Buku Baru: Batas Maritim Antarnegara

Masih ingatkah Anda?

1. Kasus Pulau Sipadan dan Ligitan
2. Kasus Ambalat
3. Reklamasi Pantai Singapura dan runyamnya urusan batas maritim dengan Indonesia
4. Pelanggaran batas di Selat Malaka
5. Penangkapan nelayan Indonesia oleh Australia
6. dan banyak lagi

Buku ini akan membantu Anda memahami persoalan di atas.

Ringkasan
Buku ini disusun dalam beberapa bab yang dikemas sedemikian rupa sehingga memudahkan pemahaman. Bab 1 memuat pengantar batas maritim antarnegara, berguna bagi mereka yang benar-benar masih awam tentang topik ini. Bab 2 mulai memperkenalkan delimitasi batas maritim dengan contoh dan ilustrasi yang cukup mudah dipahami. Hal teknis mulai dibahas di Bab 3 tentang garis pangkal sebagai acuan dalam melakukan klaim maritim. Dalam bab ini dibahas jenis-jenis garis pangkal dan karakternya.

Bab 4 membahas yurisdiksi maritim yang bisa diklaim oleh suatu negara pantai. Bab ini membahas jenis, lebar, dan aturan yang berlaku pada masing-masing yurisdiksi. Pada Bab 5 dibahas prinsip-prinsip delimitasi. Inti dari bab ini adalah prinsip pelaksanaan delimitasi jika terjadi tumpang tindih klaim maritim oleh dua atau lebih negara bertetangga. Delimitasi ini mengacu kepada hukum internasional dan praktik negara. Setelah itu, Bab 6 membahas hal yang cukup teknis terkait metode delimitasi batas maritim. Dalam bab ini dibicarakan beberapa metode yang digunakan untuk menarik garis batas maritim serta pertimbangan-pertimbangannya.

Bab 7 secara khusus membahas aspek teknis delimitasi batas maritim yang meliputi penggunaan peta dan aspek geodesi termasuk datum vertikal dan horisontal. Pertimbangan-pertimbangan utama dalam delimitasi batas maritim dibahas pada Bab 8 yang intinya mengemukakan faktor yang relevan dan tidak relevan dalam menentukan batas maritim final. Bab 9 kembali membahas hal yang sangat teknis sifatnya yaitu data, informasi dan perangkat lunak yang diperlukan dalam melakukan delimitasi batas maritim. Selanjutnya Bab 10 secara khusus membahas peran ilmu dan teknologi geospasial dan pakar teknis dalam delimitasi batas maritim. Bab ini memperkenalkan survei pemetaan; fotogrametri dan penginderaan juah; penentuan posisi berbasis satelit; dan sistem informasi geografis. Bab 11 membahas institusi pemerintahan dan non pemerintahan yang berperan dalam delimitasi batas maritim di Indonesia dan beberapa negara tetangga.

Bab 12 memberi gambaran tentang batas maritim Indonesia dengan negara tetangga. Di sini disampaikan secara umum status batas maritim yang sudah maupun belum disepakati dengan kesepuluh negara tetangga. Bab 13 memaparkan kasus-kasus batas maritim yang terjadi di perairan nusantara selama beberapa kurun waktu terakhir termasuk pelajaran yang bisa diambil dari beberapa kasus tersebut. Bab 14 sedikit istimewa karena membahas studi kasus delimitasi batas maritim antara Indonesia dan Timor Leste. Perlu diperhatikan bahwa itu adalah murni kajian penulis dan tidak mencerminkan pandangan Indonesia maupun Timor Leste. Sangat mungkin Pemerintah Indonesia maupun Timor Leste tidak setuju dengan padangan penulis perihal batas maritim antara kedua negara. Bab 15 adalah bab terakhir yang mencoba memberikan gambaran tantangan ke depan untuk Indonesia.

Daftar isi buku dapat dilihat di sini (html) atau di
sini (pdf). Rangkuman bisa juga dilihat di sini (pdf)

Endorsemen
“… buku ini baik untuk dibaca para akademisi, dosen, mahasiswa, dan praktisi perundingan batas yang erat kaitannya dengan Hukum Laut. Dosen dan mahasiswa di Fakultas Teknik (khususnya Teknik Geodesi), Fakultas Hukum, dan fakultas lain yang terkait dengan Hukum Laut disarankan untuk memiliki buku ini. Selain itu buku ini baik untuk dimiliki dan dibaca oleh para pejabat teknis perbatasan di instansi-instansi seperti BAKOSURTANAL, DEPLU, DEPHAN, DEPDAGRI, DKP, DESDM, dan TNI-AL.”
(Dr. Ir. Sobar Sutisna, M.Surv.Sc, Kepala Pusat Pemetaan Batas Wilayah, Bakosurtanal).

