1.
International court
–
Early examples of international courts include the Nuremberg and Tokyo tribunals established in the aftermath of World War II. Further international courts exist elsewhere, usually with their jurisdiction restricted to a country or issue. Examples of these “hybrid tribunals” are found in Sierra Leone, Lebanon, East Timor, International Courts are permanent tribunals judging by International laws and treaties, also when these norms are on civil and commercial matters. International courts should be distinguished from international arbitration forums, judges and high-level staff of such courts may be afforded diplomatic immunity if their governing authority allows
International court
–
The
International Criminal Court in
The Hague
International court
–
The
International Court of Justice
International court
–
Defendants in the dock at the
International Military Tribunal in
Nuremberg
2.
The Hague
–
The Hague is a city on the western coast of the Netherlands, and the capital city of the province of South Holland. With a population of 520,704 inhabitants and more than one million including the suburbs, it is the third-largest city of the Netherlands. The Rotterdam The Hague Metropolitan Area, with a population of approximately 2.7 million, is the 12th-largest in the European Union and the most populous in the country. Located in the west of the Netherlands, The Hague is in the centre of the Haaglanden conurbation and lies at the southwest corner of the larger Randstad conurbation. The Hague is the seat of the Dutch government, parliament, the Supreme Court, and the Council of State, but the city is not the capital of the Netherlands, which constitutionally is Amsterdam. King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands plans to live at Huis ten Bosch and works at Noordeinde Palace in The Hague, the Hague is also home to the world headquarters of Royal Dutch Shell and numerous other major Dutch companies. The Hague originated around 1230, when Count Floris IV of Holland purchased land alongside a pond, in 1248, his son and successor William II, King of the Romans, decided to extend the residence to a palace, which would later be called the Binnenhof. He died in 1256 before this palace was completed but parts of it were finished by his son Floris V, of which the Ridderzaal and it is still used for political events, such as the annual speech from the throne by the Dutch monarch. From the 13th century onwards, the counts of Holland used The Hague as their administrative centre, the village that originated around the Binnenhof was first mentioned as Haga in a charter dating from 1242. In the 15th century, the smarter des Graven hage came into use, literally The Counts Wood, with connotations like The Counts Hedge, s-Gravenhage was officially used for the city from the 17th century onwards. Today, this name is used in some official documents like birth. The city itself uses Den Haag in all its communication and their seat was located in The Hague. At the beginning of the Eighty Years War, the absence of city walls proved disastrous, in 1575, the States of Holland even considered demolishing the city but this proposal was abandoned, after mediation by William of Orange. From 1588, The Hague also became the seat of the government of the Dutch Republic, in order for the administration to maintain control over city matters, The Hague never received official city status, although it did have many of the privileges normally granted only to cities. In modern administrative law, city rights have no place anymore, only in 1806, when the Kingdom of Holland was a puppet state of the First French Empire, was the settlement granted city rights by Louis Bonaparte. After the Napoleonic Wars, modern-day Belgium and the Netherlands were combined in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands to form a buffer against France, as a compromise, Brussels and Amsterdam alternated as capital every two years, with the government remaining in The Hague. After the separation of Belgium in 1830, Amsterdam remained the capital of the Netherlands, when the government started to play a more prominent role in Dutch society after 1850, The Hague quickly expanded. The growing city annexed the rural municipality of Loosduinen partly in 1903, the city sustained heavy damage during World War II
The Hague
The Hague
The Hague
The Hague
3.
Netherlands
–
The Netherlands is the main constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a densely populated country located in Western Europe with three territories in the Caribbean. The European part of the Netherlands borders Germany to the east, Belgium to the south, and the North Sea to the northwest, sharing borders with Belgium, the United Kingdom. The three largest cities in the Netherlands are Amsterdam, Rotterdam and The Hague, Amsterdam is the countrys capital, while The Hague holds the Dutch seat of parliament and government. The port of Rotterdam is the worlds largest port outside East-Asia, the name Holland is used informally to refer to the whole of the country of the Netherlands. Netherlands literally means lower countries, influenced by its low land and flat geography, most of the areas below sea level are artificial. Since the late 16th century, large areas have been reclaimed from the sea and lakes, with a population density of 412 people per km2 –507 if water is excluded – the Netherlands is classified as a very densely populated country. Only Bangladesh, South Korea, and Taiwan have both a population and higher population density. Nevertheless, the Netherlands is the worlds second-largest exporter of food and agricultural products and this is partly due to the fertility of the soil and the mild climate. In 2001, it became the worlds first country to legalise same-sex marriage, the Netherlands is a founding member of the EU, Eurozone, G-10, NATO, OECD and WTO, as well as being a part of the Schengen Area and the trilateral Benelux Union. The first four are situated in The Hague, as is the EUs criminal intelligence agency Europol and this has led to the city being dubbed the worlds legal capital. The country also ranks second highest in the worlds 2016 Press Freedom Index, the Netherlands has a market-based mixed economy, ranking 17th of 177 countries according to the Index of Economic Freedom. It had the thirteenth-highest per capita income in the world in 2013 according to the International Monetary Fund, in 2013, the United Nations World Happiness Report ranked the Netherlands as the seventh-happiest country in the world, reflecting its high quality of life. The Netherlands also ranks joint second highest in the Inequality-adjusted Human Development Index, the region called Low Countries and the country of the Netherlands have the same toponymy. Place names with Neder, Nieder, Nether and Nedre and Bas or Inferior are in use in all over Europe. They are sometimes used in a relation to a higher ground that consecutively is indicated as Upper, Boven, Oben. In the case of the Low Countries / the Netherlands the geographical location of the region has been more or less downstream. The geographical location of the region, however, changed over time tremendously
Netherlands
–
The Netherlands in 5500 BC
Netherlands
–
Flag
Netherlands
–
The Netherlands in 500 BC
Netherlands
–
An oak figurine found in
Willemstad, North Brabant (4500 BC).
4.
Geographic coordinate system
–
A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system used in geography that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation, to specify a location on a two-dimensional map requires a map projection. The invention of a coordinate system is generally credited to Eratosthenes of Cyrene. Ptolemy credited him with the adoption of longitude and latitude. Ptolemys 2nd-century Geography used the prime meridian but measured latitude from the equator instead. Mathematical cartography resumed in Europe following Maximus Planudes recovery of Ptolemys text a little before 1300, in 1884, the United States hosted the International Meridian Conference, attended by representatives from twenty-five nations. Twenty-two of them agreed to adopt the longitude of the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, the Dominican Republic voted against the motion, while France and Brazil abstained. France adopted Greenwich Mean Time in place of local determinations by the Paris Observatory in 1911, the latitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle between the equatorial plane and the straight line that passes through that point and through the center of the Earth. Lines joining points of the same latitude trace circles on the surface of Earth called parallels, as they are parallel to the equator, the north pole is 90° N, the south pole is 90° S. The 0° parallel of latitude is designated the equator, the plane of all geographic coordinate systems. The equator divides the globe into Northern and Southern Hemispheres, the longitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle east or west of a reference meridian to another meridian that passes through that point. All meridians are halves of great ellipses, which converge at the north and south poles, the prime meridian determines the proper Eastern and Western Hemispheres, although maps often divide these hemispheres further west in order to keep the Old World on a single side. The antipodal meridian of Greenwich is both 180°W and 180°E, the combination of these two components specifies the position of any location on the surface of Earth, without consideration of altitude or depth. The grid formed by lines of latitude and longitude is known as a graticule, the origin/zero point of this system is located in the Gulf of Guinea about 625 km south of Tema, Ghana. To completely specify a location of a feature on, in, or above Earth. Earth is not a sphere, but a shape approximating a biaxial ellipsoid. It is nearly spherical, but has an equatorial bulge making the radius at the equator about 0. 3% larger than the radius measured through the poles, the shorter axis approximately coincides with the axis of rotation
Geographic coordinate system
–
Longitude lines are perpendicular and latitude lines are parallel to the equator.
5.
