| Summary/Abstract |
Human safety in the maritime and littoral domain of the Indo-Pacific region is fast emerging as an issue of concern for the regional countries. The paper attempts to examine the existing provisions and practices of the regional maritime forces with regard to maritime Search and Rescue and Humanitarian Assistance/ Disaster Relief, so as to identify voids in cooperative responses that may be attributed to either insufficient or absent “national will. It avers that this either due to overriding national security concerns, including sensitivities over national sovereignty, geopolitical considerations, or simply the lack of national policy emphasis. This manifests in the reticence of the countries to meet the obligations of customary international law and even accede to relevant global conventions, and impedes inter-state and regional cooperation for handling irregular migrants at sea and effective coordination of humanitarian relief operations during natural disasters. The paper concludes with some practical policy recommendations.
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