"Pembahasan batas maritim yang lengkap dalam buku ini menjadikannya sangat penting untuk dibaca. Dengan gaya penulisan yang sederhana, maka buku ini dapat dibaca oleh mereka yang awan sekalipun. Buku ini juga perlu dibaca oleh mereka yang berkecimpung dalam aktivitas delimitasi batas wilayah laut, dan dapat dijadikan referensi bagi kalangan akademisi, seperti mahasiswa dan dosen."
(Dr. Koesrianti, SH, LL.M, Dosen Fakultas Hukum Universitas Airlangga, Surabaya)

Fakta Buku
Tahun: 2007
Tebal: 204 + xxiii
Penerbit: Gadjah Mada University Press
Bahasa: Indonesia
Harga: Rp 52.500,-


Informasi Lebih Lanjut

I Made Andi Arsana
madeandi@ugm.ac.id, http://madeandi.staff.ugm.ac.id/

Gadjah Mada University Press
gmupress@ugm.ac.id, http://gmup.ugm.ac.id/

Jurusan Teknik Geodesi dan Geomatika UGM
Att. Ir. Sumaryo, M.Si (0274 – 520226, geodesi@ugm.ac.id)

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Naming Indonesia's islands has implications for sovereignty

Opinion and Editorial by I Made Andi Arsana on August 20, 2007 in . More...

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Toponymy and Extented Continental Shelf: Sovereignty and Sovereign Rights

Kompas (24 July 2007) covered an interesting news regarding the intention of Indonesian government to register thousands of its islands to the United Nations. It was said that Indonesian government is ready for a submission to the UN after verifying at least 3,046 islands in 11 provinces. The verification also includes the activities to name thousands of previously nameless islands across the archipelago. This month, it is targeted that all islands in Indonesia's 15 provinces can be registered to the UN and the project that started in 2005 is expected to finish this year.

For the laymen in this country, it has been long believed that Indonesia has more than 17 thousands island from Sabang to Merauke (west-east) and From Rote to Miangas (south-north). A –so called- official sources states that there are precisely 17,504 islands in the archipelago. If the data is correct and has gained recognition from the international community including the UN, why would Indonesia need to register their island? If it is true that island naming was the project, didn’t they have name before? This should be very interesting.

Yes, it has to be admitted that we have not yet had names for every single island that we claim to be part of Indonesia. An official states that there are more than 9000 nameless islands in Indonesia and has to be named before registration to the UN (The Jakarta Post, June 11, 2007). This is the fact and this is what we are currently doing. Toponymy is the term for island naming and it involves certain steps and procedures as endorsed by the United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names (UNGEGN). The twenty-fourth Session will be done in New York on 20 and 31 August 2007 and therefore Indonesia has to submit list of island names beforehand.

Article 121 of the United Nations Conventions on the Law of the Sea 1982 (UNCLOS), which Indonesia is a party to, provides the definition of islands. In order to be recognized as an island, a feature in the sea has to meet several criteria such as naturally formed, always appear on the surface of the sea even during high tide, and it has to have capacity to sustain human habitation. Surprisingly, as highlighter by Alex SW Retraubun (Department of Ocean Affairs and Fisheries), around three thousand islands proposed by local government did not meet these criteria in verification. This mean that the numbers of islands in Indonesia could be less than that we used to believe.

Notwithstanding the number of the islands, naming the unnamed islands for Indonesia is really strategic. This is considered as the first important step in realizing the intension for developing and maintaining small islands. While it is important for economic development, the more significant impact is to the national sovereignty. It has been evident that this country has been facing many problems concerning sovereignty and sovereign rights. What the government has done to those islands seem to be a very good response. This is an addition to the President Decree concerning the management and developments of small outer islands in Indonesia (PP No 78/2005).

Thu Indonesia’s outer islands play important roles regarding Indonesia’s territorial waters and maritime boundaries with neighboring States. On many of those islands, basepoints of Indonesian baseline were placed. Baseline is the line from which maritime jurisdictions (territorial sea, exclusive economic zones, and continental shelf) are measured. This means that the existence of the small outer islands is vital. This is the forward point from which our maritime claim is measured and maritime boundaries with our neighbors may be constructed. Simply speaking, the toponymic activity (especially for the small outer islands) contributes significantly to the Indonesian economic development, sovereignty, and sovereign rights.

With regard to sovereignty and sovereign rights, it seems that there are tendencies where coastal States intent to claim more and more maritime area. Russia, for example, is currently conducting an expedition to the North Pole to claim the no man’s land. Around 50 scientists were sent off to the North Pole and they plan to place a titanium capsule on the North Pole’s seabed with a Russian Flag in it. This will be an evidence of Russia’s claim over. Similarly, Australia declared its claim over continental shelf in 2004 encompassing the seabed area in the Antarctic. This is another indication that there are “creeping jurisdictions of coastal States”. Is there any legal basis for their maneuver?

What Russia is doing sparks controversy all over the globe. However, there is legal reason for the movement. It is the UNCLOS that enables coastal States to claim continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles (M), which is also called extended continental shelf (ECS). Being State parties to the UNCLOS, Russia and Australia have the chance to submit their claim over ECS to the Commission on the Limits of Continental Shelf (CLCS). Therefore we could not really say, at least at the first sight, that they are demonstrating greediness. They have the rights to lodge the claim, but it is then CLCS’ responsibility to consider and make recommendation concerning the claim. It will never be valid until it is recommended by the commission. In other words, ECS claim cannot be done unilaterally.

