SEA/1532

INTERNATIONAL SEABED AUTHORITY CONCLUDES SECOND SESSION IN KINGSTON

Notable among its accomplishments during the two-week session, the Assembly approved the Authority's $4.1 million budget for 1997. The budget, as reviewed by the Authority's Finance Committee and approved by the Council and the Assembly, calls for a total staff of the Authority of 44, to be phased-in over a three-year period starting in 1997. The Assembly also took steps to extend the provisional membership of States that have yet to ratify the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and the Agreement relating to the implementation of Part XI of the Convention.

The Convention on the Law of the Sea set up the Authority to administer the resources of the deep seabed beyond the limits of national jurisdiction. The two main organs of the Authority are the Assembly, whose membership consists of all parties to the Convention, as well as all those States which have agreed to the provisional application of the 1994 Agreement on the implementation of the deep seabed mining provisions of the Convention. The other main organ is the Council, which consists of 36 members elected by the Assembly. The Council of the Authority also concluded its work for this session, after adopting its rules of procedure, as amended. During the session, the Council elected Lennox Ballah (Trinidad and Tobago) as its President, and elected 22 members of the Legal and Technical Commission.

A number of administrative matters relating to the Authority's relationship with the host Government, its relationship with the United Nations, privileges and immunities, and staff arrangements were also addressed by the Assembly and the Council.

At the meeting, Mr. Ballah (Trinidad and Tobago) said the most important substantive issues of the session had been the election of the Legal and Technical Commission, the approval of the rules of procedure, consideration of the Authority's 1997 budget, and the extension of provisional membership of the Authority beyond 16 November.

He said that after the Authority had established the Finance Committee, the Council's most important task was to consider the Authority's revised 1997 budget. After considering the report of the Finance Committee, the Council had agreed to recommend to the Assembly the budget's adoption subject to comments expressed in certain sections of the report. He noted that some delegations had expressed reservations on certain aspects of the budget.

Presenting the report of the Council's working group on its draft rules of procedure, Mohammed Marsit (Tunisia) said the document was the fruit of common efforts and reflected a spirit of compromise. The rules were well-balanced and structured and aimed, as far as possible, to be consistent with the rules of the Assembly. They followed the spirit and letter of the Implementation Agreement Relating to Part XI of the Convention, he said.

Reporting on the work of the Assembly during the session, the Vice- President, Jose Luis Vallarta (Mexico), said it was customary to issue a detailed report on the work of the Assembly. However, he said he would not do so until he consulted with Hasjim Djalal (Indonesia), the President of the Assembly who had departed earlier this week.

The Chairmen of the regional groups and the representative of the "Group of 77" developing countries also made closing statements.

The Assembly, the Council and other organs of the Authority will convene their third regular session from 17 to 28 March and from 18 to 29 August 1997.

1997 Authority Budget

The budget of the Authority, as prepared by the Secretary-General, called for total expenditures of $4.25 million during 1997, of which $2,696,900 would be for administrative costs, including $1,526,900 for salaries and common staff costs for 30 posts, $1.4 million for conference-servicing costs, and $153,600 for programme support. The budget was approved as amended by the Finance Committee, which reduced the allocation by $100,000 to $4,150,500 million.

The budget calls for a secretariat comprised of four units: the Office of the Secretary-General, Office of Legal Affairs, Office of Resources and Environmental Monitoring, and the Office of Administration and Management.

The budget includes allocation for a staff of 30 in 1997 -- 15 at the professional level and 15 at the general service level; a staff of 39 in 1998 -- 18 at the professional level and 21 at the general service level; and a staff of 44 in 1999 -- 20 at the professional level and 24 at the general service level.

According to a secretariat paper, the Authority initially will focus its operations on laying the groundwork for the conduct of exploration and mining activities in the deep seabed area. An early and primary activity will be the

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preparation of the rules, regulations and procedures relating to the conduct of exploration and exploitation of the deep seabed. The Authority will also elaborate regulations for the protection and preservation of the marine environment from harmful effects of mining activities.

The Authority will promote and encourage marine scientific research related to mining activities, and will acquire the necessary scientific data, particularly on the protection and preservation of the marine environment. During 1997, it is expected to process applications for the exploration of mining sites from registered pioneer investors -- those States or entities which have been granted exclusive exploration rights in recognition of their previous investment in deep seabed mining activities. It will also monitor compliance with approved plans of work.

Finance Committee

The Finance Committee is the central body charged with review of the Authority's financial and budgetary affairs. Assembly and Council decisions on a wide spectrum of financial issues, such as the annual budget and the financial implications of decisions requiring expenditure from the funds of the Authority, must first be submitted to the Committee for consideration and recommendations.

Although the Convention did not envision the necessity for a finance committee, the Agreement on the Implementation of Part XI gives the Committee a central role in the administration of the Authority's financial and budgetary arrangements similar to that of the United Nations Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions.

The Finance Committee's 15 members should have appropriate qualifications relevant to financial matters. They are prohibited from having any financial interest in any activity relating to matters upon which the Committee has the responsibility to make recommendations.

The Assembly agreed on the composition of the Committee after the various regional and interest groups reached an understanding on the allocation of seats and the duration of terms. The Latin American and Caribbean Group agreed to relinquish one of its seats at the expiration of the first two years in favour of a candidate from the Asian Group for the remainder of the five-year term. The Western European and Other States Group agreed to relinquish one of its seats at the expiration of the first two and a half years of the five-year term commencing in 1997 in favour of a candidate from the Eastern European Group for the remainder of that term. In light of the special circumstances of the election, the members' term of office for the period after 1 January 1997 will not be counted against the five-year term.

