ASEAN HERITAGE PARKS AND LEGAL TOOLS FOR SUBMARINE CABLE PROTECTION

BY WAHAB JUMRAH

Introduction

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a regional organization that was established in 1967 with the aim of promoting economic, political, and social cooperation among its ten member countries in Southeast Asia 1 Once in two years, ASEAN leaders will hold a summit to discuss and resolve current issues ranging from economy to socio-cultural development. As part of this summit, ASEAN leaders usually exchange MOUs, develop and declare several initiatives to promote its regional bloc. The recent ASEAN Summit 2023 was held successfully in Labuan

1 ASEAN. https://asean.org/about-asean (accessed in May 2023)

Bajo, Indonesia in May 2023 despite no progress with the current issue with Myanmar2 .

One of the lesser-known initiatives of ASEAN is the ASEAN Heritage Parks (AHP) program, which was launched in 2004 to promote the conservation of natural and cultural heritage sites in the region. This program has identified and designated parks across the ten member countries of ASEAN. In addition to promoting conservation, the AHP program also aims to promote sustainable tourism and development in the region.

Another critical initiative that is increasingly becoming important in the region is the protection of submarine cables. These cables play a vital role in facilitating international communication and trade, but they are also vulnerable to damage and disruption from human activity and natural disasters.3

Although AHP and submarine cable protection regime was not discussed during ASEAN Summit 2023, it is a high time to re-look at the connection between these two areas as ASEAN countries become more interconnected and reliant on these cables.4 Therefore, it is important to review the current ASEAN framework on AHP and its feasibility to be legal tools for the submarine cable protection and resilience.

Asean Heritage Parks

ASEAN Heritage Parks are defined as protected areas of high conservation importance, preserving in total a complete spectrum of representative ecosystems of the ASEAN region.5 These areas are established to generate greater awareness, pride, appreciation, enjoyment and conservation

4 ABS-CBN News. (2022, Nov 8). Globe, DITO, Southeast Asian telcos ink deal for new subsea Asia Link Cable project. ABS-CBN News. https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/11/08/22/southeast-asian-telcos-ink-deal-for-new-subsea-cable-system.

5 ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity. ASEAN Heritage Parks. https://asean.chm-cbd.net/ asean-heritage-parks (accessed on May 2023) of ASEAN’s rich natural heritage, through a regional network of representative protected areas, and to generate greater collaboration in preserving their shared natural heritage.6

The concept of heritage parks and reserves in ASEAN was introduced at the First Meeting of AEGE in 1978. The First Meeting of ASEAN Experts on Nature Conservation (ANC) in 1982 recommended the interim coordinator of the 5th Meeting of AEGE to coordinate the publication of the Draft Version of ASEAN Heritage Sites, and it was produced in October 1982 with assistance of IUCN and UNEP. The Draft of ASEAN Heritage Parks and Reserves was considered by the Sixth Meeting of AEGE in 1983. 7

The ASEAN Declaration on Heritage Parks and Reserves was adopted at the Second ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on the Environment on 29 November 1984 in Bangkok, Thailand and signed by the six member countries at that time, namely Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand8. The Declaration was made in consideration of “the uniqueness, diversity and outstanding values of certain national parks and reserves of ASEAN member countries that deserve the highest recognition so that their importance as conservation areas could be appreciated regionally and internationally.

The AHP program was established in 2004 to recognize and protect natural and cultural heritage sites in the region. These sites are identified based on their unique biodiversity, cultural significance, and potential for sustainable tourism and development.

The ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) currently serves as the Secretariat of the AHP programme and the AHP committee, with representatives from the 10 AMS

6 ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity. ASEAN Heritage Parks and Protected Areas: Enhancing Effective Management. https://asean.chm-cbd.net/sites/acb/files/2022-03/Policy%20Brief_AHP_FINAL.pdf (accessed on May 2023)

7 ASEAN. UNESCO. (1983). ASEAN Heritage Parks and Reserves

8 ASEAN. ASEAN Declaration on Heritage Parks. https://arc-agreement.asean.org/file/ doc/2015/02/asean-declaration-on-heritage-parks.pdf (accessed on May 2023).