Similarly, Indonesia also has chances for submitting ECS to CLCS. The deadline for the submission will be on 13 May 2009 and Indonesia is currently conducting serious preparation. It involves serious and careful technical, scientific and legal consideration in order for the submission to be accepted. In addition, the cost for submitting ECS including preparation is undoubtedly not cheap. It naturally begs a question whether it is worth it? This might be difficult to answer. It is not something that can be judged instantly. By securing more continental shelves, at least there are hopes for economic advantages in the future as continental shelf potentially contains oil and gas deposits. In addition, the claim can be a declaration of our national sovereign rights.

What Indonesia, Russia, Australia and other coastal States are doing is another manifestation of declaring their existence. There is one important message they are delivering beyond the economic reason: securing the sovereignty and sovereign rights.

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Creeping Maritime Jurisdiction to the North Pole and Antarctic

In this last two weeks the press around the globe talks about the Russian expedition to the North Pole. Russia sent its 50 scientists to the North Pole on 24 July 2007 for investigation in relation to its claim over the no-man’s area. Russia will also place a titanium capsule on the seabed with a Russian flag in it, staking its claim. Notwithstanding the controversy it may cause, this is considered as the greatest North Pole Expedition, ever.

Reactions from other States are predictable: disagreement. Unsupportive reactions are almost everywhere. Many opine that this is an indication of Russia’s intention to regain its ‘glory’. Will this lead the world to a new kind of cold war? We can only guess.

Meanwhile, Australia also does similar movement. It is claiming the Antarctic as part of its continental shelf. Australia officially declared its claim at the end of 2004 and also has, by now, been receiving unsupportive comments from other States including the US, Japan, and Timor Leste.

Is it true that Russia is claiming the North Pole and Australia is fighting for the Antarctic? If so, is there any legal base or it is just another manifestation of greediness? Let’s have a look at this from a different angel.

We are talking about the claim of maritime jurisdiction by coastal States. It is the United Nations Conventions on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) 1982, where Russia and Australia are parties to, which governs coastal States’ maritime jurisdiction. The Convention asserts that coastal States are entitled to several maritime jurisdictions measured from their baselines, including territorial sea (12 nautical miles, M), exclusive economic zone (200 M) and continental shelf (CS). CS is seabed area where coastal States can exercise their sovereign rights for natural resources exploitation. Oil and gas are apparently the main reason behind the claim over CS, considering that the seabed area potentially reserves a lot of oil and gas deposits. In the North Pole, for example, around 10 billion tons of equivalent fuel is possible for exploitation.

A coastal State is entitled to continental shelf beyond its territorial sea limit to the outer edge of its continental margin, or up to a distance of 200 M from its baseline in case the outer edge of its continental margin does not reach that distance. In addition, article 76 of the Convention also enables coastal States to claim continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles (extended continental shelf, ECS). For this purpose, coastal States should make their submission coupled with supporting data to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLSC). In other words, claim beyond 200 M cannot be made unilaterally and it has to obtain the commission’s recommendation in order to be valid. The commission consists of 21 experts in the fields of geodesy, geology, hydrography, and geophysics, coming from the UNCLOS States Parties. The latest election was in June 2007 serving for a five-year term.

Submitting the outer limits of ECS is by no mean an easy task. An acceptable claim should be accompanied by data describing the position of foot of continental slope (FOS) and sedimentary rock thickness of the seabed area of interest. The outer limits of the submitted CS should be the line delineating 1% sediment thickness or the line with a distance of 60 nautical miles from the FOS. In addition, UNCLOS also asserts that the outer limits of CS should not exceed 350 M from the baseline or the line of 100 M from the 2,500 meter isobaths (water depth).

For those whose expertise is not in the relevant area (i.e. geodesy, geology, hydrography, geophysics), it might be difficult to understand this technical delineation procedure. However, it is, at least, now clear that claiming ECS requires coastal States to go through a highly complicated process and yet it has to be recommended by the Commission in order for the outer limits to be final and binding. Placing a national flag has nothing to do with the claim, even though it is not going to say “don’t do that”. Analogously, the US did leave its flag on the moon back in 1969, but it does not mean that the Moon belongs to the US.ate

Russia and Australia, in fact, are claiming ECS. What they are doing is legally acceptable as UNCLOS facilitates them to do so. Russia, for its part, submitted its first claim in 2001 but does not seem to satisfy the Commission. This current expedition is to obtain stronger technical evidences for resubmission in 2009. Meanwhile, a similar claim submitted by Australia in 2004 also encompasses the seabed in Antarctic. No recommendation has been made by the commission so far.

