Radica: Its Ethno Cultural Qualities and International Legal Protection

Abstract

This treatise aims to shed light into a land region of ethnocultural and hydrotechnical value, having resources in the domains of fauna, flora, ecosystem, in addition to a very eminent legal-historical tradition pertaining to this land region, such as the region of Radika, and the Radika River itself, which comprises the cornerstone of the debate of the Bern Convention Standing Committee in Switzerland.
The Helsinki rules set the foundation for the work performed by the International Law Commission, which caused the United Nations General Assembly to adopt the Convention on the Law of the Non-navigational Uses of International Watercourses (known as the United Nations Convention of 1997). The Convention confirms the principle of “reasonable and equitable use” and exhibits a series of factors in order to define such use. The convention encourages states to enter into common agreements regarding watercourses, recommending that common committees be established in order to facilitate cooperation among cross-border regions.
As already mentioned, the Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes of the UNECE (United Nations Economic Commission for Europe) – otherwise known as the Helsinki Water Convention of 1992, is a unique legal instrument, mainly addressing and defining the mechanisms for institutional cooperation among states. Said convention became a precursor to the protection of the Radika river, as well as its flora, fauna, Balkan lynx, and ethnic culture.