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20 Aust. YBIL 83 (1999)
Closing the Gap: The Role of 'Soft' International Instruments to Control Fishing

handle is hein.journals/ayil20 and id is 97 raw text is: Closing the Gap: The Role of 'Soft' International Instruments to Control Fishing William Edeson* Don Greig is well known for his contributions to what might be termed 'hard' law, and in the international law area, his works on treaties stand out as examples of this. To choose to contribute an essay on 'soft' law to a collection dedicated to acknowledging his enormous contributions might seem ironic. However, the evolution of this topic was quite simple. It was to have been a study of the role of treaties in the area of fisheries, but it was soon apparent that quite enough had been written on the subject. It was then decided that the topic might also consider the so-called soft law instruments in the area of fishing. It was but a short step to focus on the latter to the virtual exclusion of the hard law instruments, as this is a topic only marginally covered so far in legal literature. I acknowledge a considerable debt to Don Greig, having worked with him in three different law schools: Monash University, University of Wales (Cardiff) and The Australian National University. Don Greig throughout his career has shown a lively disregard for conventional wisdom and has often taken a stand on many initially unpopular ideas. The objective of this paper is to trace the evolution of the modem regime governing fishing from the point of view of the range of soft law instruments that have been employed to accompany the hard law solutions. The term 'soft law' is used here simply to refer to instruments that were not intended to give rise to legal obligations (such as treaties, or judicial decisions) but that were often drafted in a quasi-legal style,1 and for the most part were not intended (at least not directly) to create or lead to the development of any legal obligations.2 The subject of fishing, especially concerning the high seas regime, has been the subject of much attention in the last decade, and has proved to be one of the more intractable problems facing the international community since the completion of the 1982 United Nations (UN) Convention on the Law of the Sea.3 The solution to dealing with it has ranged from exhortatory statements Legal Office, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Rome. The views expressed in this article are personal and do not necessarily reflect the views of FAO. I Eg, the care taken in the use of sensitive terms such as 'fishing entities' to refer to the problem of Taiwan Province of China. 2 For a recent discussion of soft law, see H Hillgenberg, 'Soft Law and the Legal Adviser', Collection of Essays by Legal Advisers of States, Legal Advisers of International Organisations and Practitioners in the Field of International Law (1999). See also generally, D Shelton (ed), Commitment and Compliance: The Role of Non-Binding Norms in the International Legal System (2000). 3 Hereafter referred to as the 1982 UN Convention. Likewise, the FAO Agreement to Promote Compliance with International Conservation and Management

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