Senior Judge Hillary Charlesworth of Australia was elected to the International Court of Justice
The International Court of Justice of Justice found it competent to hear Ukraine v. Russia on Alleged Financing of Terrorism, rejecting Russia's previous objections.
The U.N. General Assembly and Security Council today elected Hillary Charlesworth from Australia as a new judge of the International Court of Justice, the united nations' main judicial body, for a nine-year term.
Charles Worth, from Australia, will succeed James Crawford, who also died in May.
Charlesworth defeated another candidate, Linos-Alexander sicilianos from Greece, with an absolute majority, to become the fifth ever female judge of the International Court of Justice.
Charles Worth is a prominent international law scholar who served as an ad hoc judge in two contentious decisions of the International Court of Justice: the October 3, 1899 arbitral award over territorial disputes between Guyana and Venezuela, and the Australian lawsuit against Japan for whaling offences in Antarctic waters.
The International Court of Justice is composed of 15 judges elected by the UN General Assembly and the Security Council by an absolute majority (97 votes and 8 votes, respectively). The timing of the election of new judges is deliberately staggered in order to ensure that one third of the judges of the Court are elected every three years.
In accordance with the Statute of the International Court of Justice, its judges must be elected by the Security Council and the United Nations General Assembly through coordinated action, and the date of the election is determined by the Council.
Founded in 1945 and headquartered in The Hague, the Netherlands, and also known to many as the "Court of the World", the International Court of Justice has a dual mandate to settle disputes of a legal nature submitted to it by States in accordance with international law and, on the other hand, to advise on legal matters that may be submitted to it.
The judges of the International Court of Justice are selected on the basis of their qualifications rather than their nationality, but no two judges can be from the same State. In addition, the Court has worked to ensure that the world's major legal systems are reflected in the composition of the Court.
In an interview with UN News in New York, the Registrar sent a clear message to Member States: They would do well to settle disputes through the Court of Justice than to start an armed conflict.
Since 2019, Philippe Gautier from Belgium has been serving as Registrar, the head of the Registry that assists the Court.
Gautier said the court is currently hearing 15 cases that "reflect issues and issues of concern to the international community." ”
He explained that the main area of hearing was the delimitation of maritime or land boundaries and that there were currently five related cases under consideration.
Gautier said: "This is a very sensitive issue. For an area of 10 square kilometres, countries may sometimes resort to extreme solutions. A peaceful settlement is always the best option. ”
He said that human rights issues were also an important category of cases. Examples include the Palestinian case concerning the relocation of the United States Embassy to Jerusalem, or the Gambia's indictment against Myanmar for alleged violations of the Convention against Genocide.
Gautier explains: "The whole process of settling disputes peacefully means that instead of starting a war, you go to the International Court of Justice to settle disputes peacefully. It's something that everyone is interested in, but it's not necessarily well known. ”