In conclusion, Russia and Australia may legally submit their claim over the North Pole and Antarctic but they still have to provide technical evidence for their entitlement. It is then the task of CLCS to make recommendation. Without recommendation, no claim is valid. In addition, the existing treaty, such as the Antarctic Treaty should also be taken into account.

With regard to Russia’s claim, it is worth noting that Russia is not the only States that may claim ECS in the Arctic region as the it is surrounded by five States, namely Russia, Norway, Denmark, Canada, the US (in clockwise order). Russia’s claim to the seabed has to consider the entitlement of the four other States. As opined by McNab (2004), it will be good if the polar States can make a coordinated of even a joint submission to the Commission. If a submission made by one of the polar States is unacceptable to other States, the Commission will not make any recommendation and leave it until multilateral agreements is achieved among the States in question.

In other perspective, the ‘aggressiveness’ of Russia and Australia is also an alarm and motivation for other States. Some American politicians, for example, encourage the US senate to ratify the UNCLOS. By being the party to UNCLOS, the US can at least take part in saying “no” to excessive claim by coastal States, as implied by Senator Richard Lugar.

Similar to Russia and Australia, which intend to extend their maritime claims up to the North Pole and Antarctic, Indonesia too has a chance for extension in some locations. Their maneuver, to an extent, may motivate Indonesia to speed up the currently ongoing preparation. It might not be for the proof of glory, at least there exist reasons of economics and sovereign rights for which a submission should be made. Let’s see what may happen.
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Thousand of Indonesian Islands are ready to be registered to the UN

Baca versi Bahasa Indonesia
Around 3.000 Islands do not meet International Standard

Sorong, Kompas – Indonesian government has verified at least 3,046 island in its 11 provinces. In August 2007, it is targeted that all islands in Indonesia's 15 provinces can be registered to the UN.

The director of Small Island Management of Dept. of Marine Affairs and Fisheries (DKP), Alex SW Retraubun, stated this at a workshop in Sorong, Papua, Monday (23/7). Alex stated that the verification of islands' name is expected to be finished this year. The project started in 2005.

Alex informed that surveys have been carried out for 30 of 33 provinces in Indonesia. Surveys need to be conducted in three more provinces: Bali, Jakarta, and West Papua. From those 30 provinces, verifications have been completed for 11 provinces. Number of islands verified: South Sumatera (23 islands), Bangka Belitung (363), West Java (10), central Java (33), Yogyakarta (28), East Java (411), North Sulawesi (258), Gorontalo (123), Maluku (471), and North Maluku (784 islands).

"Even though we found and named new islands, verification showed that the number of islands, so far, decreases compared the number of islands we previously knew. The number is also smaller than that proposed by regional governments as many features do not meet criteria of islands defined by UNCLOS" said Alex SW Retraubun.

"It is not impossible that we will come up with smaller number of island than 17,504, the number we generally believe now", said Alex.

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UU No. 18/2007 tentang Batas Landas Kontinen RI-Vietnam

Sebenarnya ini berita lama yang belum sempat diposting di sini.

Batas maritim termutakhir yang disetujui Indonesia dengan negara tetangga terjadi tahun 2003 yaitu Batas Landas Kontinen dengan Vietnam. Penandatanganan perjanjian ini menjadi sesuatu yang penting dan bersejarah, selain karena merupakan pencapaian yang patut dipuji, juga karena perundingan telah berlangsung 25 tahun. Perundingan dimulai tahun 1978 (ketika saya baru lahir :) dan disepakati tahun 2003. Bukan berarti mentoleransi langkah yang lamban, setidaknya hal ini menjadi bukuti bahwa perundingan batas maritim memang tidak mudah dilakukan.

Setelah empat tahun dalam ketidakpastian, tahun ini DPR akhirnya meyetujui RUU ratifikasi perjanjian tersebut. Presiden RI telah mengesahkan UU No. 18/2007 pada tanggal 15 Maret 2007 tentang:

PENGESAHAN PERSETUJUAN ANTARA PEMERINTAH REPUBLIK INDONESIA DAN PEMERINTAH REPUBLIK SOSIALIS VIETNAM TENTANG PENETAPAN BATAS LANDAS KONTINEN, 2003 (AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA AND THE GOVERNMENT OF THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM CONCERNING THE DELIMITATION OF THE CONTINENTAL SHELF BOUNDARY, 2003)

Sayang sekali saya belum mendapatkan daftar koordinat titik-titik batas dalam perjanjian tersebut. Akan segera diupdate dan ditampilkan petanya begitu koordinatnya didapatkan. Untuk sementara, peta berikut menunjukkan lokasi umum batas landas kontinen yang dispakati.

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Maritime boundary talks between two Koreas wraped up without agreement

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Perundingan antara kedua Korea yang dimulai dengan otpimisme, akhirnya terpaksa ditutup tanpa satupun hasil yang kongkrit. Sengketa batas maritim diyakini sebagai salah satu penyandung dicapainya kesepakatan antara keduanya.

