New Delhi/Amsterdam: Italy should compensate India for damages incurred by the shooting of two fishermen by Italian marines off the coast of India in 2012, the Permanent Court of Arbitration said on Thursday.
The court said it was up to India and Italy to decide the amount of compensation warranted in the so-called Enrica Lexie case, which has soured relations between the two countries in recent years.
On February 15, 2012, two Indian fishermen aboard the Indian fishing vessel, St. Antony, were allegedly killed by two Italian marines, part of a military team on anti-pirate duty protecting the Italian oil tanker Enrica Lexie, off the coast of Kerala.
The marines claimed they mistook Indian fishermen for pirates and fired warning shots which accidentally killed the two fishermen.
The Indian Navy intercepted the Italian tanker and detained the two, triggering an international conflict over legal jurisdiction and functional immunity.
The marines were released and returned to Italy after two and four years, respectively. The Arbitral Tribunal of the United Nations was tasked to resolve the conflict over jurisdiction.
The international tribunal upheld the conduct of the Indian authorities over the incident, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Thursday.
MEA Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said the tribunal upheld the conduct of the Indian authorities under the provisions of the UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea).
The Arbitral Tribunal was constituted under Annex VII of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) on June 26, 2015 on the request of Italy in respect of the dispute.
Srivastava said the tribunal held that the actions of the Italian military officers and, consequently, Italy breached India's freedom of navigation under UNCLOS Article 87(1)(a) and 90.
"The Tribunal observed that India and Italy had concurrent jurisdiction over the incident and a valid legal basis to institute criminal proceedings against the marines," Srivastava said at an online media briefing.
The Tribunal observed that India and Italy had concurrent jurisdiction over the incident and a valid legal basis to institute criminal proceedings against the marines. The court also rejected Italy's claim of compensation for the detention of the marines.
"However, it found that the immunities enjoyed by the marines as state officials operate as an exception to the jurisdiction of the Indian courts and, hence, preclude them to judge the marines," the Tribunal said.
The UN court took note of the commitment expressed by Italy to resume its criminal investigation into the events that led to the killing of two Indian fishermen.
The Tribunal also decided that India is entitled to payment of compensation in connection to loss of life, physical harm, material damage to property and moral harm suffered by the captain and other crew members of ‘St. Antony'. The parties involved in the case are invited to consult with each other with a view to reaching agreement on the amount of compensation due to India, the court said.