Hague Peace Conference
–
The Hague Conventions of 1899 and 1907 are a series of international treaties and declarations negotiated at two international peace conferences at The Hague in the Netherlands. The First Hague Conference was held in 1899 and the Second Hague Conference in 1907, along with the Geneva Conventions, the Hague Conventions were among the first formal statements of the laws of war and war crimes in the body of secular international law. A third conference was planned for 1914 and later rescheduled for 1915, the 1874 Brussels Declaration listed 56 articles that drew inspiration from the Lieber Code. Much of the regulations in the Hague Conventions were borrowed heavily from the Lieber Code, both conferences included negotiations concerning disarmament, the laws of war and war crimes. This effort, however, failed at both conferences, instead a voluntary forum for arbitration, the Permanent Court of Arbitration, was established, the peace conference was proposed on 24 August 1898 by Russian Tsar Nicholas II. Nicholas and Count Mikhail Nikolayevich Muravyov, his minister, were instrumental in initiating the conference. The conference opened on 18 May 1899, the Tsars birthday, the treaties, declarations, and final act of the conference were signed on 29 July of that year, and they entered into force on 4 September 1900. Convention with respect to the Laws and Customs of War on Land This voluminous convention contains the laws to be used in all wars on land between signatories, inhabitants of occupied territories may not be forced into military service against their own country and collective punishment is forbidden. The section was ratified by all major powers mentioned above and it too was ratified by all major powers. The declaration was ratified by all the powers mentioned above, except the United Kingdom. Ratified by all major powers, except the United States and this directly banned soft-point bullets and cross-tipped bullets. It was ratified by all major powers, except the United States, the second conference, in 1907, resulted in conventions containing only few major advancements from the 1899 Convention. However, the meeting of powers did prefigure later 20th-century attempts at international cooperation. The second conference was called at the suggestion of U. S. President Theodore Roosevelt in 1904, the Second Peace Conference was held from 15 June to 18 October 1907. The intent of the conference was to expand upon the 1899 Hague Convention by modifying some parts and adding new topics, in particular, the 1907 conference had an increased focus on naval warfare. The British attempted to secure limitation of armaments, but these efforts were defeated by the powers, led by Germany. Germany also rejected proposals for compulsory arbitration, however, the conference did enlarge the machinery for voluntary arbitration and established conventions regulating the collection of debts, rules of war, and the rights and obligations of neutrals. The treaties, declarations, and final act of the Second Conference were signed on 18 October 1907, Convention respecting the Laws and Customs of War on Land This convention confirms, with minor modifications, the provisions of Convention of 1899
Hague Peace Conference
–
The First Hague Conference in 1899
Hague Peace Conference
–
The Second Hague Conference in 1907
Hague Peace Conference
–
Nicholas II of Russia
Hague Peace Conference
–
Commemorative medal of the 1907 convention
6.
Peace Palace
–
The Peace of Palace is an international law administrative building in The Hague, the Netherlands. It houses the International Court of Justice, the Permanent Court of Arbitration, the Hague Academy of International Law and the Peace Palace Library. The Palace officially opened on 28 August 1913, and was built to provide a home for the PCA. Andrew Dickson White, whose efforts were instrumental in creating the court, the European Heritage Label was awarded to the Peace Palace on 8 April 2014. The Peace Palace has been occupied at different times by a number of organisations, from 1901 until the opening of the Palace in 1913, the Permanent Court of Arbitration was housed at Prinsegracht 71 in The Hague. Permanent Court of International Justice and its successor the International Court of Justice, in 1922 the Permanent Court of International Justice of the League of Nations was added to the occupants. This meant the Library was forced to move to a building. In 1946, when the United Nations replaced the League of Nations, Peace Palace Library of International Law. Being the original vision of Carnegie, the library grew quickly to house the best collection of material on international law. Although this stature is well in the past, the still contains some original classical works, as the original copies of Hugo Grotius works on peace and law. The Carnegie Stichting The Hague Academy of International Law, established in 1914, strongly advocated by Tobias Michael Carel Asser. Funds for the Academy came from another project by Andrew Carnegie, namely the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. The idea of the Palace started from a discussion in 1900 between the Russian diplomat Friedrich Martens and American diplomat White over providing a home for the Permanent Court of Arbitration. Carnegie had his reservations, and at first was only interested in donating money for the establishment of a library of international law. White, however, was able to convince Carnegie, and in 1903 Carnegie agreed to donate the US$1.5 million needed to house the court as well as to endow it with a library of international law. Were such a fabric to be created, men would make pilgrimages from all parts of the world to see it. The main difficulty now is that the people of the nations do not really know what was done for them by the Conference. This foundation is responsible for these issues
Peace Palace
–
The Peace Palace, pictured in March 2006
Peace Palace
–
Carnegie and the original map of the Peace Palace
Peace Palace
–
Inside the Peace Palace
Peace Palace
–
Vase offered by Russia
7.
Arbitral tribunal
–
An arbitral tribunal is a panel of one or more adjudicators which is convened and sits to resolve a dispute by way of arbitration. The tribunal may consist of an arbitrator, or there may be two or more arbitrators, which might include either a chairman or an umpire. The parties to a dispute are usually free to determine the number, different legal systems differ as to how many arbitrators should constitute the tribunal if there is no agreement. Permanent tribunals tend to have their own rules and procedures, and they also tend to be more expensive, and, for procedural reasons, slower. The parties are free to determine their own procedure for appointing the arbitrator or arbitrators. If the parties decline to specify the mode for selecting the arbitrators, most arbitration clauses will provide a nominated person or body to select a sole arbitrator if the parties are unable to agree. In default of such a provision, where the parties are unable to agree, a well drafted arbitration clause will also normally make provision for where a party to the dispute seeks to cause delay by refusing to make or agree an appointment. Often this will allow the party to appoint a sole arbitrator and for the arbitration to proceed on that basis. Where the tribunal consists of an odd number of arbitrators, one of them may be designated as the umpire or chairman, the selection of title actually carries some significance. When an arbitrator is chairman, then they will not usually exercise any special or additional powers, in some legal systems, it used to be common for each party to the dispute to appoint an arbitrator and for those two arbitrators to appoint a third arbitrator. However, the two appointed by the parties to the dispute would essentially act as advocates for the party who appointed them. The standards for enforcing such awards are set out in the New York Convention, in most legal systems the parties are free to specify in what circumstances the appointment of an arbitrator may be revoked. Most legal systems reserve a power to the court to remove arbitrators who are unfit to act and it is generally accepted that one cannot force a person to continue as an arbitrator against their will, and arbitrators may resign if they are unwilling to proceed with the arbitration. Where the arbitrator becomes aware of facts that might be seen to affect his or her impartiality, the authority of an arbitrator is personal, and an appointment ceases upon death. The parties may make provision for the arbitrators fees, however, the position may be different between, on the one hand, as between the arbitrators and the parties, and on the other hand, as between the parties themselves. Although the parties may provide differently in the appointment of the arbitrator, if the arbitrator is not paid, then they may sue either or both parties for unpaid fees. In many jurisdictions, after making the award, the tribunal will order that the losing party pays the costs of the winning party. It is generally accepted that an arbitrator is not liable for anything done or omitted to be done in the discharge of his or her duties as an arbitrator unless bad faith is shown, in most legal systems, the arbitral tribunal is able to rule upon its own jurisdiction
Arbitral tribunal
–
The
London Court of International Arbitration
8.
Maritime boundary
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A maritime boundary is a conceptual division of the Earths water surface areas using physiographic or geopolitical criteria. As such, it usually bounds areas of national rights over mineral and biological resources, encompassing maritime features, limits. Generally, a boundary is delineated at a particular distance from a jurisdictions coastline. Some maritime boundaries have remained indeterminate despite efforts to clarify them and this is explained by an array of factors, some of which involve regional problems. The delineation of maritime boundaries has strategic, economic and environmental implications, the terms boundary, frontier and border are often used as if they were interchangeable, but they are also terms with precise meanings. The terms frontier, borderland and border are zones of indeterminate width, such areas forms the outermost part of a country. Borders are bounded on one side by a national boundary, there are variations in the specific terminology of maritime boundary agreements which have been concluded since the 1970s. Such differences are less important than what is being delimited, features that affect maritime boundaries include islands and the submerged seabed of the continental shelf. The process of boundary delimitation in the ocean encompasses the natural prolongation of geological features, the process of establishing positional borders encompasses the distinction between previously resolved and never-resolved controversies. The limits of maritime boundaries are expressed in polylines and in layers of sovereignty and control. The conditions under which a state may establish such baseline are described in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, a baseline of a country can be the low water line, a straight baseline or a combination of the two. The zones of maritime boundaries are expressed in concentric limits surrounding coastal, inland waters—the zone inside the baseline. Territorial sea—the zone extending 12 nm. from the baseline, contiguous zone—the area extending 24 nm. from the baseline. Exclusive Economic Zone—the area extending 200 nm. from the baseline except when the space between two countries is less than 400 nm, in the case of overlapping zones, the boundary is presumed to conform to the equidistance principle or it is explicitly described in a multilateral treaty. Contemporary negotiations have produced tripoint and quadripoint determinations, the northernmost point in the boundary is a tripoint with the Solomon Islands. The boundary runs in a roughly north–south direction and then turns and runs west–east until it almost reaches the 170th meridian east, the effect of these negotiated specifics is reflected in the map of Australian maritime zones at the right. The concept of maritime boundaries is a new concept. The historical record is a backdrop for evaluating border issues, the development of customary law affects all nations
Maritime boundary
–
Features, limits and zones
9.
