Govt seeks ex-AG's advice on maritime boundary appeal
A special committee has been appointed and the assistance of foreign experts is being sought.
By
Fathmath Ahmed Shareef
Former Attorney General Dr. Mohammed Munawwar, who led the then opposition's campaign to object the delineation of the disputed maritime boundary with Mauritius is set to advice the current governments efforts to file a review of the UN maritime tribunal's ruling last year.
The headquarters of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) ruled in April last year on the border dispute between Maldives and Mauritius, effectively splitting the territory in two.
ITLOS decided to divide the 92,563 square kilometers between the two countries:
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Maldives - 47,232 sq km
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Mauritius - 45,331 sq km
Though the ruling allowed Maldives to gain a slightly larger part of the disputed territory, the then opposition had accused the government of relinquishing a large part of the country's southern economic zone. Several prominent lawyers led by Dr. Munawwar had argued that the government could have made a better case at the tribunal, going as far as to accuse the government of deliberately throwing the case in favour of Mauritius.
PPM-PNC coalition led by incumbent president Dr. Mohamed Muizzu won the presidential election last November pledging to recover the loss of territory.
A special committee has been appointed and the assistance of foreign experts is being sought. The Attorney General's Office said in a statement on Thursday that Attorney General Ahmed Usham has decided to seek legal advice from Munawwar as an expert in maritime law. Munawwar agreed and has begun the work, the statement said.
The statement noted on Munawwar:
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Munawwar, who served as Attorney General from 1993 to 2003, is a prominent legal figure in Maldives
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He holds a doctorate in international law and the law of the seas, and is a legal expert with outstanding education and experience in the field, particularly with research on the maritime territories of small island nations
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He worked on the drafting of the Maldivian Maritime Areas Act, the International Maritime Convention and the Maldivian Maritime Area
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In 2010, Maldives filed a complaint with the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf under Munawwar's supervision
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Munawwar is one of the most important figures in explaining to the people about the policy pursued by the previous government in the ITLOS case and that the then government had acted in a way that did not protect the interests of Maldives
The Attorney General's Office said the final report will be shared with President Muizzu and Parliament once the Cabinet makes a decision. Along with the report, information about the legal experts appointed and their fees will also be disclosed, it said.
Earlier, a UK legal expert and a Malta-based marine law expert had also been appointed to seek legal advice on the case.
The two men is tasked to:
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To examine the decision of ITLOS and to identify the issues in the submissions made by Maldives during the hearings of the case
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The letter sent by former President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih to the Prime Minister of Mauritius on 22 August 2022 while the case was pending
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To look into the arguments that should have been taken by the Maldives whether it would have changed the outcome if it had done so.
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Provide legal advice on the next steps that can be in this case
The two foreign experts are scheduled to submit their legal advice to the Attorney General early next month. Based on the legal advice, the committee appointed by the Attorney General will prepare a report.
ަThe committee is headed by another former Attorney General Mohammed Anil. The Attorney General's Office said the committee's report would be submitted to the Cabinet for a decision.
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