Korea Utara tetap dengan pendiriannya bahwa garis batas maritim harus dinegosiasikan kembali dan digeser ke selatan. Garis yang ada sekarang, hasil delimitasi oleh UN tahun 1953, dianggap terlalu jauh ke utara sehingga merugikan Korea Utara. Sementara itu, kawasan tersebut kaya akan ikan. Garis tersebut memang didelimitasi secara unilateral oleh UN di akhir Perang Korea dan menghasilkan garis batas yang disebut dengan Northen Limit Line di Laut Kuning.

Perundingan berlangsung di Panmunjom, kawasan demiliterisasi yang padanya berdiri beberapa bangunan tempat negoasiasi, tepat di garis perbatasan. Peta berikut menunjukkan lokasi gedung-gedung perundinan itu di Panmunjom.

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Two Koreas talk about maritime boundaries

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Tahun 1999 saya pernah berkunjug ke Pamunjom, daerah demiliterisasi yang merupakan daerah perbatasan Korea Utara dan Selatan. Di kawasan ini ada garis batas dan berdiri beberapa bangunan tepat di garis batas tersebut. Kalau dalam satu negara ada lebih dari satu rumah, barangkali sudah biasa. Akan tetapi kalau ada satu rumah yang berdiri di atas lebih dari satu negara, barangkali di Pamunjom adalah salah satu dari sangat sedikit di muka bumi.

Selasa, 24 Juli telah terjadi perundingan di bangunan tersebut dan kali ini perundingannya perihal batas maritim kedua negara di Yellow Sea (Laut Kuning). Yang menarik adalah Korea Utara menghendaki dilakukannya penegasan batas ulang bagi kedua negara dan Korut tidak mengakui batas meritim yang ditentukan oleh PBB tahun 1953 setelah berakhirnya Perang Korea. Sebaliknya, Korea Selatan tidak menghendaki penegasan kembali sehingga negosiasi tidak berhasil mencapai titik temu hingga sesi hari itu berakhir.

Perlu diketahui bahwa tahun 1953 PBB telah menetapkan garis batas antara kedua negara yang disebut sebagai the Northen Limit line. Garis ini merupakan hasil proses unilateral oleh PBB yang oleh Korea Utara tidak diakui sehigga ada perbedaan pemahaman atas posisi batas maritim yang sebenarnya. Garis ini juga tidak termasuk dalam poin yang diatur dalam Armistice Agreement antara kedua negara setelah perang. Di satu sisi, perjanjian gencatan senjata ini belum pernah ditindaklanjuti dengan perjanjian damai yang secara teknis mengindikasikan kedua negara masih dalam perang.

Perbedaan penerimaan atas batas maritim ini tentu saja rawan konflik karena akan terjadi pelanggaran batas maritim dalam aktivitas patroli keamanan maupun penangkapan ikan. Tahun 2002, misalnya, terjadi kekacauan yang menimbulkan enam pelayar Korsel meninggal.

Negosiasi nampaknya akan berjalan alot karena kedua belah pihak bersikukuh dengan pendiriannya. Mari kita tunggu apa yang akan terjadi selanjutnya.

Berikut ini Peta Laut Kuning yang dubuat dengan Google Maps API.

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When Russia claims the North Pole and Australia wants Antarctica

Read similar in English ...

Ada isu berkembang di dunia maya bahwa Rusia kini akan mengklaim Kutub Utara sebagai bagian dari wilayahnya. Reaksi yang muncul dari berbagai kalangan terutama di luar Rusia tentu bisa diduga. Tidak setuju. Ya, siapa yang akan setuju membiarkan Rusia menguasai Kutub Utara.

Sementara itu, mungkin Anda juga pernah mendengar (atau belum) bahwa Australia hendak mengklaim Kutub Selatan, alias Antartika sebagai bagian dari wilayahnya. Apa reaksi orang-orang kebanyakan? Tentu juga bisa diduga: Tidak setuju.

Apa sesungguhnya yang terjadi dengan klaim wilayah ini. Benarkah seperti yang diberitakan media bahwa Rusia mengklaim Kutub Utara dan Australia menginginkan Kutub Selatan (Anatartika). Mari kita lihat duduk perkaranya dari sudut pandang lain.

Apa yang sedang dibicarakan di berbagai media, terutama luar negeri, adalah klaim yurisdiksi maritim oleh suatu negara pantai. Adalah Konvensi PBB tentang hukum laut yang mengatur kekuasaan suatu negara atas wilayah laut yaitu United Nations Conventions on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) 1982. Dalam UNCLOS dinyatakan bahwa negara pantai berhak atas laut teritorial, zona ekonomi eksklusif dan landas kontinen (LK). LK adalah wilayah dasar laut yang dalam hal ini sebuah negara berhak melakukan eksplorasi dan eksploitasi saja (hak berdaulat, sovereign right), bukan menguasai secara penuh (kedaulatan, sovereignty.