Sovereignty
–
Sovereignty is understood in jurisprudence as the full right and power of a governing body to govern itself without any interference from outside sources or bodies. In political theory, sovereignty is a term designating supreme authority over some polity. It is a basic principle underlying the dominant Westphalian model of state foundation, derived from Latin through French souveraineté, its attainment and retention, in both Chinese and Western culture, has traditionally been associated with certain moral imperatives upon any claimant. The concept of sovereignty has been discussed throughout history, and is still actively debated and it has changed in its definition, concept, and application throughout, especially during the Age of Enlightenment. The current notion of state sovereignty contains four aspects consisting of territory, population, authority, Sovereignty is a hypothetical trade, in which two potentially conflicting sides, respecting de facto realities of power, exchange such recognitions as their least costly strategy. The Roman jurist Ulpian observed that, The imperium of the people is transferred to the Emperor, the Emperor is not bound by the law. Emperor is the law making and abiding force, Ulpian was expressing the idea that the Emperor exercised a rather absolute form of sovereignty, although he did not use the term expressly. Classical Ulpians statements were known in medieval Europe, but sovereignty was an important concept in medieval times, Medieval monarchs were not sovereign, at least not strongly so, because they were constrained by, and shared power with, their feudal aristocracy. Furthermore, both were strongly constrained by custom, Sovereignty existed during the Medieval Period as the de jure rights of nobility and royalty, and in the de facto capability of individuals to make their own choices in life. 1380–1400, the issue of sovereignty was addressed in Geoffrey Chaucers Middle English collection of Canterbury Tales. The story revolves around the knight Sir Gawain granting to Dame Ragnell, his new bride, what is purported to be wanted most by women and we desire most from men, From men both lund and poor, To have sovereignty without lies. For where we have sovereignty, all is ours, Though a knight be ever so fierce and it is our desire to have master Over such a sir. Jean Bodin, partly in reaction to the chaos of the French wars of religion, in his 1576 treatise Les Six Livres de la République Bodin argued that it is inherent in the nature of the state that the sovereign must have both great and perpetual authority. Bodin rejected the notion of transference of sovereignty from people to the ruler, however, although he is often connected with absolutism, Bodin held some moderate opinions on how government should in practice be carried out. Thus, Bodin’s sovereign was restricted by the law of the state. Bodin believed that “the most divine, most excellent, and the form most proper to royalty is governed partly aristocratically and partly democratically”. With his doctrine that sovereignty is conferred by law, Bodin predefined the scope of the divine right of kings. During the Age of Enlightenment, the idea of sovereignty gained both legal and moral force as the main Western description of the meaning and power of a State
Sovereignty
–
The frontispiece of
Thomas Hobbes '
Leviathan, depicting the Sovereign as a massive body wielding a
sword and
crozier and composed of many
individual people.
10.
Human rights
–
Human rights are moral principles or norms, which describe certain standards of human behaviour, and are regularly protected as legal rights in municipal and international law. They are applicable everywhere and at time in the sense of being universal. They require empathy and the rule of law and impose an obligation on persons to respect the rights of others. They should not be taken away except as a result of due process based on circumstances, for example, human rights may include freedom from unlawful imprisonment, torture. The doctrine of human rights has been influential within international law. Actions by states and non-governmental organizations form a basis of public policy worldwide, the idea of human rights suggests that if the public discourse of peacetime global society can be said to have a common moral language, it is that of human rights. The strong claims made by the doctrine of human rights continue to provoke considerable skepticism and debates about the content, nature, ancient peoples did not have the same modern-day conception of universal human rights. Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the family is the foundation of freedom. All human beings are free and equal in dignity and rights. According to Jack Donnelly, in the ancient world, traditional societies typically have had elaborate systems of duties, conceptions of justice, political legitimacy, and human flourishing that sought to realize human dignity, flourishing, or well-being entirely independent of human rights. These institutions and practices are alternative to, rather than different formulations of, one theory is that human rights were developed during the early Modern period, alongside the European secularization of Judeo-Christian ethics. The most commonly held view is that the concept of human rights evolved in the West, for example, McIntyre argues there is no word for right in any language before 1400. One of the oldest records of rights is the statute of Kalisz, giving privileges to the Jewish minority in the Kingdom of Poland such as protection from discrimination. Samuel Moyn suggests that the concept of rights is intertwined with the modern sense of citizenship. The earliest conceptualization of human rights is credited to ideas about natural rights emanating from natural law, in particular, the issue of universal rights was introduced by the examination of extending rights to indigenous peoples by Spanish clerics, such as Francisco de Vitoria and Bartolomé de Las Casas. In Britain in 1689, the English Bill of Rights and the Scottish Claim of Right each made illegal a range of oppressive governmental actions, additionally, the Virginia Declaration of Rights of 1776 encoded into law a number of fundamental civil rights and civil freedoms. These were followed by developments in philosophy of human rights by philosophers such as Thomas Paine, John Stuart Mill, hegel during the 18th and 19th centuries. Although the term had been used by at least one author as early as 1742, in the 19th century, human rights became a central concern over the issue of slavery
Human rights
–
The
Cyrus Cylinder, created by king
Cyrus the Great, is sometimes argued to be the world's first charter of human rights.
Human rights
–
The Bill of Rights (1688 or 1689)
Human rights
–
Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen approved by the
National Assembly of France, August 26, 1789.
Human rights
–
The
UN General Assembly
11.
Hague Academy of International Law
–
The Hague Academy of International Law is a center for high-level education in both public and private international law housed in the Peace Palace in The Hague, the Netherlands. Courses are taught in English and French and, except for External Programme Courses, are held in the Peace Palace, the Academy is famous for its Summer Courses Programme. Since its creation in 1923, The Hague Academy of International Law has occupied premises at the Peace Palace, next to the Peace Palace building the Academy’s facilities include the Academy Hall built for international conferences, the Peace Palace Library as well as further administrative accommodations. The new buildings were planned and realized by architects Michael Wilford, alongside The Hague Academy of International Law the Peace Palace houses highest judicial institutions such as the International Court of Justice and the Bureau of the Permanent Court of Arbitration. In the context of the movement for the establishment of peace through law, the Dutch Government took up the idea, and the International Law Association in turn examined the question. The Dutch Lawyer Tobias M. C, asser proposed a plan that envisaged more or less what the Academy was to become, with courses held from July to October. Asser received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1911 and contributed a part of the money to the Academy. The inauguration of the Academy was planned for October 1914, but World War I broke out, and preparations could not be resumed until 1921. When the Summer Courses started on 14 July 1923, at the Peace Palace in The Hague,353 students originating from 31 countries attended, of whom 35 were women. The Academy was awarded the Wateler Peace Prize, the Félix Houphouët-Boigny Peace Prize, the Order of Rio Branco, Brazil, the Academy has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize 34 times between 1915 and 1956. The Academy is part of the Hague Academic Coalition, the Academy’s academic activities and policies are defined by the Curatorium. It consists of members of different nationalities, who are known in the academic or diplomatic worlds. The president of the Curatorium is a distinguished jurist who generally has extensive experience of international, among the most recent presidents have been Roberto Ago, Nicolas Valticos and Boutros Boutros-Ghali. President Boutros Boutros-Ghali, Former Secretary-General of the United Nations, feliciano, former Chairman, Appellate Body, WTO, former Senior Associate Justice, Supreme Court of the Philippines, Diego P. V. M. Trooboff, Senior Counsel, Covington & Burling, Washington, D. C, member of the District of Columbia and New York Bars, Hanqin Xue, Judge at the International Court of Justice, Secretary General Yves Daudet, Professor emeritus at the University Paris I. The Administrative Council is in charge of the financial and material aspects of the Academy’s operations and this is a Dutch body whose members are of Dutch nationality, and whose president is always a leading personality. The administrative Council has close ties with the Dutch Carnegie Foundation which owns, the Summer Courses of the Academy are held in July and August, each session lasts three weeks. These courses are given in the form of a series of lectures, the Summer programme is directed to advanced students and practitioners seeking a deeper understanding of international law, public or private
Hague Academy of International Law
–
The Peace Palace which houses the Hague Academy of International Law, pictured in March 2006
Hague Academy of International Law
–
The Hague Academy of International Law.
