asked the Minister for External Affairs if he will state the principle on which baselines are drawn for the purpose of determining the territorial fishing waters.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Determination of Territorial Waters.
17.
Article 4 of the Convention on the Territorial Sea and Contiguous Zone which was completed in Geneva last spring may be said to incorporate the principles in this matter, which were enunciated by the International Court of Justice. This convention has not yet been ratified, but it was signed on behalf of Ireland in October, 1958. The following are the relevant paragraphs of Article 4:—
ARTICLE 4.
1. In localities where the coast line is deeply indented and cut into, or if there is a fringe of islands along the coast in its immediate vicinity, the method of straight baselines joining appropriate points may be employed in drawing the baseline from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured.
2. The drawing of such baselines must not depart to any appreciable extent from the general direction of the coast, and the sea areas lying within the lines must be sufficiently closely linked to the land domain to be subject to the régime of internal waters.
3. Baselines shall not be drawn to and from low-tide elevations, unless lighthouses or similar installations which are permanently above sea level have been built on them.
4. Where the method of straight baselines is applicable under the provisions of paragraph (1), account may be taken, in determining particular baselines, of economic interests peculiar to the region concerned, the reality and the importance of which are clearly evidenced by a long usage.