Revisiting Traditional Fishing Rights: Sustainable Fishing in the Historic and Legal Context

Weikang Wang and Guifang Xue ()
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Weikang Wang: Center for Polar and Deep Ocean Development, KoGuan School of Law, Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU), Shanghai 200030, China
Guifang Xue: Center for Polar and Deep Ocean Development, KoGuan School of Law, Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU), Shanghai 200030, China

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 16, 1-12

Abstract: Poor fishing practices and overfishing are now imperiling livelihoods on small-scale fishing. Traditional fishing rights as one of the legal guarantees for small-scale artisanal fishers under SDG 14 may be abused in various maritime zones, which is precisely because such rights are not well-reflected in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), leading to uncertainty between theories and practice. In order to better implement SDG 14 and its targets for sustainable fishing, this paper examines the practical meaning of traditional fishing rights through tracing back the origins, nature and legal elements of such fishing rights by jurisprudence and state practice, and it differentiates its distinctions between ‘historic rights’. Based on this, the paper analyzes the application of these fishing rights in different maritime zones and suggests sustainable ways of making a balance between the jurisprudence and practice for a healthy ocean.

Keywords: sustainable fishing; SDG 14; UNCLOS; traditional fishing rights; law of the sea (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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