Hague Academy of International Law
–
Nobel Peace Prize laureate
Tobias Asser (1838–1913)
12.
Peace Palace Library
–
The Peace Palace Library is a collection of studies and references specializing in international law. It is located in The Hague, Netherlands, and was established to support the Permanent Court of Justice, the Library is one of the oldest libraries dedicated to international law. The Library is open to all scholars and students of international law, the Dutch Carnegie Foundation was created in 1903. It managed a financial donation by Andrew Carnegie, which made the construction of the Peace Palace possible, the Palace was completed in 1913, just before the outbreak of the First World War. Now the Carnegie Foundation is subsidized by the Dutch Ministry for Foreign Affairs, since 1913 the Foundation has remained the owner of the Palace, and it still runs the Peace Palace Library. The Peace Palace is located at Carnegieplein, The Hague, Netherlands, the Palace was built to accommodate the Permanent Court of Arbitration, but Carnegie insisted that room be made available also for a legal library. The Peace Palace Library resided in the Palace itself until 2007, the Peace Palace Library has collected publications since 1913, and now offers over a million titles. A large part is searchable through the Library’s online catalogue, which classifies also book items, the Library also uses a modern classification system with around 4,500 keywords. The collection of the Palace further includes private international law, international law, international bankruptcy law. In 2012 the Peace Palace Library and the Institute for Environmental Security began compiling a database on the proposed Law of Ecocide. The Library also collects books on topics of law, such as comparative law, domestic public and constitutional law, criminal law. The library houses a few collections, of which the Grotius Collection. The Library has the worlds largest collection of works by Hugo Grotius, duynstee, Bob, Meijer, Daan, Tilanus, Floris, et al. The Building of Peace, A hundred years of work on Peace through Law, the Peace Palace 1913-2013, The Hague, Carnegie Foundation, Peace Palace Library website
Peace Palace Library
–
Peace Palace, The Hague, The Netherlands, 2006.
Peace Palace Library
–
Peace Palace Library, 2014.
13.
International Court of Justice
–
The International Court of Justice is the primary judicial branch of the United Nations. Established in 1945 by the UN Charter, the Court began work in 1946 as the successor to the Permanent Court of International Justice, the Statute of the International Court of Justice, similar to that of its predecessor, is the main constitutional document constituting and regulating the Court. The Courts workload covers a range of judicial activity. Chapter XIV of the United Nations Charter authorizes the UN Security Council to enforce Court rulings, however, such enforcement is subject to the veto power of the five permanent members of the Council, which the United States used in the Nicaragua case. The election process is set out in Articles 4–19 of the ICJ statute, elections are staggered, with five judges elected every three years to ensure continuity within the court. Should a judge die in office, the practice has generally been to elect a judge in an election to complete the term. No two judges may be nationals of the same country, according to Article 9, the membership of the Court is supposed to represent the main forms of civilization and of the principal legal systems of the world. Essentially, that has meant common law, civil law and socialist law, the exception was China, which did not have a judge on the Court from 1967 to 1985 because it did not put forward a candidate. Judicial independence is dealt with specifically in Articles 16–18, judges of the ICJ are not able to hold any other post or act as counsel. A judge can be dismissed only by a vote of the other members of the Court. Despite these provisions, the independence of ICJ judges has been questioned, judges may deliver joint judgments or give their own separate opinions. Judges may also deliver separate dissenting opinions, Article 31 of the statute sets out a procedure whereby ad hoc judges sit on contentious cases before the Court. The system allows any party to a case if it otherwise does not have one of that partys nationals sitting on the Court to select one additional person to sit as a judge on that case only. It is thus possible that as many as seventeen judges may sit on one case, the system may seem strange when compared with domestic court processes, but its purpose is to encourage states to submit cases. Although this system does not sit well with the nature of the body. Ad hoc judges usually vote in favor of the state that appointed them, generally, the Court sits as full bench, but in the last fifteen years, it has on occasion sat as a chamber. Articles 26–29 of the statute allow the Court to form smaller chambers, usually 3 or 5 judges, Two types of chambers are contemplated by Article 26, firstly, chambers for special categories of cases, and second, the formation of ad hoc chambers to hear particular disputes. In 1993, a chamber was established, under Article 26 of the ICJ statute
International Court of Justice
–
Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands, seat of the ICJ
International Court of Justice
–
International Court of Justice
International Court of Justice
–
Public hearing at the ICJ.
International Court of Justice
–
Audience of the "Accordance with International Law of the
Unilateral Declaration of Independence by the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government of Kosovo"
14.
Minister of Foreign Affairs (Netherlands)
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The Minister of Foreign Affairs is the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a member of the Cabinet of the Netherlands. Bert Koenders has been the Minister of Foreign Affairs since 17 October 2014, appointment, Hans van den Broek appointed European Commissioner 1993, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer appointed Secretary General of NATO2003, Frans Timmermans appointed European Commissioner 2014. Ministry of Foreign Affairs Minister for Development Cooperation
Minister of Foreign Affairs (Netherlands)
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Incumbent
Bert Koenders since 17 October 2014
Minister of Foreign Affairs (Netherlands)
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State Coat of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
Minister of Foreign Affairs (Netherlands)
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Gerrit Schimmelpenninck (
Prime Minister) (1794–1863)
Minister of Foreign Affairs (Netherlands)
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Jacob van Zuylen van Nijevelt (1816–1890)
15.
Universal Postal Union
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The Universal Postal Union is a specialized agency of the United Nations that coordinates postal policies among member nations, in addition to the worldwide postal system. The UPU contains four bodies consisting of the Congress, the Council of Administration, the Postal Operations Council and it also oversees the Telematics and EMS cooperatives. Each member agrees to the terms for conducting international postal duties. The UPUs headquarters are located in Bern, Switzerland, french is the official language of the UPU. English was added as a language in 1994. The majority of the UPUs documents and publications – including its flagship magazine, prior to the establishment of the UPU, each country had to prepare a separate postal treaty with other nations it wished to carry international mail to or from. In some cases, senders would have to calculate postage for each leg of a journey, to simplify the complexity of this system, the United States called for an International Postal Congress in 1863. This led Heinrich von Stephan, Royal Prussian and later German Minister for Posts and it is currently the third oldest international organization after the Rhine Commission and the ITU. The UPU was created in 1874, initially under the name General Postal Union, four years later, the name was changed to Universal Postal Union. The UPU provides that stamps of nations are accepted for the entire international route. Toward the end of the century, the UPU issued rules concerning stamp design. After the foundation of the United Nations, the UPU became an agency of the UN in 1948. In 1969, the UPU introduced a new system of payment where fees were payable between countries according to the difference in the weight of mail between them. These fees were called terminal dues, ultimately, this new system was fairer when traffic was heavier in one direction than the other. As a matter of example, in 2012, terminal dues for transit from China to the USA was 0.635 SDR/kg, as this affected the cost of the delivery of periodicals, the UPU devised a new threshold system, which it later implemented in 1991. The system sets separate letter and periodical rates for countries which receive at least 150 tonnes of mail annually, for countries with less mail, the original flat rate is still maintained. The United States has negotiated a separate terminal dues formula with thirteen European countries that includes a rate per piece plus a rate per kilogram, the UPU also operates the system of International Reply Coupons and addresses concerns with ETOEs. Standards are important prerequisites for effective operations and for interconnecting the global network
Universal Postal Union
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In the UPU Monument (Weltpostdenkmal) in Bern, bronze and granite, by
René de Saint-Marceaux, the five continents join to transmit messages around the globe
Universal Postal Union
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Universal Postal Union
Universal Postal Union
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100 years of UPU commemorated on a US postage stamp
16.