Setiap negara pantai berhak atas LK hingga ujung tepian kontinennya atau hingga 200 mil laut diukur dari garis pantai jika ujung tepian kontinen tidak mencapai jarak 200 mil laut. Selain itu, UNCLOS juga memberi peluang negara pantai untuk mengklaim LK lebih dari 200 mil laut. Untuk ini negara pantai tersebut harus mengajukan klaim ke sebuah komisi PBB yang menangani ini yitu Commission on the Limits of Continental Shelf (CLCS).

Inilah yang sedang dilakukan oleh Rusia dan Australia. Yang jelas, kedua negara ini memiliki peluang untuk mengklaim dasar laut melebihi 200 mil laut dari garis pangkalnya yang dikenal juga dengan Landas Kontinen Ekstensi (LKE). Itu yang dilakukan untuk dasar laut di sebelah utara (mendekati Kutub Utara) oleh Rusia dan untuk kawasan dasar laut di sebelah selatan (mendekati Antartika) oleh Australia. Jadi, apa yang dilakukan oleh keduanya sebenarnya ada dasar yang jelas yaitu UNCLOS. Persoalan selanjutnya adalah Rusia dan Australia (atau negara pantai manapun yang akan mengajukan klaim LKE) harus dapat membuktikan secara ilmiah dan teknis. Untuk inilah Rusia mengirimkan 50 orang ilmuan ke Kutub Utara seperti diberitakan di media massa luar negeri. Selanjutnya adalah tugas dari CLCS untuk memberi rekomendasi apakah klaim ini layak atau tidak.

Jadi, kalau Australia berniat menguasai Antartika dan Rusia mengklaim Kutub Utara, apa yang bisa dilakukan oleh Indonesia? Indonesia secara legal juga bisa mengklaim landas kontinen melebihi 200 mil laut dari garis pangkal. Di mana dan seberapa jauh itu? Inilah yang sedang dikerjakan oleh para ahli kita. Mari kita tunggu hasilnya.

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Norway and Russia signed Maritime Boundary Agreement

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Setelah limapuluh tahun tidak membuahkan kesepakatan, akhirnya perundingan batas maritim antara Norwegia dan Rusia mencapai kata sepakat. Keduanya telah menandatangani perjanjian batas maritim pada tanggal 11 Juli 2007 untuk kawasan pesisir di mulut Varangerfjord (lihat peta).

Perjanjian ini, seperti diakui oleh Menlu Norwegia, Jonas Gahr Støre, akan meningkatkan hubungan baik kedua negara. Namun begitu, perjanjian ini bukanlah akhir dari persoalan batas maritim kedua negara. Masih ada segmen lain yang harus didelimitasi di masa yang akan datang. Sementara itu, perjanjian yang baru dilakukan ini mencakup batas maritim untuk laut teritorial, ZEE dan landas kontinen ke arah utara di luar mulut Varangerfjord, seperti dikemukakan oleh Store.

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US$24 billions for Nigeria-Cameroon border demarcation

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Penyelesaian batas darat dan maritim antara Nigeria dan Cameroon yang belum terselesaikan nampaknya akan semakin sulit karena persoalan dana. Ajibola, seorang anggota tim gabungan Nigeria-Cameroon menyatakan bahwa untuk menyelesaikan proyek ini diperlukan dana hingga 24 miliar dolar Amerika Serikat.

Ditegaskan dalam pernyataannya bahwa delineasi sudah dilakukan di atas peta tetapi demarkasi atau penegasan di lapangan masih perlu dilakukan dan ini bukan pekerjaan yang mudah. Berikut adalah peta lokasi Negeria dan Cameroon yang menunjukkan batas di darat. Peta ini diambil dari Wikipedia. Gunakan panah untuk menggeser dan [-]/ [+] untuk memperkecil/memperbesar tampilan peta.

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Technical Aspects of Regional Maritime Boundary Delimitation in Indonesia:

A Case Study on the Maritime Boundary Delimitation
between the Provinces of Bali and Nusa Tenggara Barat

I Made Andi Arsana*
madeandi@ugm.ac.id

I Gede Pasek Sutrana Adnyana*
igedde@yahoo.co.id

Sumaryo*
sumaryo@ugm.ac.id

* Department of Geodesy and Geomatic Engineering
Gadjah Mada University, INDONESIA
P: +62 274 902121 F: 520226
http://www.geodesi.ugm.ac.id

Abstract

Indonesia is an archipelagic State with 33 provinces and hundreds of regencies, which is now implementing regional autonomy. The regions that have sea territory are given the authority to manage natural resources therein. This provides Indonesia with the challenges of regional maritime boundary delimitation between provinces or regencies/cities. This is governed by the Law No. 32/2004, which deals with local government affairs including regional authority in the "sea territory". It regulates entitlements to maritime areas and maritime boundary delimitation in cases where overlapping claims between provinces or regencies/cities arise. Technical guidelines on regional boundary settlement have also been issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs through a regulation called Peraturan Menteri Dalam Negeri No. 1/2006 (hereinafter referred to as Permendagri No. 1/2006).

