Agustina Merdekawati, S.H., LL. M., successfully earned her doctoral degree from the UGM Faculty of Law after defending her dissertation titled “The Operationalization of Equitable Sharing of Financial Benefits and Other Economic Benefits in the Utilization of Areas Under the Principle of the Common Heritage of Mankind in UNCLOS 1982” on Wednesday (July 26).
At this doctoral defense, the supervisor was Prof. Dr. Marsudi Tiratmodjo, S.H., LL.M., and the co-supervisor was I Made Andi Arsana, S.T., M.E., Ph.D. The examination committee consisted of Prof. Dr. Sigit Riyanto, S.H., LL.M.; Prof. Koesrianti, S.H., LL.M., Ph.D.; Dr. Harry Purwanto, S.H., M.Hum.; and Arie Afriansyah, S.H., MIL., Ph.D.
According to the doctoral candidate, the research topic she addressed is still relatively uncommon in Indonesia. This is evident from the limited number of citations originating from within the country. This fact also served as one of the motivations for the doctoral candidate to complete her research.
In her dissertation, the doctoral candidate states that the ratio legis behind the principle of the Common Heritage of Mankind (CHM) is to prevent the appropriation of the seabed by states through claims of jurisdiction and to ensure equitable sharing of the benefits derived from resources belonging to humanity. Furthermore, the principle of Equitable Sharing of Financial Benefits and Other Economic Benefits (EBS) aligns with CHM, namely to ensure the distribution of benefits from resource utilization that cannot be accommodated by an open-access regime.
However, this redistribution of benefits has yet to receive adequate attention, even though 40 years have passed. “To this day, the regime for the exploitation or extraction of minerals in the area has not been established, and all contractors remain in the exploration phase. Currently, there are no regulations regarding the mechanisms for exploitation. There are roughly two ideas: the establishment of a common heritage fund as a specialized management body, or collaboration with an international organization that would focus on this issue. However, these remain merely ideas because all countries are still considering how to share the proceeds. Consequently, no country has yet considered the redistribution process in greater detail,” explained the doctoral candidate.
Agustina Merdekawati graduated with an A grade and the distinction of cum laude. With this, Dr. Agustina Merdekawati, S.H., LL.M., is the 255th doctoral graduate to pass the examination at the UGM Faculty of Law and the 5,877th doctoral graduate from Gadjah Mada University.