Kosovo
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Kosovo is a disputed territory and partially recognised state in Southeastern Europe that declared independence from Serbia in February 2008 as the Republic of Kosovo. Kosovo is landlocked in the central Balkan Peninsula, with its strategic position in the Balkans, it serves as an important link in the connection between central and south Europe, the Adriatic Sea, and Black Sea. Its capital and largest city is Pristina, and other urban areas include Prizren, Pejë. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, the Republic of Macedonia to the southeast, Montenegro to the west, while Serbia recognises administration of the territory by Kosovos elected government, it still continues to claim it as its own Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija. In antiquity, the Dardanian Kingdom, and later the Roman province of Dardania was located in the region, the area was inhabited by several ancient Illyrian tribes. In the Middle Ages, it was part of the Byzantine, Bulgarian and Serbian Empires, Kosovo was the core of the medieval Serbian state and it has been the seat of the Serbian Orthodox Church from the 14th century when its status was upgraded into a patriarchate. After being part of the Ottoman Empire from the 15th to the early 20th century, the war ended with a military intervention of NATO, which forced the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to withdraw its troops from Kosovo, which became a UN protectorate under UNSCR1244. On 17 February 2008 Kosovos Parliament declared independence and it has since gained diplomatic recognition as a sovereign state by 111 UN member states, Taiwan, the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, the Cook Islands and Niue. Serbia refuses to recognise Kosovo as a state, although with the Brussels Agreement of 2013 it has accepted the legitimacy of Kosovar institutions, the entire region is commonly referred to in English simply as Kosovo and in Albanian as Kosova or Kosovë. The name of the plain was applied to the Kosovo Province created in 1864, Albanians refer to Kosovo as Dardania, the name of a Roman province located in Central Balkans that was formed in 284 AD which covered the territory of modern Kosovo. The name is derived from the Albanian word dardha/dardā which means pear, the former Kosovo President Ibrahim Rugova had been an enthusiastic backer of a Dardanian identity and the Kosovan flag and presidential seal refer to this national identity. However, the name Kosova remains more widely used among the Albanian population, the official conventional long name of the state is Republic of Kosovo, as defined by the Constitution of Kosovo, and is used to represent Kosovo internationally. This arrangement, which has dubbed the asterisk agreement, was agreed in an 11-point arrangement agreed on 24 February 2012. By the independence declaration in 2008, its long name became Republic of Kosovo. In prehistory, the succeeding Starčevo culture, Vinča culture, Bubanj-Hum culture, the area in and around Kosovo has been inhabited for nearly 10,000 years. During the Neolithic age, Kosovo lay within the area of the Vinča-Turdaş culture which is characterised by West Balkan black, bronze and Iron Age tombs have been found in Metohija. However, life during the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age is not confirmed yet, therefore, until arguments of Paleolithic and Mesolithic man are confirmed, Neolithic man, respectively the Neolithic sites are considered as the chronological beginning of population in Kosovo. From this period until today Kosovo has been inhabited, and traces of activities of societies from prehistoric, ancient, whereas, in some archaeological sites, multilayer settlements clearly reflect the continuity of life through centuries
Kosovo
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The
Sinan Pasha Mosque and old stone bridge in
Prizren
Kosovo
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Flag
Kosovo
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German soldiers
set fire to a Serbian village near Kosovska Mitrovica, circa 1941.
Kosovo
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U.S. Marines set up a road block near the village of Koretin, 16 June 1999
17.
State of Palestine
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The State of Palestine claims the West Bank and Gaza Strip with East Jerusalem as the designated capital. Most of the areas claimed by the State of Palestine have been occupied by Israel since 1967 in the aftermath of the Six-Day War and its independence was declared on 15 November 1988 by the Palestine Liberation Organization in Algiers as a government-in-exile. Since the British Mandate, the term Palestine has been associated with the area that currently covers the State of Israel, the West Bank. In 1947, the UN adopted a plan for a two-state solution in the remaining territory of the mandate. The plan was accepted by the Jewish leadership but rejected by the Arab leaders, on the eve of final British withdrawal, the Jewish Agency for Israel declared the establishment of the State of Israel according to the proposed UN plan. During the war, Israel gained additional territories that were designated to be part of the Arab state under the UN plan, Egypt occupied the Gaza Strip and Transjordan occupied the West Bank. Egypt initially supported the creation of an All-Palestine Government, but disbanded it in 1959, Transjordan never recognized it and instead decided to incorporate the West Bank with its own territory to form Jordan. The annexation was ratified in 1950 but was rejected by the international community, the Six-Day War in 1967, when Egypt, Jordan, and Syria fought against Israel, ended with Israel being in occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, besides other territories. In 1964, when the West Bank was controlled by Jordan, the Palestinian National Charter of the PLO defines the boundaries of Palestine as the whole remaining territory of the mandate, including Israel. Following the Six-Day War, the PLO moved to Jordan, the October 1974 Arab League summit designated the PLO as the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people and reaffirmed their right to establish an independent state of urgency. In November 1974, the PLO was recognized as competent on all matters concerning the question of Palestine by the UN General Assembly granting them observer status as an entity at the UN. In spite of this decision, the PLO did not participate at the UN in its capacity of the State of Palestines government, in 1979, through the Camp David Accords, Egypt signaled an end to any claim of its own over the Gaza Strip. In July 1988, Jordan ceded its claims to the West Bank—with the exception of guardianship over Haram al-Sharif—to the PLO, in November 1988, the PLO legislature, while in exile, declared the establishment of the State of Palestine. In the month following, it was recognised by many states, including Egypt. In the Palestinian Declaration of Independence, the State of Palestine is described as being established on the Palestinian territory, the UN membership application submitted by the State of Palestine also specified that it is based on the 1967 borders. During the negotiations of the Oslo Accords, the PLO recognised Israels right to exist, after Israel took control of the West Bank from Jordan and Gaza Strip from Egypt, it began to establish Israeli settlements there. These were organised into Judea and Samaria district and Hof Aza Regional Council in the Southern District, in 1980, Israel decided to freeze elections for these councils and to establish instead Village Leagues, whose officials were under Israeli influence. Later this model became ineffective for both Israel and the Palestinians, and the Village Leagues began to break up, with the last being the Hebron League, dissolved in February 1988
State of Palestine
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The destroyed
Palestinian Legislative Council building in Gaza City,
Gaza–Israel conflict, September 2009
State of Palestine
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Flag
State of Palestine
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Palestinian children in
Jenin, a city on the West Bank
18.
Nicholas II of Russia
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Nicholas II was the last Emperor of Russia, ruling from 1 November 1894 until his forced abdication on 15 March 1917. His reign saw the fall of the Russian Empire from being one of the foremost great powers of the world to economic, Soviet historiography portrayed Nicholas as a weak and incompetent leader, whose decisions led to military defeats and the deaths of millions of his subjects. The Anglo-Russian Entente, designed to counter German attempts to influence in the Middle East. Nicholas approved the Russian mobilisation on 30 July 1914, which led to Germany declaring war on Russia on 1 August 1914 and it is estimated that around 3,300,000 Russians were killed in World War I. Following the February Revolution of 1917, Nicholas abdicated on behalf of himself and his son, Nicholas, the recovered remains of the Imperial Family were finally re-interred in St. Petersburg, eighty years to the day on 17 July 1998. In 1981, Nicholas, his wife and their children were canonized as martyrs by the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia, located in New York City. On 15 August 2000 Nicholas and his family were canonized as passion bearers, Nicholas was born in the Alexander Palace in Saint Petersburg, Russian Empire, the eldest son of Emperor Alexander III and Empress Maria Feodorovna of Russia. He had five siblings, Alexander, George, Xenia, Michael. Nicholas often referred to his father nostalgically in letters after Alexanders death in 1894 and he was also very close to his mother, as revealed in their published letters to each other. His paternal grandparents were Emperor Alexander II and Empress Maria Alexandrovna of Russia and his maternal grandparents were King Christian IX and Queen Louise of Denmark. Nicholas was of primarily German and Danish descent, his last ethnically Russian ancestor being Grand Duchess Anna Petrovna, Nicholas was related to several monarchs in Europe. His mothers siblings included Kings Frederik VIII of Denmark and George I of Greece, Nicholas, his wife Alexandra, and Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany were all first cousins of King George V of the United Kingdom. Nicholas was also a first cousin of both King Haakon VII and Queen Maud of Norway, as well as King Constantine I of Greece, Tsar Nicholas II was the first cousin-once-removed of Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich. To distinguish between them the Grand Duke was often known within the Imperial family as Nikolasha and Nicholas the Tall, while the Tsar was Nicholas the Short. In his childhood, Nicholas, his parents and siblings made annual visits to the Danish royal palaces of Fredensborg and Bernstorff to visit his grandparents, the king and queen. The visits also served as family reunions, as his mothers siblings would come from the United Kingdom, Germany. It was there in 1883, that he had a flirtation with one of his English first cousins, in 1873, Nicholas also accompanied his parents and younger brother, two-year-old George, on a two-month, semi-official visit to England. In London, Nicholas and his family stayed at Marlborough House, as guests of his Uncle Bertie and Aunt Alix, the Prince and Princess of Wales, where he was spoiled by his uncle
Nicholas II of Russia
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Tsar Nicholas II, in the uniform of a
Royal Navy Admiral of the Fleet, c. 1909
Nicholas II of Russia
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Tsar Nicholas II of Russia with his physically similar cousin,
King George V of the United Kingdom (right), in German military uniforms in Berlin before the war; 1913
Nicholas II of Russia
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Tsarevich Nicholas in Japan (1891)
Nicholas II of Russia
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Official engagement photograph of Nicholas II and Alexandra, April 1894
19.
