abroad using ships and aircraft. Furthermore, these crimes are increasingly harder to detect as smuggling methods are becoming ever more devious and ingenious.
As a specific example of a drug smuggling method from recent years, there are cases where ships use small and sophisticated commercial GPS navigational equipment (devices that indicate a ship's position using satellites) for pinpoint rendezvous at sea. Thereupon, the drug cargo is transferred from the foreign ship to a small vessel, etc., of Japanese registry and smuggled into the country.
b. Countermeasures Hereafter
The establishment of contiguous zones by UNCLOS will make it possible to do the following:
(i) Force a foreign ship to withdraw from a contiguous zone when an on-the-spot inspection, in a contiguous zone, of a foreign ship suspected of a drug crime, etc., reveals that there is suspicion of a violation;
(ii) Investigate, capture, or take other such actions, even in contiguous zones, against a foreign ship that has been discovered to have smuggled drugs or committed other crimes within Japanese territorial sea.
Therefore, it is now possible to take earlier and more appropriate action against drug smuggling and other crimes, including cases involving the cargo transfers at sea described above.
(3) Guarding Territorial Sea
Generally. JMSA guards its territorial sea to secure Japan's sovereignty within its territorial sea against actions by foreign countries that endanger the peace, order and security of our country. The duties of this policing action are to monitor and enforce the law against detrimental passage or illegal acts by foreign ships within the territorial sea.
UNCLOS, recently ratified by Japan, describes and as much as possible clarifies examples of types of acts related to passage, etc., that are considered detrimental. In addition, the amendments to the Maritime Safety Agency Law clearly prescribes the conditions under which JMSA officers can implement measures, such as stopping ships and altering their courses, to prevent crimes and maintain and otherwise protect public order at sea. Based on these instruments of law, JMSA is endeavoring to respond appropriately to foreign ships engaging in detrimental passage, illegal acts and emergency entry into Japanese waters.
