《联合国海洋法公约》争端解决程序的比较与选择

Comparison and Options of Dispute Settlement Procedures under UNCLOS

司法与仲裁统称为裁判程序,是程序法的研究对象。选择更优的争端解决程序,应当成为应对“法律战”和规避国际诉讼类程序风险的重要路径。《联合国海洋法公约》第15章第二节规定国家有权声明选择包括国际法院、国际海洋法法庭和附件七仲裁等在内的一个或一个以上“可作出有拘束力裁决的强制程序”来解决公约的解释与适用争端,但中国尚未作出程序选择。国际法院、国际海洋法法庭和附件七仲裁作为公约项下三大主要的裁判程序,其裁决具有同等的拘束力,但国际法院在权威性与裁决的执行力上超越了另外两大程序。附件七仲裁作为非常设的临时仲裁,却是公约的争端解决程序里面唯一的剩余性强制适用机制,其程序的规范性最弱,程序风险最大。附件七仲裁的现有理论及规则实践与其可能处理的涉及国家间重大权益争端的职能要求极不相称。在中国既不退出《联合国海洋法公约》而公约条款无法在短期修改的现有条件下,国家应积极把握程序主动,综合评估程序差别及程序利益,提前预防附件七仲裁的程序风险。

Judicial process and arbitration,collectively referred to as adjudication procedures,are the research objects of procedural law.Choosing a better dispute settlement procedure should be an important way to deal with “legal warfare” and avoid the risks of international litigation procedures.Chapter 15,Section 2,of UNCLOS provides that States have the right to declare their choice of one or more “Compulsory Procedures Entailing Binding Decisions” to settle disputes over the interpretation and application of UNCLOS among the procedures including the International Court of Justice(ICJ),the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea(ITLOS) and Annex VII arbitration.China has not yet made a choice of procedures.The ICJ,the ITLOS and Annex VII arbitration are the three major adjudicatory procedures under Chapter 15 of the Convention.Their decisions are equally binding,but the ICJ surpasses the other two procedures in terms of authority and enforcement of decisions.As an ad hoc arbitration—a purely isolated,one-time exercise,Annex VII arbitration,with greatest procedural risks and the weakest normalization,is however the only residual compulsory mechanism among these dispute settlement procedures of UNCLOS.The existing rules of Annex VII arbitration are not proportional to the functional requirements of procedural justice addressing disputes concerning sovereign rights and vital interests of State parties.Since China has not yet withdrawn from UNCLOS and the provisions of the Convention cannot be modified in the neat future,China should evaluate the merits of proceedings in advance and endeavor to master the procedural initiative of Annex VII arbitration and avoid its procedural risks.