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea
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The Convention, concluded in 1982, replaced four 1958 treaties. UNCLOS came into force in 1994, a year after Guyana became the 60th nation to ratify the treaty, as of June 2016,167 countries and the European Union have joined in the Convention. It is uncertain as to what extent the Convention codifies customary international law, there is, however, a role played by organizations such as the International Maritime Organization, the International Whaling Commission, and the International Seabed Authority. All waters beyond national boundaries were considered international waters, free to all nations, in the early 20th century, some nations expressed their desire to extend national claims, to include mineral resources, to protect fish stocks, and to provide the means to enforce pollution controls. Other nations were quick to follow suit, between 1946 and 1950, Chile, Peru, and Ecuador extended their rights to a distance of 200 nautical miles to cover their Humboldt Current fishing grounds. Other nations extended their territorial seas to 12 nautical miles, by 1967, only 25 nations still used the old 3-mile limit, while 66 nations had set a 12-nautical-mile territorial limit and eight had set a 200-nautical-mile limit. As of 28 May 2008, only two countries use the 3-mile limit, Jordan and Palau. That limit is used in certain Australian islands, an area of Belize, some Japanese straits, certain areas of Papua New Guinea. In 1956, the United Nations held its first Conference on the Law of the Sea at Geneva, in 1960, the United Nations held the second Conference on the Law of the Sea, however, the six-week Geneva conference did not result in any new agreements. Generally speaking, developing nations and third world countries participated only as clients, allies, or dependents of the United States or the Soviet Union, with no significant voice of their own. The issue of varying claims of territorial waters was raised in the UN in 1967 by Arvid Pardo of Malta, in an attempt to reduce the possibility of groups of nation-states dominating the negotiations, the conference used a consensus process rather than majority vote. With more than 160 nations participating, the conference lasted until 1982, the resulting convention came into force on 16 November 1994, one year after the 60th state, Guyana, ratified the treaty. The convention introduced a number of provisions, the convention set the limit of various areas, measured from a carefully defined baseline. The areas are as follows, Internal waters Covers all water, the coastal state is free to set laws, regulate use, and use any resource. Foreign vessels have no right of passage within internal waters, territorial waters Out to 12 nautical miles from the baseline, the coastal state is free to set laws, regulate use, and use any resource. Fishing, polluting, weapons practice, and spying are not innocent, Nations can also temporarily suspend innocent passage in specific areas of their territorial seas, if doing so is essential for the protection of its security. Archipelagic waters The convention set the definition of Archipelagic States in Part IV, a baseline is drawn between the outermost points of the outermost islands, subject to these points being sufficiently close to one another. All waters inside this baseline are designated Archipelagic Waters, the state has sovereignty over these waters, but subject to existing rights including traditional fishing rights of immediately adjacent states
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea
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Logo of the Convention
20.
International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea
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The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea is an intergovernmental organization created by the mandate of the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea. It was established by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, signed at Montego Bay, Jamaica, the Convention entered into force on November 16,1994, and established an international framework for law over all ocean space, its uses and resources. The tribunal is based in Hamburg, Germany, there are currently 167 signatories,166 states plus the European Union. According to its statute, the Tribunal has a set of 21 serving judges from a variety of states parties. Official ITLOS Site International Foundation for the Law of the Sea Privileges and Immunities, Berlin,14 December 2004
International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea
–
ITLOS seen from
Elbchaussee, close to the River
Elbe.
International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea
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Official logo
21.
UNCLOS
–
The Convention, concluded in 1982, replaced four 1958 treaties. UNCLOS came into force in 1994, a year after Guyana became the 60th nation to ratify the treaty, as of June 2016,167 countries and the European Union have joined in the Convention. It is uncertain as to what extent the Convention codifies customary international law, there is, however, a role played by organizations such as the International Maritime Organization, the International Whaling Commission, and the International Seabed Authority. All waters beyond national boundaries were considered international waters, free to all nations, in the early 20th century, some nations expressed their desire to extend national claims, to include mineral resources, to protect fish stocks, and to provide the means to enforce pollution controls. Other nations were quick to follow suit, between 1946 and 1950, Chile, Peru, and Ecuador extended their rights to a distance of 200 nautical miles to cover their Humboldt Current fishing grounds. Other nations extended their territorial seas to 12 nautical miles, by 1967, only 25 nations still used the old 3-mile limit, while 66 nations had set a 12-nautical-mile territorial limit and eight had set a 200-nautical-mile limit. As of 28 May 2008, only two countries use the 3-mile limit, Jordan and Palau. That limit is used in certain Australian islands, an area of Belize, some Japanese straits, certain areas of Papua New Guinea. In 1956, the United Nations held its first Conference on the Law of the Sea at Geneva, in 1960, the United Nations held the second Conference on the Law of the Sea, however, the six-week Geneva conference did not result in any new agreements. Generally speaking, developing nations and third world countries participated only as clients, allies, or dependents of the United States or the Soviet Union, with no significant voice of their own. The issue of varying claims of territorial waters was raised in the UN in 1967 by Arvid Pardo of Malta, in an attempt to reduce the possibility of groups of nation-states dominating the negotiations, the conference used a consensus process rather than majority vote. With more than 160 nations participating, the conference lasted until 1982, the resulting convention came into force on 16 November 1994, one year after the 60th state, Guyana, ratified the treaty. The convention introduced a number of provisions, the convention set the limit of various areas, measured from a carefully defined baseline. The areas are as follows, Internal waters Covers all water, the coastal state is free to set laws, regulate use, and use any resource. Foreign vessels have no right of passage within internal waters, territorial waters Out to 12 nautical miles from the baseline, the coastal state is free to set laws, regulate use, and use any resource. Fishing, polluting, weapons practice, and spying are not innocent, Nations can also temporarily suspend innocent passage in specific areas of their territorial seas, if doing so is essential for the protection of its security. Archipelagic waters The convention set the definition of Archipelagic States in Part IV, a baseline is drawn between the outermost points of the outermost islands, subject to these points being sufficiently close to one another. All waters inside this baseline are designated Archipelagic Waters, the state has sovereignty over these waters, but subject to existing rights including traditional fishing rights of immediately adjacent states
UNCLOS
–
Logo of the Convention
22.
Free Trade Agreement
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A free-trade area is the region encompassing a trade bloc whose member countries have signed a free-trade agreement. Such agreements involve cooperation between at least two countries to trade barriers – import quotas and tariffs – and to increase trade of goods. If people are free to move between the countries, in addition to a free-trade agreement, it would also be considered an open border. It can be considered the second stage of economic integration, only goods that meet these minimum requirements are entitled to the special treatment envisioned by the free trade area provisions. Cumulation is the relationship between different FTAs regarding the rules of origin – sometimes different FTAs supplement each other, in other cases there is no cross-cumulation between the FTAs, a free-trade area is a result of a free-trade agreement between two or more countries. Within an industrialized country there are few if any significant barriers to the easy exchange of goods. Between countries, on the hand, many of these barriers to the easy exchange of goods often do occur. It is commonplace for there to be duties of one kind or another. The aim of an area is to reduce barriers to exchange so that trade can grow as a result of specialisation, division of labour. The theory of comparative advantage argues that in an unrestricted marketplace each source of production will tend to specialize in that activity where it has comparative advantage. The theory argues that the net result will be an increase in income and ultimately wealth, in principle, the overall gains from trade could be used to compensate for the effects of reduced trade barriers by appropriate inter-party transfers. This is just one example of a qualification for a free-trade agreement, if a certificate of origin is present from a supplier demonstrating that the good originated in a country under the associated free trade agreement, no further calculations are needed. A functional solution should also perform the calculations for the associated FTA during the Bill of Material analysis. Aggressive legalism Free trade zone International trade Free trade debate bilaterals, singapore official FTA site EFTA official site Australias FTAs About. coms Pros & Cons of U. S. The largest multi-product Free trade area in India
Free Trade Agreement
23.
