Transforming Tetial Conflict Into Cooperation Potential: the Role of International Water Law (original) (raw)

Water: A Major Stake of Conflicts in the Twenty-First Century

Open Journal of Social Sciences, 2021

The need to ensure freshwater security remains sacrosanct to the survival and security of humanity. While various studies on water security continue to draw the world's attention to future threats and risks against humanity's better survival and security-following the current management of our various waterways. It is in this light that this paper proposes to explain why access to water may well be a major stake of conflicts in this 21st century. After debate and discussion, the results that emerge from this paper show that the multiplication of threats arising from climate change, which continues to worsen in this century, coupled with the hybrid policies and activities of various actors at stake, and combined with the singular characteristics of water-including, notably, a resource that guarantees our existence, a scarce resource, an unevenly distributed resource, and a resource that is shared among several states, nationalities and social categories-emerge two fundamental implications. The first is that of the great need for cooperation between riparian states, nationalities and various social categories; and the second is that exhibits the great likelihood of conflicts between them-to the competing uses of the shared water resource and the conquering spirits of one another. By using a few cases of bellicose rhetoric on the Tigris-Euphrates, Jordan, Indus, Syr-Daria, Nile, Congo, Colorado and Rio Grande watersheds, this paper makes a bitter observation of the predominant tendency of the second implication-the conflictual one-over the first-the cooperative one-in this twenty-first century that ostensibly denotes that water should be taken seriously as a major stake of conflicts in this century. Thus, this paper considers that it is important and time for humanity to promote transboundary water cooperation between states and nationalities of shared river basins; and integrated water management in the steps of good governance at all levels, in the sense of avoiding a flare-up of the situation and limiting to the maximum a worsening where the violins do not agree anymore.

International Water Issues Need More Than Cooperation

ABSTRACT UN Secretary-General Ban ki-Mun pointed out extremely important and extraordinary points in his remark at Opening of the 7th World Water Forum held in Daegu, Gyeongbuk, The Republic of Korea in 12 April 2015. He said that; “Instead of seeing scarce water as a reason for competition or conflict, we have to treat it as a challenge to collaborate, a challenge to engage in innovative hydro- diplomacy. In today‟s world, we must be more aware of the risks of water conflict.” It is important to note the emphasis on “collaboration and innovative hydro-diplomacy” in his remarks. While speaking on the occasion of World Water Day 2013, the Secretary General had also said, “Water scarcity threatens economic and social gains … And it is a potent fuel for wars and conflict.” Secretary General Ban Ki-moon‟s warnings were reflected in the offcial definition of water security provided by the United Nations University- IWEH, which says. “The capacity of a population to safeguard sustainable access to adequate quantities of and acceptable quality water for sustaining livelihoods, human well-being, and socio-economic development, for ensuring protection against water-borne pollution and water-related disasters, and for preserving ecosystems in a climate of peace and political stability.” It is important to note the emphasis on “in a climate of peace and political stability” in this definition. The concerns of the United Nations are justified as the world faces an era of depleting water resources. The World Water Development Report of UNESCO, released in March 2015 warns us of serious depletion of water supplies by 2050, while at the same time, significant increase in demand due to population growth, economic development and urbanisation, among other factors. Different effects of climate change are today contributing to even more water scarcity and greater security risks. It shows us that we need an effective and mutually beneficial solution of water resources-related problems. At the global scale, the effective and mutually beneficial solution of water resources-related problems underlie peace, security and stability. But this can become a reality only if we change our conceptual approaches to domestic and transboundary water management. Keywords: Transboundary Water; New Water Paradigm; Water Conceptional Change; New Hydro Diplomacy; Traditional Water Cooperation; New Hydropolitcs; Shared vision; Shared goal

"Water wars: fact or fiction?" Futures, Volume 33, Number 8, October 2001, pp. 769-781(13)

Futures, 2001

It is often said that future wars will be fought over water, not oil. These water wars are predicted to take place over the sharing of international rivers. Recently, the world has witnessed several inter-state river-sharing disputes, but almost all of them have not crossed the critical threshold of becoming violent. Rather, most of these river disputes are being addressed through bilateral riparian cooperative arrangements. These agreements are primarily coming up on the rivers, which have potential for further water exploitation. However, to find a lasting solution and to strengthen the river sharing arrangements, this article argues for the water issue to be addressed comprehensively in the basin, by taking into account both the demand as well as the supply side of the scarce resource.

The Legal Response to International Water Conflicts: The UN Watercourses Convention and Beyond

GERMAN YEARBOOK OF INTERNATIONAL LAW, 1999

The UN Watercourses Convention, adopted in May 1997, and ratified to date by six Parties/ is a global framework agreement with the goal to "ensure the utilization, development, conservation, management and protection of international watercourses" and the promotion of their optimal and sustainable utilization for present and future generations. In line with this, the Convention requires that "an international watercourse shall be used and developed by watercourse States with a view to attaining optimal and sustainable utilization thereof and benefits therefrom, taking into account the interests of the watercourse States concerned, consistent with adequate protection of the watercourse." This paper addresses the question whether the UN Watercourses Convention facilitates achievement of these aims, specifically in the context of conflicts-of-uses and water scarcity.