| Summary: | LL.D. The law of fisheries, which is embedded in the law of the sea, has been neglected for many years, as have been fish stocks in general. Throughout much of the 20th century no attention was paid to the dwindling fish stocks around the world. The emergence of the concept of the Exclusive Economic Zone in the 1970's and the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea did little to solve the problems at hand. It was Agenda 21 of the Rio Conference on Environment and Development in 1992 (UNCED), which put international law of the sea on the fast track in terms of fisheries. It prompted three agreements specially dedicated to fisheries. These are the 1993 F AO Agreement to Promote Compliance with International Conservation and the Management Measures by Fishing Vessels on the High Seas, The 1995 Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 Relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks arid Highly Migratory Fish Stocks and the 1995 FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries. At the European level the European Union (then EEC) was also slow to act and only adopted its first proper measure by the enactment of Council Regulation (EEC) No 170/83 of 25 January 1983 establishing a Community system for the conservation and management of fishery resources. The EEC was required to regulate the fisheries industry not only because of other international laws and concepts such as the EEZ but also because its three new member states England, Ireland and Denmark all had strong fishing traditions. Though set back by the withdrawal of Norway and the departure of Greenland, the EEC continued to develop its Common Fisheries Policy ( CFP) within the international framework of fisheries, also as a reflection of the ever growing EC fishing fleet and the need for a 'global fishing management policy'. Today, after a substantial overhaul, also a result of a Green Paper (2001) for the reform of the CFP, the EC has numerous measures of control, management and enforcement that help it reach its goal of sustainability. Until very recently the CFP had ignored the Mediterranean region and the latest effort came in the form of an Action Plan dedicated to the Mediterranean. However, as yet, the EU still depends to a large extent on the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) in the Mediterranean and other international organisations such as ICCAT because in the Mediterranean has yet declared an EEZ. This fact among others leaves the EC with very little legislative power in the Mediterranean. Malta, as a member of the GFCM and as an acceding country to the EU, is faced with the challenge of upgrading its old fisheries' laws and drafting legislation in order to bring its law in line with international standards and the CFP. Malta's accession also has other consequences, in particular with regards to the principle of direct effect of EC law, enabling the application of EC law in national courts for Maltese fishermen. N/A
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