Tímarit lögfræðinga - 01.01.1959, Blaðsíða 58

hvernig draga skuli grunnlínurnar) og bendir einnig á hið
nána samband milli strandhéraðanna og landhelginnar.
Sú niðurstaða dómstólsins, að við mörkun landhelginnar
skuli tekið tillit til efnahagsástæðna (strand)héraðanna
markar nýtt spor i þróun þjóðréttarreglna um landhelgina,
þar sem slíkt liafði ekki verið talið skipta neinu máli, áður
en dómurinn var kveðinn upp.
Efni þessa kafla dómsins var tekið upp í 4. gr. Genfar-
sanmingsins um landhelgina og viðbótarbeltið,1) er fjall-
ar um hvenær og hvernig skuli draga heinar grunnlinur
verða hér birt orðrétt: „In this connection, certain basic consid-
erations inherent in the nature of the territorial sea, bring to
light certain criteria which, though not entirely precise, can
provide courts with an adequate basis for their decisions, which
can be adapted to the diverse facts in question.
Among these considerations, some reference must be made
to the close dependence of the territorial sea upon the land
domain. It is the land which confers upon the coastal State a
right to the waters off its coasts. It follows that while such a
State must be allowed the latitude necessary in order to be able
to adapt its delimitation to practical needs and local require-
ments, the drawing of base-lines must not depart to any appreci-
able extent from the general direction of the coast.
Another fundamental consideration, of particular importance
in this case, is the more or less close relationship existing between
certain sea areas and the land formations which divide or sur-
round them. The real question raised in the choice of base-lines is
in effect whether certain sea areas lying whithin these lines are
sufficiently closely linked to the land domain to be subject to
the regime of internal waters. This idea, which is at the
basis of the determination of the rules relating to bays, should
be liberally applied in the case of a coast, the geographical con-
figuration of which is as unusual as that of Norway.
Finaliy, there is one consideration not to be overlooked, the
scope of which extends beyond purely geographical factors:
that of certain economic interests peculiar to a region, the
reality and importance of which are clearly evidenced by a long
usage.“ (I. C. J. Reports, 1951, bls. 133).
1) U. N. Doc. A/CONF. 13/L. 52.
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Tímarit lögfrœöinga