Cabinet approves Maritime Zones Bill 2019
The cabinet yesterday approved in principle the draft of Bangladesh Maritime Zones Bill 2019, determining the maritime zones and incorporating the provision of death penalty in the case of killing during robbery and violence in the sea.
The approval came from the cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at her office.
Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam briefed reporters at the secretariat after the meeting.
“The foreign ministry brought the bill for cabinet approval on the maritime zones, in line with international conventions,” said the cabinet secretary.
Once the bill is passed in parliament, Bangladesh’s rights over 200 nautical miles of exclusive economic zone will be established.
Under the 1982 United Nations Convention of the Law of the Sea, all coastal countries are granted sovereign right to the stretch of sea extending 200 nautical miles beyond their coast, which is known as exclusive economic zone.
Punitive provisions have been kept in the proposed law for committing or abetting crimes, including robbery, theft and violence in sea.
In the case of murder during robbery and violence, the maximum punishment would be death penalty, said the cabinet secretary.
The highest punishment for robbery and other offences would be life sentence, while punishment for abetting such crimes is 14 years of imprisonment, he said.
Besides, the cabinet approved a proposal for the ratification of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol, which aims for the phase-down of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) by cutting their production and consumption.
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