ISDS
–
Investor-state dispute settlement or investment court system is a system through which individual companies can sue countries for alleged discriminatory practices. The practice was widely known through the Philip Morris v. Uruguay case. ISDS is also found in international investment agreements, such as the Energy Charter Treaty, under customary international law a state can vindicate injury caused to its nation by the host state by exercising diplomatic protection, which may include retorsion and/or reprisals. Notable examples of this practice are the Jay Treaty commissions, the Iran–United States Claims Tribunal, most of these treaties were signed by states in the late 1980s and early 1990s, before the current explosion of investor claims under the treaties began in the late 1990s. The majority of legal instruments provides foreign investors with a substantive legal protection. Some of these standards are framed in terms, given extensive discretion to arbitrators in their interpretation and application. The overall number of cases reached over 500 in 2012. Of these,244 were concluded, of which approximately 42% were decided in favour of the Host State, approximately 27% of the cases were settled out of court. Notably, only foreign investors can sue states under investment treaties, because states are the parties to the treaty, and only states can be held liable to pay damages for breach of the treaty. A state cannot win in ISDS in the manner of a foreign investor - a state wishes to sue a foreign investor does so through its own domestic courts. A notable example of ISDS, which has been in existence for two decades now, is Chapter 11 of the North American Free Trade Agreement. NAFTA Chapter 11 allows investors of one NAFTA party to bring claims directly against the government of another NAFTA party before an international arbitral tribunal, because NAFTA Article 1121 waives the local remedies rule, investors are not required to exhaust local remedies before filing Chapter 11 claims. On the other hand, there is no other situation in international law where a party can sue a state without showing that the states domestic courts are not independent or reliable. NAFTA Chapter 11 was the first instance of an ISDS provision receiving widespread public attention, proponents of ISDS argue that states and their governments are bound by public international law, which includes bilateral investment treaties and international investment agreements. Under this view, the right to regulate has not been lost by the states, on the other hand, it may contradict principles of democratic accountability to allow one government to bind another for decades to come. Unlike the great majority of other treaties, investment treaties have very long minimum lifespans ranging up to 30 years, proponents of ISDS point out that confidentiality is a standard feature of all arbitration and one that enables a constructive, de-politicized and fact-oriented atmosphere of dispute resolution. On the other hand, such traditional confidentiality is limited to disputes that affect the parties in question, also, most ICSID awards, although confidential, are de facto published by consent of the parties. It is further pointed out that judges are not elected in most countries outside the US, in any event, they say, the qualification of ISDS arbitrators matches or exceeds the qualification of most court judges
ISDS
–
Chapter 11 of
NAFTA includes an Investor-State provision.
24.
Pious Fund of the Californias
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It became the object of litigation between the US and Mexican governments in the 19th century, with the resolution making legal history in The Hague in 1902. S. The early contributions to the fund were placed in the hands of the missionaries, the later and larger donations took the form of agreements by the donors to hold the property donated for the use of the missions, and to devote their income to that purpose. During this period work in California was divided, the territory of Upper California being confided to the Franciscans. Prior to the expulsion of the Jesuits, thirteen missions had been founded in Lower California, in 1821 the newly established Government of Mexico assumed the administration of the fund and continued to administer it until 1840. In response to this petition, Pope Gregory XVI, in 1840, created the Diocese of the Two Californias, there then ensued the Mexican-American War, which was brought to an end by the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo,2 February 1848. After the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and indeed for some years before, on 11 November 1875, the umpire rendered an award in favor of the archbishop and bishops of California. By that award, the value of the funds at the time of its sale in 1842 was finally fixed at $1,435,033. The annual interest on that sum at 6% amounted to $86,101.98 and this judgment was paid in gold by Mexico in accordance with the terms of the convention of 1868, in thirteen annual installments. Mexico continued to make the annual payment from 1903 to 1912. The Pious Fund of the Californias, unofficial English text of the PCA case in pdf format at the official Permananet Court of Arbitration website. Foreign relations of the United States,1902, appendix II, United States vs. Mexico. In the matter of the case of the Pious Fund of the Californias
Pious Fund of the Californias
–
Fernando de Alencastre
Pious Fund of the Californias
–
Juan María de Salvatierra
Pious Fund of the Californias
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Missionary Father Eusebio Kino.
Pious Fund of the Californias
–
Coat of arms of the Marquis of Villapuente de la Peña.
25.
Island of Palmas Case
–
The Island of Palmas Case was a territorial dispute over the Island of Palmas between the Netherlands and the United States which was heard by the Permanent Court of Arbitration. Palmas was declared to be a part of the Netherlands East Indies and is now part of Indonesia, the case is one of the most influential precedents dealing with island territorial conflicts. Palmas is an island of little value or strategic location. It is 2.6 km in length and 1.0 km in east-west width. It had a population of about 750 in 1932, when the case was decided, the island lies between Mindanao, the southernmost part of the Philippines, and the Nanusa Islands, the next-northernmost part of Indonesia. In 1898, Spain ceded the Philippines to the United States in the Treaty of Paris, in 1906, the United States discovered that the Netherlands also claimed sovereignty over the island, and the two parties agreed to submit to binding arbitration by the Permanent Court of Arbitration. On 23 January 1925, the two signed an agreement to that effect. Ratifications were exchanged in Washington, D. C. on 1 April 1925, the agreement was registered in League of Nations Treaty Series on 19 May 1925. The arbitrator in the case was Max Huber, a Swiss lawyer, the question before the arbitrator was whether the Island of Palmas formed part of United States territory or Indonesian territory. On 1 January 1906, General Leonard Wood, Governor of Moro Province, Philippines, according to the Counter-Memorandum filed in the case by the United States, he had already visited the island in about 1903. The United States, as the successor to the rights of Spain over the Philippines, according to the same argument, nothing had occurred of a nature to cause the acquired title to disappear in international law. The United States argued the title at the moment when Spain ceded its title to the Philippines by the Treaty of Paris in 1898. Thus, it was unnecessary to establish facts showing the actual display of sovereignty precisely over the Island of Palmas, the American government finally maintained that Palmas forms a geographical part of the Philippine group and is closer to the Philippines than to the Dutch East Indies. Thus, the principle of contiguity substantiated the claim that it belongs to the power with sovereignty over the Philippines, the Netherlands considered that the fact of discovery by Spain was not proved, and the same held for any other form of acquisition. Even if Spain had ever the title, it had been lost, the principle of contiguity was contested. The main argument was that the Netherlands, represented by the East India Company, sovereignty arose out of conventions entered into with native princes of Sangi to stabilize the sovereignty of the Netherlands over the territories of the princes, including Palmas. That state of affairs set up was claimed to be validated by international treaties, Huber had to determine whether the Island of Palmas in its entirety forms a part of territory belonging to the United States of America or of Netherlands territory. Did a title of contiguity have foundation in international law, done at The Hague, this fourth day of April 1928
Island of Palmas Case
–
Island of Palmas
26.
Hanish Islands conflict
–
The Hanish Islands conflict, was a dispute between Yemen and Eritrea over the island of Greater Hanish in the Red Sea, one of the largest in the then disputed Zukur-Hanish archipelago. Fighting took place three days from 15 December to 17 December 1995. In 1998 the Permanent Court of Arbitration determined that most of the archipelago belonged to Yemen, the archipelago is on the southern side of the Red Sea near Bab-el-Mandeb. The Red Sea is about 60 miles wide at this point, since the British occupation of Aden, the islands had generally been regarded as part of Yemen. After being granted independence and membership of the United Nations, the new Eritrean government started negotiations with Yemen over the status of the archipelago. Two rounds of talks had taken place before the invasion, Gutmann produced an Agreement on Principles, the two sides agreed to resort to arbitration, to refrain from using force and to abide by the verdict of an arbitration tribunal. The French mediation effort almost collapsed when on 10 August, Eritrean forces occupied Hanish al-Saghir, with Yemen threatening to take military action, the UN Security Council ordered Eritrean troops off the island. Asmara withdrew its forces on 27 August, the renewed threat of conflict prompted Eritrea, at the end of August, to begin deploying along its coastline Russian-made SAM missiles acquired from Ethiopia. On 22 November 1995, Yemens Foreign Minister Adb al-Karim al-Iryani met in Sana with three Eritrean officials to discuss the problem, iryani, heading a Yemeni delegation, then attended a meeting in Eritrea on 7 December. There, both agreed to resolve their dispute over maritime borders through negotiations, which they scheduled for February 1996. If those negotiations failed, both agreed to take the case to the ICJ at The Hague. Greater Hanish is one of three islands in an archipelago, and until 1995, it was inhabited only by a handful of Yemeni fishermen. In 1995, a German company, under Yemeni auspices, began building a hotel, the Yemenis then sent a force of 200 men to guard the construction site. Eritrean officials thought that the work on Greater Hanish was an attempt to establish facts on the ground before the negotiations scheduled for February started. When the Eritrean ultimatum ran out and the Yemeni military forces and civilians had not withdrawn, the Eritreans used all seaworthy vessels that they had to land ground forces on the islands. Some Eritrean troops landed in fishing vessels and a commandeered Egyptian ferry, the Eritreans also used aircraft to ferry troops to the island. Eritrean forces attacked the Yemeni contingent and overran the island within three days of combat. During the fighting, a Russian merchant ship was damaged by Eritrean gunfire after it was mistaken for a Yemeni naval vessel, the Eritrean attack on the Hanish islands was said by Yemenis to be supported by Israel
Hanish Islands conflict
–
Map of the Hanish islands
27.
