LEGAL CONCEPTION OF THE FREEDOM OF THE SEA: WHAT HAS THE LAW GOT TO DO?

Abstract

Nothing created by God in this world is free except air, and that is what we breathe in to live without paying for it. We pay for air conditioners in our cars and in our houses, but we do not pay for the air that keeps us alive daily. Ninety percent of the earth’s surface is covered by water, seas and oceans. Some scientists say the seas and oceans are not owned by anybody therefore, are classified as res-nullius, ownerless property, while some say the oceans are owned by everybody (res communes). This paper explains to some extent the truism about the above conceptions and tries to illustrate why the propositions are not entirely true by using secondary source materials to unravel the truth behind the aphorism, freedom of the sea, whether it is clothed with any garment of legality. It also answered the question, what has law got to do with the sea by citing example of nations who have fought wars trying to expand their territorial and jurisdictional boundaries to defend the scope of their sovereignty but were restricted by instrumentality of law, and that gave birth to claims over territorial waters, contiguous zone, nautical miles, exclusive economic zone, internal waters of states, and territorial boundaries of nations in international law. It also explains the benefits derived from the sea which makes it attractive not only for commercial purposes, but also for freedom of navigation, freedom over flight, space, and scientific research.