Practice question
A Philippine continental-shelf claim concerns seabed petroleum deposits beyond the territorial sea. Which description best identifies the relevant entitlement under RA 12064 and UNCLOS?
- Sovereign rights to explore and exploit the shelf’s natural resources, rather than automatic sovereignty over all waters and airspace above it
- A right to prohibit every aircraft from crossing the entire ocean above the shelf
- A right to turn all superjacent waters into internal waters
- A right available only after permanent occupation by a settlement
- A right limited to fish swimming freely in the water column
Legal references
- Republic Act No. 12064, November 7, 2024, Philippine Maritime Zones Act: https://elibrary.judiciary.gov.ph/thebookshelf/showdocs/2/98027; Section 8.
- UNCLOS, Articles 76–78 and 83: https://www.un.org/Depts/los/convention_agreements/texts/unclos/part6.htm; Articles 77–78.
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