|
MARITIME
ZONES (DELIMITATION) LAW, 1986 (PNDCL
159)
ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS
Section
1. Breadth of the Territorial Sea.
2. Sovereignty of Republic Over
Territorial Sea, Airspace above
Territorial Sea, etc.
3. Internal Waters of the
Republic.
4. Contiguous Zone.
5. Exclusive Economic Zone.
6. Continental Shelf.
7. Proof of Limits of Territorial
Sea, Contiguous Zone, exclusive
Economic Zone and Continental
Shelf.
8. Regulations.
9. Repeal.
WHEREAS the United Nations
Convention on the Law of the Sea
referred to in this Law as "the
Convention" was signed by the
Government of Ghana on the 10th
day of December, 1982 at Montego
Bay in Jamaica;
AND WHEREAS the Convention was
ratified by the Government of
Ghana on the 20th day of March,
1983;
AND WHEREAS it is necessary to
give effect to the provisions of
the Convention relating to the
delimitation of the territorial
sea, contiguous zone, exclusive
economic zone and the continental
shelf in order that these
provisions of the Convention shall
have the force of law in Ghana;
NOW THEREFORE IN PURSUANCE of the
Provisional National Defence
Council (Establishment)
Proclamation, 1981, this Law is
hereby made:
Section 1—Breadth of the
Territorial Sea.
(1) It is hereby declared that the
breadth of the territorial sea of
the Republic shall not exceed
twelve nautical miles measured
from the low waterline along the
coast of the Republic as marked on
large-scale official charts.
(2) The outer limit of the
territorial sea shall be the line
every point of which is at a
distance from the nearest point of
the baseline equal to the breadth
of the territorial sea.
Section 2—Sovereignty of Republic
Over Territorial Sea, Airspace
above Territorial Sea, Etc.
(1) The Republic shall exercise
sovereignty over the territorial
sea subject to the provisions of
the Convention and other rules of
international law.
(2) The sovereignty of the
Republic shall extend beyond its
land territory and internal waters
and to the airspace over the
territorial sea as well as to its
bed and subsoil.
Section 3—Internal Waters of the
Republic.
It is hereby declared that waters
on the landward side of the
baseline of the territorial sea
shall form part of the internal
waters of the Republic.
Section 4—Contiguous Zone.
(1) It is hereby declared that the
contiguous zone of the Republic
shall be that zone contiguous to
the territorial sea which may not
extend beyond twenty-four nautical
miles from the baselines from
which the breadth of the
territorial sea is measured.
(2) In the contiguous zone the
Government may exercise the
control necessary to:
(a) prevent infringement of its
customs, fiscal, immigration or
sanitary laws and regulations;
(b) punish infringement of such
laws and regulations if the
infringement is committed within
the territories of Ghana or the
territorial sea.
Section 5—Exclusive Economic Zone.
(1) It is hereby declared that the
exclusive economic zone of the
Republic is that area beyond and
adjacent to the territorial sea
which does not extend beyond two
hundred nautical miles from the
baselines from which the breadth
of the territorial sea is
measured.
(2) In the exclusive economic zone
the Republic shall, to the extent
permitted by international law,
have—
(a) sovereign rights for the
purpose of exploring and
exploiting, conserving and
managing the natural resources,
whether living or non-living, of
the waters superjacent to the
sea-bed and of the sea-bed and its
subsoil, and with regard to other
activities for the economic
exploration and exploitation of
the zone, such as the production
of energy from the water, currents
and winds;
(b) jurisdiction in accordance
with the provisions of the
Convention with regard to:
(i)
the establishment and use of
artificial islands, installations
and structures;
(ii) marine scientific research;
(iii) the protection and
preservation of the marine
environment;
(c) such other rights and duties
as are provided for in the
Convention.
(3) The lines delimiting the outer
limits of the exclusive economic
zone shall be shown on official
charts of a scale adequate for
ascertaining their position.
Section 6—Continental Shelf.
(1) It is hereby declared that the
continental shelf of the Republic
shall comprise the sea-bed and
subsoil of the submarine areas
that extend beyond the territorial
sea throughout the natural
prolongation of its land territory
to a distance of two hundred
nautical miles from the baselines
from which the breadth of the
territorial sea is measured.
(2) The Government shall exercise
over the continental shelf
sovereign rights for the purpose
of exploring the continental shelf
and exploiting its natural
resources.
(3) The rights conferred under
subsection (2) of this section
shall not affect the legal status
of the superjacent waters or of
the airspace above those waters.
(4) For the purposes of this
section the natural resources of
the continental shelf shall
consist of the mineral and other
non-living resources of the
sea-bed and subsoil together with
living organisms belonging to
sedentary species which at the
harvestable stage, either are
immobile on or under the sea-bed
or are unable to move except in
constant physical contact with the
sea-bed or the subsoil.
(5) The lines delimiting the outer
limits of the continental shelf
shall be shown on official charts
of a scale adequate for
ascertaining their position.
Section 7—Proof of Limits of
Territorial Sea, Contiguous Zone,
exclusive Economic Zone and
Continental Shelf.
The lines of delimitation of the
territorial sea, exclusive
economic zone and continental
shelf as drawn on official charts
shall be conclusive evidence of
the limits of the territorial sea,
exclusive economic zone and
continental shelf as specified by
sections 1, 5 and 6 of this Law.
Section 8—Regulations.
(1) The Provisional National
Defence Council may by legislative
instrument, make regulations for
giving full effect to the
provisions of this Law.
(2) Regulations made under this
section may prescribe a penalty
for an infringement thereof of a
fine not exceeding ¢500,000 or a
term of imprisonment not exceeding
fifteen years or both and may also
require the forfeiture of anything
used in the commission of the
offence.
(3) Where an offence under any
regulations made under this
section is committed by a body of
persons—
(a) where the body of persons is a
body corporate every director and
officer of the body corporate
shall be deemed to be guilty of
the offence, and
(b) where the body corporate is a
firm every partner of the firm
shall be deemed to be guilty of
the offence:
Provided that a person shall not
be deemed to be guilty of an
offence by virtue of this
subsection if he proves that the
act constituting the offence was
committed by a person other than
himself and without his knowledge
or connivance and that he
exercised all due diligence to
prevent the commission of the
offence having regard to all the
circumstances.
Section 9—Repeal.
The Territorial Waters and
Continental Shelf Decree, 1973 (N.R.C.D.
165) and the Territorial Waters
and Continental Shelf (Amendment)
Decree, 1977 (S.M.C.D. 109) are
hereby repealed.
Made this 2nd day of August, 1986.
FLT.-LT. JERRY JOHN RAWLINGS
Chairman of the Provisional
National Defence Council
Date of Gazette Notification: 22nd
August, 1986.
|
