| dc.description.abstract | Sri Lanka and India are two neighbouring
states in the Indian Ocean, separated by the narrow strip
of water that consists the Palk Strait and the Gulf of
Mannar. India – Sri Lanka friendly relations have been
governed by geo-strategic aspects, international politics
and diplomatic relations as well as social commonalities.
The fisheries poaching dispute between the two states is a
persistent problem that has caused much conflict and
concern involving this area of waters. Even though
maritime demarcations are not as straightforward as land
demarcations, the territorial waters between India and Sri
Lanka was demarcated and designated in 1974 and 1976
by a bilateral agreement between the two countries to
establish the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL).
Accordingly, transgressing the IMBL into Sri Lankan waters
and to fish illegally and worst still, using banned methods
of fishing are recognized as illegal and violation of these
agreements between the two states, governed by the
United Nations Convention on the Law of Sea (UNCLOS).
However, the Indian fishermen crossing into Sri Lankan
waters for illegal fishing, using banned and illegal fishing
methods such as bottom trawling has been persistent to
date. Indian fishermen illegally crossing the IMBL into Sri
Lanka waters also gives rise to transnational maritime
crimes. Transnational organized crimes are those selfperpetuating associations of individuals who operate
illegal activities across state borders via ground or sea for
the purposes of obtaining power, influence or monetary
gains illegally. Transnational crimes vary and they strive to
protect their illegal activities through cross-border
organized structures and crime syndicates, which exploit
established systems and disrupt legitimacy of states and
state institutions.
The sea region of Indian Ocean between India and Sri
Lanka also remains a controversial and known area for
transnational crimes and is made worse due to the illegal
crossing of Indian fishermen into Sri Lankan waters.
Various types transnationally organized crime can take
place in the guise of fishing especially illegal poaching and
stealing maritime resources belonging Sri Lanka. Definition
of Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing per se
amounts to an activity of transnational crime as most of
these poaching activities are done in significantly large
scale and by transnational organizations of stakeholders.
The unresolved and persistent fishery problem between
the two states and associated transnational crime pose
threats to states as well as humans, causing grave
traditional and human security threats to both India and
Sri Lanka. The objective of this study is to identify prime
areas of transnational maritime security threats to Sri
Lanka, analyze and critically evaluate this in the backdrop
of Indo- Lanka fishery dispute. This study would be guided
by the exploratory research methodology and data
collected through qualitative interviews of stake holders to
the problem, available credible literature and Grounded
theory to be used for data analysis. | |
