The Tragedy of the Commoners: The Decline of the Customary Marine Tenure System of Tonga
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Date
2001
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Abstract
"The purpose of this paper is to outline how a rapid process of modernization, in combination with urbanization and population growth, have resulted in a breakdown of the traditional marine tenure systems and an over-exploitation of marine organisms. Although there are cases in Oceania where marine areas adjoining villages have remained under communal control even after having become legal Crown or state property in modern times, Tonga exemplifies how Crown/state ownership has come to replace communal ownership but been less able than the local communities to regulate the use of the marine resources."
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Keywords
marine resources, customary law, modernization, urbanization, population growth, tragedy of the commons, common pool resources