This paper is aimed at addressing technical aspects of maritime boundary delimitation between two provinces in Indonesia. The case study is for the Provinces of Bali (Bali) and Nusa Tenggara Barat (NTB). This paper analyses the determination of regional authority in the sea territory of the two provinces, which was done cartometrically based on Permendagri No. 1/2006. This includes the definition of baselines, maritime claim simulation, overlapping claim identification, and theoretical maritime boundary delimitation by employing the equidistance principle.

It has been identified that there are potential overlapping claims between Bali and NTB in the Lombok Strait that requires delimitation. CARIS LOTS™, specifically designed GIS software for maritime boundary delimitation, was employed as an assisting tool for this research. This paper presents options of maritime boundaries, which might be one of the alternatives that the government of Bali and NTB may consider in the real delimitation. In addition, this paper, in general, is expected to provide relevant information for local governments in Indonesia in dealing with the recently-emerged issue: regional maritime boundary delimitation.

Keywords : regional maritime boundary, delimitation, Permendagri No.1/2006, GIS

Remark: accepted for oral presentation at MapAsia 2007 in Kuala Lumpur.

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Indonesia's Submission of the Extended Continental Shelf: Status and Problems

I Made Andi Arsana*
madeandi@ugm.ac.id

Clive Schofield**
clives@uow.edu.au

* Department of Geodesy and Geomatic Engineering,
Gadjah Mada University, INDONESIA. Currently a UN-Nippon research fellow in Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea at the Australian National Centre for Ocean Resources and Security, University of Wollongong, Australia

** QEII Research Fellow at the Australian National Centre for Ocean Resources and Security, University of Wollongong, Australia.

Abstract

The United Nations Law of the Sea Convention (LOSC) 1982 indicates that a coastal State may make a claim to continental shelf extending beyond 200 nautical miles (Extended Continental Shelf, ECS). In order for a coastal State to exercise its sovereign rights over the ECS, a submission containing the outer limit of its continental shelf should be deposited to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) trough the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
Indonesia is one of the coastal States, which may potentially make such a claim to continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles from its baselines. Preliminary studies also suggest that Indonesia may be able to advance such claims in several locations. At the time of writing, Indonesia is currently preparing for its ECS submission, with a deadline of 13 May 2009. The present paper is aimed at outlining the development of Indonesia's ECS claim, including analysis of the current status of the submission preparations as well as the challenges that Indonesia is facing. While giving particular emphasis to technical aspects, this paper will, necessarily, discuss legal issues associated with Indonesia's ECS submission.
This paper generally covers the principles related to the definition of the outer limits of the ECS, with an emphasis on the formulae and constraints as set out in Article 76 of LOSC, technical aspects of ECS definition, and the latest status and problems related to Indonesia's ECS submission. Wherever possible, this discussion is also intended to provide possible options to overcome the identified problems.

Keywords: extended continental shelf, LOSC, article 76, CLSC, submission, formulae, constraint

Remark: accepted for oral presentation at MapAsia 2007 in Kuala Lumpur.

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Settling Maritime Boudaries

I Made Andi Arsana, Asian Surveying and Mapping, 13 June 2007

East Timor, the youngest country in the world, celebrated the fifth anniversary of its independence from Indonesia on 20 May. It is a country of tremendous challenges -- it is one of the poorest in the world -- but it is also one with great hopes for the future.

In recent elections, the Timorese voted Nobel Peace Prize winner Jose Ramos-Horta as the country's new president. Among his most urgent tasks: fighting poverty. In particular, he needs to ensure access to the revenues that will flow from the oil-rich seabed of the Timor Sea. More...

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UN-Nippon Fellopship is now open for application

Do you want to be a UN-Nippon fellow conduct research in one of the best centres in America, Australia or Europe? You may join the UN-Nippon Fellowship. It is now open for application. Should you have any question, please feel free to contact me.

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Landas Kontinen Ekstensi - Dua Masalah [?]

Dalam pencarian saya yang tentunya masih belum seberapa, saya menemukan beberapa pendapat yang berbeda tentang dua hal mengenai landas kontinen.

Pertama adalah mengenai kriteria batas terluar, terutama menyangkut constraints. Beberapa tulisan menyatakan dengan tegas bahwa batas terluar adalah tidak melebihi 350 mil laut dari garis pangkal.

Menurut pencarian saya, pandangan ini tidak sesuai dengan apa yang disebutkan dalam pasal 76 UNCLOS yang mengemukakan ada dua constraints yaitu 350 mil laut dari garis pangkal dan 2500 m isobat + 100 mil laut ke arah laut lepas. Yang terpenting dari kedua constraints ini adalah adanya operator logika ATAU (OR) yang menghubungkan keduanya, bukan DAN (AND). Artinya, bisa dipilih salah satu dan yang the "most advantageous". Artinya, mana dari kedua constraints itu yang menghasilkan batas paling luar/jauh, maka constraint itulah yang digunakan. Dengan kata lain, bisa saja batas terluar LK lebih dari 350 mil laut sepanjangan constraint 2500 m isobat + 100 mil laut masih terpenuhi. Untuk ini saya coba buatkan animasinya agar lebih mudah mengilustrasikan, silahkan dicermati dan dikomentari.

