Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Enrica Lexie- Some basic doubts

Mr.Veeresh Malik, I am writing this just for the sake of discussing this case from an independent position. Like a man from Mars looking at it.

You said that the boat was Indian and persons killed were Indians and so India has full right to try the Italian Marines as per Indian laws. Now let me ask you one doubt. First let us assume the geographical position is beyond the 200 nautical limits and hence it is undoubtedly international waters. There are two ships. Ship A from country A and ship B from country B. Someone from ship A shoots at ship B and kills a citizen of country B. Reason for shooting is not relevant for my hypothetical case. In mid sea cases we assume that Ship is a floating piece of country A and ship B is a floating piece of Country B. Which country should try the case. It is a citizen of B on the territory of country B who has been killed. So is it country B which should try the case? Now take another hypothetical case. Let us assume that a soldier posted at India- Pakistan border see someone moving suspiciously in the Pakistan side. Suspecting him to be a terrorist trying to infiltrate he shoots and kills him. Whether the soldier challenged him or such things are not relevant to this hypothetical situation. Who should try the case? India or Pakistan? It is a Pakistani citizen who was killed in Pakistani soil. So is it not Pakistan which should try the case? Will that soldier handed over to Pakistan for trial?
So is there not merit in this Enrica Lexie case when Italy says that the shooting happened in international waters and hence it is Italy which should try the case? So first the exact location of the incident should be ascertained. If it was within 12 nautical miles there is no ambiguity. The problem is if it was in the Contiguous Zone or EEZ. So in my opinion is Supreme Court should first call for records to establish the place of incidence. And then decide as per the United Nations Maritime Laws to which India is also a party.
I have an idea to find how far the place of shooting from the shore if the time of incidence is clearly known. The boat St.Antony reached the police station on shore well past night 10 o'clock. The exact time is available. The boat should have come at maximum speed it can as there were two dead bodies in it and the owner will be in a hurry to report the case.  If the incidence has taken at 4 pm and it reached say 10 pm it has taken 6 hrs. So at a speed of 9 knots it should have covered a distance of 54 nautical miles. Leaving margin to any error due to the fact that the place of incidence need not be perpendicular to the spot where the boat landed on shore it can be safely assumed to have happened some 40 nautical miles off the Indian shore. Or am I wrong?
All these are for the sake of argument.       Yours,   Guptan Veemboor

No comments:

Post a Comment