Introduction: Gender and the Law of the Sea – Oceans Apart?

The chapter provides an introduction into the topic of the book. It contextualises its content within the wider discussion of gender equality and the role of international law in ensuring this objective, as well as within feminist approaches to international law, and identifies the principal practical and conceptual issues at the basis of any discussion on the relationship between gender and the law of the sea. The chapter also provides a brief overview of the different chapters and their linkages, illustrating the manifold ways in which gender and the (law of the) sea interact. On this basis, the chapter argues that gender is relevant in assessing the current content of this branch of international law, both as a parameter against which to assess the extent to which existing law of the sea rules on the treatment of individuals comply with the objective to ensure gender equality and the empowerment of women, and as a lens through which to undertake a critical examination of the entire structure of the law of the sea and concludes that there is nothing in the law of the sea provisions to bar such an examination.