Hal kedua adalah perihal deadline pengajuan submisi ke CLCS.
Saya melihat masih ada pendapat yang menganggap deadline untuk submisi adalah 16 November 2009. Saya duga pendapat ini dilandasi oleh suatu anggapan bahwa semula deadline submisi adalah 10 tahun sejak berlakunya UNCLOS (16 November 1994) sehingga deadline adalah 16 Nov 2004 dan kemudian "diundur" selama 5 tahun sehingga menjadi 16 November 2009. Menurut penelusuran saya, deadline submisi tidak dihitung dengan prinsip seperti itu, melainkan dengan pertimbangan saat diadopsinya/disetujuinya petunjuk ilmiah dan teknis batas terluar landas kontinen oleh CLCS.

Pada Meeting of State Parties of UNCLOS tahun 2001, disepakati bahwa submisi dari negara pantai disepakati 10 tahun sejak diadopsinya petunjuk ilmiah dan teknis batas terluar landas kontinen oleh CLCS yang dalam hal ini adalah 13 Mei 1999. Artinya, 10 tahun sejak tanggal ini adalah 12 Mei 2009 (lihat juga SPLOS/72). Hal ini tentu saja berlaku untuk negara pantai yang sudah meratifikasi UNCLOS sebelum 13 Mei 1999, termasuk Indonesia.

Perihal deadline ini menjadi penting untuk dicatat karena kesalahan pemahaman akan deadline bisa berakibat fatal bagi Indonesia yang akan melakukan submisi, terlebih dengan cara parsial.

Pendapat saya ini dalam rangka mengomentari beberapa makalah termasuk yang ditulis oleh pakar-pakar Indonesia mengenai landas kontinen. Ada pendapat lain?

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Timor Leste must settle maritime boundary

Opinion and Editorial in The Jakarta Post - May 23, 2007

I Made Andi Arsana, Wollongong, Australia

Timor Leste's recent successful election has given the country a new president, Jose Ramos-Horta. Voters have a lot riding on the Nobel Peace Prize winner's ability to overcome the myriad challenges facing the young country. One of those challenges, and one that Timor Leste must prioritize now, is the settlement of the country's maritime boundaries.
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East Timor: Beyond Independence

This book is edited by D. Kingsbury and M. Leach of Deakin University. Clive and I contribute one chapter in this book concerning East Timorese maritime boundary delimitation. The chapter contributed is “The Delimitation of Maritime Boundaries: A Matter of ‘Life or Death” for East Timor?”. It is originally the paper I presented in the Indonesian Council Open Conference in Flinders University, Adelaide in September 2005. I Met Damien, the editor, as we both presented papers at the event. Damien, through his email, asked me to contribute the paper as a chapter in the book. A very interesting offer. I am so happy, the book has now been published.

This is taken from the website of Monash Asia Institute Press:

This is the most comprehensive study of East Timor since independence, examining the major themes of development, borders and security, politics and justice, resource and land management, education, and language policy. Though the country was initially lauded as a case study in successful state-building, the crisis of 2006 demonstrated that East Timor had more in common with other post-colonial, post-conflict societies than some of these earlier optimistic assessments.

East Timor continues to attract the interest and attention of governments, scholars, development institutions and aid workers as a society rebuilding itself after almost a quarter of a century of profound trauma, and consecutive eras of colonialism.

Covering the era from the independence referendum in August 1999 to the political crisis in 2006, and future prospects and challenges, this book is an invaluable resource for understanding the challenges facing the first new nation of the 21st centur

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My New Book: Ask Google Guru

Dear Colleagues,

This is a promotion of my new book that will be available in market on 10 May 2007 (Elex Media Komputindo). This time, the topic is quite light. It is not geodesy, nor law of the sea, neither maritime boundary disputes (but not a novel, either) ha ha..
The topic is something you are familiar with: Google.

Have you ever wondered?

1. How to find a tsunami animation using Google?
2. How to find Power point (ppt) files for teaching materials (lecturers will love this)?
3. How to search PDF files only from the Indonesian university websites?
4. I do not know what "mutatis mutandis" means. Can Google define it for me?
5. How many meters is one nautical mile? Can Google help me?
6. I need to have daily update regarding my research topic sent to my email. Can Google do something?
7. What is the speed of light?
8. If there are two objects, 12 and 10 kg each and separated by 15 meters, How strong is the force between them?
9. How much is one dollar in rupiah, today?
10. Can Google help me search files in my PC?

If you answer "yes" to one of the above questions, then my book might be helpful to you. Sorry, I cant stop myself from mentioning this advertisement part :). Thank you very much for your attention and happy reading (after buying one)

See its review at: http://elexmedia.multiply.com/reviews/item/27
Table of contents: http://madeandi.files.wordpress.com/2007/05/google.pdf

THE ONLY PROBLEM IS, THIS IS IN BAHASA INDONESIA :(
[should I translate it into English, do you think?]

Sincerely yours
Andi

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