Warta Geologi, Vol. 47, No. 1, April 2021, pp. 19–28
Pelantar benua dari perspektif undang-undang laut: Suatu
pengenalan
(Continental shelf from the perspective of the Law of the
Sea: An introduction)
Mazlan Madona,b,1
a Projek Pelantar Benua Malaysia, Majlis
Keselamatan Negara, Malaysia
b Jabatan Geologi, Universiti Malaya, Kuala
Lumpur, Malaysia
Author email address: mazlan.madon@gmail.com
Abstrak: Hak
sesebuah negara pesisir ke atas dasar lautan dan subtanih berhadapannya
ditentukan oleh beberapa peruntukan dalam Konvensyen Undang-Undang Laut PBB
1982 (UNCLOS), khususnya Artikel 76 bagi pelantar benua. Nota ringkas ini bertujuan
untuk memberi pengenalan ringkas mengenai konsep “pelantar benua” dalam konteks
Artikel 76. Konsep ini penting bagi negara pesisir menetapkan had luar pelantar
benua yang melampaui 200 batu nautika (M) dari garis pangkal (pantai). Dengan
penentuan had luar pelantar benua, hak berdaulat sesebuah negara pesisir ke
atas kawasan dasar laut yang melepasi garisan 200 M bagi tujuan explorasi dan
eksploitasi sumber asli, diberi pengiktirafan tanpa keraguan mengikut
undang-undang laut antarabangsa UNCLOS. Penentuan kawasan pelantar benua
melampaui garisan 200 M adalah berdasarkan prinsip dalam Artikel 76 bahawa
pelantar benua adalah persambungan semulajadi wilayah daratan sesebuah negara
pesisir. Bidang geologi juga memain peranan utama dalam prosedur menentukan had
luar persambungan itu, yang sekaligus memastikan had luar pelantar benua
mengikut Artikel 76. Dicadangkan “pelantar benua” diberi makna khusus selaras
dengan Artikel 76, manakala istilah “pentas benua” kekal dengan penggunaan asal
sebagai kawasan laut cetek di pinggir benua.
Kata
kunci: pelantar benua, pentas benua, UNCLOS, Artikel 76, zon maritim
Abstract:
The entitlement of a coastal State over the seabed and subsoil in front of
its landmass is provided for in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the
Sea 1982 (UNCLOS), in particular Article 76 for the continental shelf. This
short note in Malay gives a brief introduction to the concept of the
“continental shelf” in the context of Article 76. This concept is important as
a means by which coastal States may establish the outer limit of their
continental shelves beyond 200 nautical miles (M) measured from the territorial
sea baselines. Once the outer limits have been established, coastal States are
then able to exercise with certainty their sovereign rights over the extended
continental shelf for the purposes of exploring and exploiting the natural
resources of the seabed and subsoil, as provided for by UNCLOS. The
establishment of the outer limits of the continental shelf beyond 200 M is
based on the principle of natural prolongation of land territory in Article 76.
Geology also plays an important role in the process of determining the extent
of the prolongation in accordance with the provisions of Article 76. For
authors and students of this topic in Malay, it is proposed that the synonymous
Malay terms for continental shelf – “pelantar benua” and “pentas benua” – be
given specific meanings for use in their legal and geological contexts,
respectively.
Keywords:
continental shelf, continental platform, UNCLOS, Article 76, maritime zones
DOI : https://doi.org/10.7186/wg471202103
ISSN
0126–5539; e-ISSN 2682-7549
