ABSTRACT
This chapter considers interpretation of the duty to render assistance in Article 98 UNCLOS in light of the current situation in Libya. It does so from the position that the UNCLOS is both a codification and a framework convention. Regulation of the duty to render assistance relies on the duty to ensure disembarkation at a ‘place of safety’ under the SOLAS and SAR conventions, in addition to IMO guidance. The chapter contends that proper interpretation of the term ‘safety’ requires an examination of the general principles of law underlying the UNCLOS, including general principles specific to the Convention as well as the ‘elementary considerations of humanity’ referred to in ITLOS case law that are deeper-level general principles applying to all public international law. The chapter concludes that taking general principles of law into account, including ‘considerations of humanity’, can reduce the protection gap between law of the sea and international human rights law and thus preclude disembarkation in countries such as Libya.
