-By A Special Correspondent
(Lanka-e-News -04.June.2025, 11.20 PM) In a quiet but consequential shift of tides, Sri Lanka has stepped forward into the deepening global effort to protect our planet’s most unregulated frontier — the high seas.
In February this year, the island nation became the 109th signatory to the Agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) — a landmark accord widely heralded as the Global Oceans Treaty. For a country still nursing the wounds of the X-Press Pearl maritime disaster, the worst ecological calamity in its history, this move is being welcomed as a rare and responsible step forward.
“History may remember this as a defining moment,” said Rear Admiral (Retd) Y.N. Jayaratne, a former Chief of Staff of the Sri Lanka Navy. “We are not just talking about fish stocks or coral reefs. We are talking about a maritime constitution — about how the planet governs the last true global commons.”
The spectre of the X-Press Pearl, a Singapore-flagged container vessel that caught fire and sank off Sri Lanka's western coast in 2021, looms large in any discussion of maritime governance. Leaking chemicals, plastics, and pollutants, the vessel’s remains poisoned fishing waters, wrecked livelihoods and sparked an international outcry.
Now, in 2025, Sri Lanka appears to be turning the tide, using that tragedy as impetus to strengthen maritime protections and cooperation. In response to the incident, UN Senior Human Rights Advisor Laila Nazarali noted Sri Lanka’s efforts to seek criminal accountability while simultaneously strengthening frameworks to combat marine pollution.
“The signing of the BBNJ Agreement is not just symbolic,” she said at a recent panel discussion hosted by the Embassy of France in Colombo. “It signals a deeper understanding that maritime security and sustainability go hand-in-hand — and both require robust international law and cooperation.”
The BBNJ Agreement, the third implementing agreement under UNCLOS, focuses on four pillars:
Equitable sharing of marine genetic resources
Establishment of marine protected areas
Mandatory environmental impact assessments
Capacity-building and technology transfer
For Sri Lanka, this isn’t just about protecting distant waters. Over 225,000 fisherfolk depend directly on ocean resources, with an estimated 2.5 million more relying indirectly on fisheries-related livelihoods. Dr. K.H.M.L. Amaralal of the National Aquatic Resources Research and Development Agency (NARA) stated that improved marine management could dramatically bolster fish stocks, especially migratory species like tuna, thereby enhancing income security and food sovereignty.
“By declaring marine protected areas in the high seas, we help ensure that migratory fish survive the journey,” he said. “This means higher catches closer to our shores — and more sustainable livelihoods for coastal communities.”
But the path ahead is not all smooth sailing. Speaking at the same event, Admiral Jayaratne offered a sobering assessment of the Indian Ocean’s geopolitical landscape.
“The Indian Ocean is already crowded,” he said. “There’s competition in the Bay of Bengal, and a gathering storm of regional interests. This is where the real test lies — whether small coastal nations like Sri Lanka can assert equitable claims amid the geopolitical currents.”
The Admiral’s comments echoed wider concerns that without equitable marine governance, high-seas regulation may be dominated by larger powers or result in turf wars over unclaimed marine genetic resources — from deep-sea microbes to potentially lucrative pharmaceutical compounds.
Economist Dr. Ganeshan Wignaraja, Visiting Senior Fellow at ODI Global, argued that for the BBNJ Agreement to yield dividends, Sri Lanka must adopt a coherent blue economy policy aligned with its economic recovery plan.
“In two years, we hit our debt repayment cliff,” he warned. “Our oceans can be part of the answer — but only if we industrialise intelligently.”
He proposed value-added fisheries (e.g. sea cucumbers, sea urchins), ocean-linked services like marine insurance and logistics, and tapping underused ports like Kankesanthurai (KKS) and Galle. He also advocated for more regional integration through bodies like the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA).
“The ocean is our lifeline,” he said. “Failing to modernise means failing to survive.”
Despite the optimism, Sri Lanka’s maritime legal framework remains woefully outdated. Rohan Masakorala, Director of the Shippers’ Academy, pointed out that ballast water discharges — a major source of invasive species — are largely unregulated.
“We’re still operating under 1970s frameworks while trying to manage 21st-century disasters,” he said bluntly. “Even the basic shipping laws are either archaic or unimplemented.”
He pointed to comparative metrics: while Colombo Port handles 7 million containers annually, Dubai moves up to 18 million, and Singapore a staggering 41 million. “We were South Asia’s first transshipment hub,” he added. “Now we’re struggling to stay relevant.”
Interestingly, one of Sri Lanka’s strongest partners in this marine pivot is France — a nation not immediately associated with the Indian Ocean. But with overseas territories such as Réunion and Mayotte, France holds some of the world’s largest Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) in the Indian Ocean.
Rémi Lambert, France’s Ambassador to Sri Lanka, confirmed that France views itself as an Indian Ocean stakeholder.
“Our partnership with Sri Lanka includes the establishment of the Regional Centre for Maritime Studies (RCMS) — a platform for training, coordination and sharing best practices,” he said. “This includes coastguards, navy experts, marine biodiversity scientists. It’s not just dialogue — it’s collective defence of the oceans.”
Amid rising great-power competition in the Indo-Pacific, Sri Lanka’s role as a responsible steward of marine biodiversity may offer not only environmental capital — but geopolitical leverage.
Ambassador Ravinatha Aryasinha, Executive Director of the Lakshman Kadirgamar Institute, underlined the complexity of harmonising local laws with BBNJ expectations.
“We already have overlapping legislation and fragmented authority,” he explained. “Our effort now is not just to ratify a treaty, but to reconcile what we have into a coherent, internationally aligned legal framework.”
He cautioned, however, that this won’t be easy in a region where power dynamics often override principle. “Sri Lanka must walk a tightrope — between aligning with international law and managing geopolitical pressures.”
As the third United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC-3) looms in Nice next week, Sri Lanka sails into global waters with fresh ambition. But ambition, as every sailor knows, is only as good as the charts.
The BBNJ Agreement, if ratified and implemented, could herald a sea change in how this island state navigates both environmental and economic recovery. But it will require something rare in the political waters of the Indian Ocean — vision, discipline, and cooperation.
For now, Sri Lanka has hoisted the sail. Whether it catches the wind or capsizes in bureaucratic doldrums, remains to be seen.
-By A Special Correspondent
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by (2025-06-04 19:39:49)
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