The South China Sea Informal Working Group Home Page

Introduction

Since 1990 a series of workshops on "Managing Potential Conflicts in the South China Sea" have been held in Indonesia under the auspices of the Research and Development Agency within the Department of Foreign Affairs. These non-governmental gatherings, attended by government and military officials in their private capacities as well as by academics from the region and Canada, have been convened to explore ways to engender cooperation among the nations bordering on the South China Sea. The alternative is a jurisdictional void and the threat of armed conflict, since maritime boundary delimitation is an unlikely scenario at least in the short term.

The meetings include the First Workshop on Managing Potential Conflicts in the South China Sea, in Bali, January 1990; the Second Workshop, in Bandung, June 1991; the Third Workshop, in Yogajakarta, July 1992; the Fourth Workshop, in Surabaya, August 1993; the Fifth Workshop, in Bukittinggi, October 1994; and the Sixth Workshop in Balikpapan, October 1995. A series of technical working group meetings, including those on Marine Scientific Research (Manila, May 1993), Resource Assessment (Jakarta, July 1993), Legal Matters (Phuket, July 1995) and Shipping, Navigation and Communications (Jakarta, October 1995) have also been organised. These meetings are ongoing and further meetings are planned for beyond 1996.

The initiative is the brainchild of Ambassador Hasjim Djalal of Indonesia, a leading authority on ocean affairs and one of the more influential participants at the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea. A detailed strategy for its implementation was worked out by Dr. Djalal and Prof. Ian Townsend - Gault, co - directors of the project, entitled "Managing Potential Conflicts in the South China Sea". This project is supported by a series of grants from the Canadian International Development Agency.

All who participate in the meetings on Managing Potential Conflicts in the South China Sea do so in their private capacities. The Working Group is totally independant and supports no particular jurisdictional claim in the South China Sea

In no way do any statements contained herin represent the viewpoint or policy of the Government of Canada, the Canadian International Development Agency, the University of British Columbia or any of the governments or government agencies which participate in the informal meetings.

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