Tokyo, May, 6, 1954

Excellency,
With reference to your note of December 10, 1953 requesting the information on the enactment by the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea of the bill for conservation of fishery resources and also expressing the view of the Japanese Government on such legislation, I have the honor to set forth the views of the Government of the Republic of Korea as follows:
1. The Korean Government, on December 12, 1953, promulgated and enforced the Law for Conservation of Fishery Resources which had been enacted by the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea on December 1, 1953. Consequently, all the fishing activities in the said sone without permission from the Korean Government are in violation or the competent provisions of the Law.
2. In this connection, it was stated in your note that the legislation, if it Should be applicable also to foreign nationals and vessels, would be at variance with the established international law and usage; and also that such domestic legislation could not affect the status of the foreign nationals engaging in fisheries therein.
However, I wish to invite your attention to the feet that, with regard to the fishing operations in the seas adjacent to the Korean coast, the adherenee of the Japanese Government to such an argument that the unrestricted fishing activities operated as near as the territorial waters of other coastal states shall be quite appropriate doubtless exhibits an unfortunate disregard of the well-estahlished international precedents under which the littoral states may conserve natural resources in the waters contiguous to their territories and exercise their rights to utilization of such resources therein.
With regard to the Republic of Korea's preelection on the conservation of natural resources in areas of the high seas contiguous to the coast of the Republic of Korea, as was repeatedly informed thereof by the Mission on many occasions, it is the firm conviction of the Government of the Republic of Korea that the establishment, of such fisheries conservation zone is far from being at variance with the international law and usage and is quite in accordance with the well-estahlished international practice regarding the continental shelf and the propriety of protection of fisheries resources. The Republic of Korea as a coastal nation, having protected, preserved and utilised the natural resources in said areas, is entitled to enjoy her privilege of exeroising juriadiotien over fishing activities in the waters.
In this connection, 1 would like to point out that there have been a number of international precedents under which the control rights to the fishing activities in the adjacent waters on the basis of the actual records of fishing in the past are enjoyed by littoral states and the establishment of explicitly bounded conservation sones were fishing activities shall be subject to the regulation and control of coastal nations are considered as proper.
Accordingly, the Republic of Korea, also, is duly entitled to take legal measures for exercising her rights to the regulation of end control over the fishing activities in the said waters for conserving fisheries resources Thus, it is quite natural that the Law is applicable to any person and vessel that desire to engage in fishing in such Korean jurisdictional waters.
3. It is also stated in your note that the Government of Japan is, of course, deeply interested in the conservation of fishery resources. However, in connection with the talks on fisheries problems between my country and Japan in the last Korea-Japan Confereace, neither concrete or constructive proposals on the measures for the conservation of fisheries resources, except tae repetition of mere insistence upon the freedom of the alive seas in an abstract ways were ever made officially by the Japanese delegation, according to the minutes of the talks. On the contrary, even in the midst of the conference fishing grounds in the waters in question wore frequently ravaged by an enormous fleet of Japanese fishing vessels, as a result of which unnecessary fishing disputes between the two nations were caused in the waters.
4. As was reiterated by the Korean Government on many occasions, it has been and is a sincere desire of the Republic of Korea that the lasting peace between the two countries be maintained by forestalling unnecessary disputes or unpleasant frictions arising from the intricacy of the two countries fishing activities in the Korean coastal waters. Thus, the Korean Government is convinced that the best way to the attainment of the abovemstioned objectives is that the Korean Presidential Proclamation and the Republic of Korea Law for Conservation of Fishery Resources be respected so that no more disputes may arise from now on.
Such being the case, it is earnestly desired that you will be good enough to see to it that the Japanese Government, taking into its spacial consideration the desirability for maintenance of peaceful relations between the two countries and the necessity for maintenance of the most effective measures for conserving fisheries resources in the waters, take adequate measures to get the Japanese fishermen concerned to realise the basic spirit of the Law and observe it without any misunderstandings.
Enclosed herewith, for reference, is a copy of the English translation of the Republic of Korea Law for Conservation of Fishery Resources.
Accept, Excellency, the renewed assurance of my highest consideration.

 

Yong Shik Kim

Minister

Chief of Mission

Enclosure: a/s