Study On The Legal Issues Of High Seas Marine Protected Areas

High Seas Marine Protected Areas refers to any marine areas established through legal procedures or other effective ways to manage and arrange human activities that utilize and affect the marine environment,so as to protect and restore the natural richness and resilience of ecosystem processes and habitats,prevent the loss of biodiversity and related historical and cultural characteristics,and enable human beings to protect,recover,make rational use of,understand and enjoy the world marine heritage and properties,which is completely located on the high seas and takes a long time to show its effect.Human activities in the high seas are increasing day by day.Without timely and effective protection of marine organisms and marine environment in the high seas,the marine environment will be further damaged and the survival of marine organisms will be endangered.Although there are Particular Sensitive Sea Areas and Vulnerable Marine Ecosystems,the former prevents marine oil pollution,toxic liquid,ship garbage and ship gas from damaging sensitive areas,mainly restricting international shipping activities,and the latter restricts fishing activities in the deep sea.These existing area-based management tools are single or incomplete in the protection of marine areas,while High Seas Marine Protected Areas is all-round protection of marine organisms and marine environment,and the establishment of it is the general trend in the future.However,there are still a series of legal problems in High Seas Marine Protected Areas.For example,are there legal norms in international conventions,customary international laws or resolutions of international organizations to support the establishment of High Seas Marine Protected Areas and provide legal guarantee for the effective implementation of it? Where is the boundary of high seas freedom? Has High Seas Marine Protected Areas broken through the theory of high seas freedom? Can the management agency or authorized inspector of High Seas Marine Protected Areas replace the flag state to carry out boarding inspection on fishing vessels in the protected areas? Does the development of resources in the International Seabed Area need to comply with the conservation and management measures of High Seas Marine Protected Areas? The existence of these legal problems is the reason for the relatively slow development of High Seas Marine Protected Areas.This paper holds that the existing international law provides legal protection for High Seas Marine Protected Areas to some extent,but it is not enough.The establishment of High Seas Marine Protected Areas needs to follow high seas freedom.The existing management measures of it may not break through the theory of high seas freedom.The principle of flag state jurisdiction should be observed by High Seas Marine Protected Areas.The conservation and management measures of High Seas Marine Protected Areas should be considered in the resource development activities of the International Seabed Area,and the management agencies should fully communicate and consult with each other.At present,the Intergovernmental negotiations on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity beyond areas of national jurisdiction are progressing smoothly.The entry into force of the third implementation agreement of the United Nations Convention on the law of the sea is just around the corner.China has actively participated in the negotiation of this Agreement and expressed its views on each issue.In the game of High Seas Marine Protected Areas dominated by western countries,China must firmly seize this opportunity,occupy the priority position of developing High Seas Marine Protected Areas,turn passivity into initiative,adhere to the principle of High Seas Freedom and the principle of international cooperation,put forward Chinas proposals for the development of High Seas Marine Protected Areas,and transform Chinas expectations at least into "soft law".