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The agreement on Committee membership was without prejudice to its overall composition for future elections, particularly with regard to the claims of the regional groups; nor will it prejudice elections of future bodies. It was understood that the situation might have to be reviewed in view of the circumstances prevailing after 16 November when provisional membership of the Authority terminates.

The Assembly elected the following members of the Committee: Ernesto Belo Rosa (Uruguay); Craig John Daniell (South Africa); Domencio Da Empoli (Italy); David Etuket (Uganda); Jobst Holborn (Germany); Lou Hong (China); Tadanori Inomata (Japan); Serguey P.Ivanov (Russian Federation); Issac Klipstein Margulis (Mexico); Samia Ladgham (Tunisia); Jean-Pierre Levy (France); S. Rama Rao (India); Coy Roache (Jamaica); Michael C. Wood (United Kingdom); and M. Deborah Wynes (United States).

They represent the five potential largest financial contributors to the Authority's budget, as well as special interests and an overall equitable geographical distribution. There are three representatives each from Africa, Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean, five from Western European and other States, and one from Eastern Europe. Overall, seven members come from developed countries and eight from developing ones.

Election of Council President

Following consultations, the Council elected, by acclamation, Lennox Ballah (Trinidad and Tobago), as its first President. He is the former Chairman of Special Commission 2 of the Preparatory Committee for the International Seabed Authority and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea.

In his acceptance speech, Mr. Ballah outlined a number of issues which the Council must address immediately, such as workshops on the environmental impact of deep seabed mining and the current status of mining activities. He said it should also review the implementation of the obligations of registered pioneer investors, including the relinquishment of deep seabed areas to the Authority and the provision of training to those designated by it.

According to the Authority's rules of procedure, the President serves for a one-year term, or until a successor is elected. The rules also call for a rotation of the presidency among regional groups. The Council, described as the cabinet of the Authority, has wide-ranging powers, including direct control over its budgetary and financial arrangements. It also reviews and approves contracts for the exploration and eventual mining of the deep seabed.

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Legal and Technical Commission

The Legal and Technical Commission is entrusted with various functions relating to activities in the deep seabed Area, including the review of applications for plans of work in the Area, supervision of exploration or mining activities, assessment of the environmental impact of such activities, and recommendations to the Council on the protection of the marine environment. Until the Council decides otherwise, the Commission will undertake the activities assigned to the Economic Planning Commission. Those include, among others, the review of trends and factors affecting supply, demand and prices of materials which may be mined from the deep seabed.

The Commission's members must have appropriate qualifications relevant to the exploration, exploitation and processing of mineral resources, oceanology, protection of the marine environment, or economic or legal matters relating to ocean mining and related fields.

The Council agreed, having regard to the provisions of paragraph 2 of article 163 of the Convention on the Law of the Sea, to elect all 22 nominated candidates as members to the Legal and Technical Commission. That decision was made without prejudice to future elections to the Commission.

Members of the Legal and Technical Commission are: Hans Amann (Germany); Samuel Sona Betah (Cameroon); Arne Bjorlykke (Norway); Jose de J. Conejo (Costa Rica); Ivan F. Glumov (Russian Federation); Robert Guehi (C�te d'Ivoire); Waguihi Hanafi (Egypt); Jung-Keuk Kang (Republic of Korea); Ryszard Kotlinski (Poland); Jean-Pierre Lenoble (France); Yuwei Li (China); Charles Lowell Morgan (United States); Marcellin Mve-Ebang (Gabon); Luis Giotto Preval Paez (Cuba); H.P. Rajan (India); Giovanni Rosa (Italy); Toshio Sakasegawa (Japan); Olexander A. Shchyptsov (Ukraine); H. Shimutwikeni (Namibia); A. Simpson (Fiji); George P. Stewart (Bahamas); and Boris Winterhalter (Finland).

Provisional Membership

The Agreement on the Implementation of Part XI of the Convention provides for membership in the Authority on a provisional basis for those States that have yet to become parties to the Convention and the Agreement. Provisional membership was to expire on the entry-into-force of the Agreement, which occurred on 28 July, though there were provisions for extending such membership upon the request of the States concerned.

At this session, the Assembly agreed that, in order to facilitate participation of the States concerned, they should continue to take part in the present meetings of the organs of the Authority on a provisional basis.

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With regard to the extension of provisional membership beyond 16 November, the Assembly agreed that those States or entities which submit requests for extension of membership prior to the next session of the Council shall be deemed to be members of the Authority on a provisional basis until the end of the next session of the Council. Requests from Bangladesh, Canada, Nepal, Poland and the United States were approved at this session.

Other Matters

On the basis of recommendations by the Council, the Assembly agreed to authorize the Secretary-General of the Authority to apply, on its behalf for membership in the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund. The Council also authorized him to negotiate a relationship agreement with the United Nations, and a headquarters agreement with the Government of Jamaica. The Assembly requested the Authority Secretary-General to seek observer status for the Authority at the United Nations General Assembly.

The Assembly also discussed briefly the draft protocol on the privileges and immunities of the Authority. A working group established to discuss the issue recommended that the matter be taken up again at the Assembly's next session.

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