieved significant progress in its efforts to meet its international and domestic commitments to area-based marine protection. It has now extended protections, in some form, to almost eight per cent of its coastal and ocean waters. However, critical issues remain concerning implementation. This article describes and critically analyses Canada’s progress on area-based marine protection in view of international principles, standards, and criteria. It provides an overview of the broader jurisdictional, legislative, and policy framework for area-based marine protection, before outlining the key federal legislative schemes that form Canada’s marine protected areas (mpas) network. It also discusses provincial (subnational) area-based marine protection, as well as new initiatives to establish offshore Indigenous protected and conserved areas, and highlights cooperative arrangements made with other states. Finally, it provides some future outlooks for area-based marine protection in Canada.