Iron Rhine
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The Iron Rhine or Steel Rhine is a partially nonoperational freight railway connecting the port of Antwerp and Mönchengladbach by way of Neerpelt and the Dutch towns of Weert and Roermond. The Treaty of London between the Netherlands and Belgium in 1839 recognised the independence of Belgium, as part of the treaty, Belgium had the right to build a road or canal from Sittard to the Prussian border over Dutch territory, with Belgium funding the construction. This right was established in the Iron Rhine Treaty of 1873. At first, Belgium planned to dig a canal, but in the end it opted for a railway, in 1868, construction of the Iron Rhine started, and in 1879, the first trains used the railway. Initially, traffic was dense and frequent, but it decreased over time, currently the railroad is used by some trains between Antwerp and the zinc factory in Budel, and between Budel and Weert. The line Weert - Roermond is part of the Dutch InterCity network, between Roermond and the German border, traffic has fully ceased since 1991. Although the 160.3 kilometers Iron Rhine are not fully operational,134.8 km of its tracks are in regular use,85 km of the route is double tracked and 55 km is electrified. However, the 16.5 kilometers are not operational and a further 9 km are used only rarely,200 m meters of track in Dalheim, on the German side is fully overgrown. On the German section Mönchengladbach-Dalheim RegionalBahn trains run alongside freight trains, on the Belgian and Dutch side of the track the route is used extensively by InterCity - Interregio -, local and freight trains. The Schwalm-Nette-Bahn traverses the line between Mönchengladbach Hbf and Dalheim, directly on the border with the Netherlands and it is operated on behalf of DB Regio by Rurtalbahn and runs during peak times every hour and off peak every two hours. The line runs through the territory of the Aachener Verkehrsverbund and the Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Ruhr, the train stops only when needed at the Arsbeck and Mönchengladbach-Genhausen halts. The Rurtalbahn uses railcars of type RegioSprinter on the line, a resumption of cross-border passenger traffice between Dalheim and Roermond is the aim of the AVV by 2015. Freight transportation is provided to military base near Rheindahlen and to the connection for the Test-, the Dutch section between Weert-Roermond, since the abandonment of the stations Buggenum, Baexem-Heythuysen, and Kelpen in the 1940s, sees no more regional trains. The stations Roermond and Weert are connected each other, however. These trains link Amsterdam and Schiphol with the South Limburgian cities Heerlen, double-decker EMUs of type DD IRM are mainly used. Given its proximity to the large Belgian port city of Antwerp, freight, the section between Mol and Neerpelt was, because of political pressure from the municipalities Lommel and Neerpelt, reactivated on 27 May 1978. A long-distance inter-regional line connects Neerpelt with Antwerp every hour, the trains start in Neerpelt, combine in Mol with a train partition from Hasselt, and travels via Herentals and Lier to Antwerpen Centraal. In Herentals a branch connects to the city of Turnhout
Iron Rhine
Iron Rhine
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Iron Rhine in the Netherlands
28.
Barbados v. Trinidad and Tobago
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Barbados v. Trinidad and Tobago was a 2006 arbitral case between Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago in which the tribunal resolved the maritime border dispute between the two countries. In 1990, Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago signed a boundary treaty. The treaty purported to assign to Trinidad and Tobago ocean territory that Barbados claimed as its own, the countries were unable to resolve their dispute for 14 years. In 2004, Barbados elected to force the issue into binding arbitration under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the arbitral tribunal heard the case. The tribunals award was issued on 11 April 2006, the boundary was set nearly midway between the land of the two island countries. Although neither countrys claimed boundary was adopted by the court, the boundary that was set was closer to that claimed by Trinidad, both countries claimed victory after the arbitration award was announced. Barbados – Trinidad and Tobago relations Andon Blake and Gary A. Campbell, Conflict over flying fish, Barbados/Trinidad and Tobago Award, Tribunals President H. E. Stephen M. Schwebel, published in XXVII UNRIAA 147-251 and PCA Award Series and Cambridge 2010 and Key Boundaries Analysis of Barbados/Trinidad and Tobago under Presidency of H. E. Judge Stephen M. Schwebel and Awards Map and Coalter Lathrop Map and 22 IJMCL 7-602007 and NILOS and NILOS Online Papers and NILOS New Website and 39 GWILR pp. 573-6202007 No
Barbados v. Trinidad and Tobago
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Barbados v. Trinidad and Tobago
29.
Philippines v. China
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On 19 February 2013, China declared that it would not participate in the arbitration. On 7 December 2014, a paper was published by China to elaborate its position. On 29 October 2015, the tribunal ruled that it has jurisdiction over the case. On 12 July 2016, the tribunal ruled in favor of the Philippines and it clarified that it would not. rule on any question of sovereignty over land territory and would not delimit any maritime boundary between the Parties. The tribunal also ruled that China has no historical rights based on the line map. China has rejected the ruling, as has Taiwan and it reiterated that the Chinese government of the day had taken over those islands and that the PRCs rightful sovereignty shall remain intact. On 28 April 1952, the United States presided over the signing of the Treaty of Peace between Japan and the Republic of China, the Philippines bases its claim on its geographical proximity to the Spratly Islands. Tomas Cloma even stole China s national flag from the Taiping Island, in July 1956, he apologized officially for his act and he surrendered the flag he stole to Chinas embassy in Manila. On 2 October 1956, he wrote a letter and ensured he would not make further training voyages or landings in the waters of China. Philippine troops were sent to three of the islands in 1968, when the Philippines were under President Ferdinand Marcos, in the 1970s, some countries began to invade and occupy islands and reefs in the Spratlys. The Spratlys were placed under the jurisdiction of the province of Palawan in 1978, the Peoples Republic of China claims it is entitled to the Paracel and Spratly Islands because they were seen as integral parts of the Ming dynasty. China and Taiwan have these same territorial claims, the Republic of China took control of the largest island - Taiping Island - in the group since 1946. Vietnam states that the islands have belonged to it since the 17th century, hanoi began to occupy the westernmost islands during this period. In the early 1970s, Malaysia joined the dispute by claiming the islands nearest to it, brunei also extended its exclusive economic zone, claiming Louisa Reef. Article 298 of Section 3 of Part XV of the Convention provides optional exceptions to applicability of compulsory procedures provided in Section 2. China made declaration in accordance with the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea in 2006 not to any of the procedures provided for in section 2 of Part XV of the Convention. The arbitration involved the Philippines and China, the Philippines contended that the nine-dotted line claim by China is invalid because it violates the UNCLOS agreements about exclusive economic zones and territorial seas. China refused to participate in the arbitration, stating that several treaties with the Philippines stipulate that bilateral negotiations be used to border disputes
Philippines v. China
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The Republic of the Philippines v. The People’s Republic of China
30.
Enrica Lexie case
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The Enrica Lexie case is a currently ongoing international controversy about a shooting that happened in the sea off the Western coast of India. Shortly after the incident, the two Italian marines were arrested by the Indian authorities, while tangential, the incident drew attention to the practice of commercial shipping using armed guards. The controversy also had commercial implications between Italy and India, just two days after the release of the second Italian marine, India announced it would have canceled all the tenders already won by Finmeccanica, a prominent Italian defence company. The nature of the confrontation has been in contention, after the incident, the Enrica Lexie was intercepted in the Lakshadweep archipelago and compelled to proceed to Kochi port by the Indian Coast Guard. On 30 March 2013, Indian Foreign minister Salman Khurshid rejected claims of subterfuge as unsubstantiated, based on the postmortem carried out on 16 February 2012, Kerala Police charged the two marines with murder. The two marines were allowed to return to Italy in early 2013 on a temporary leave, once the marines landed in Italy, Italian authorities notified India they would not return the marines unless there was a guarantee they would not face the death penalty. India responded by summoning the Italian ambassador to Delhi for negotiations, after tense diplomatic discussions, the two marines were finally returned, without any of the guarantees requested by Italy. This caused the resignation of Italian Foreign Affairs Minister Giulio Terzi, in defence of honor of the country, of the armed forces, and Italian diplomacy. On 4 April 2013, the Indian National Investigation Agency filed a FIR against the two Italian marines in relation to charges including murder, attempted murder, mischief, conspiracy. In January 2014, India decided to prosecute the Italian marines under the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Safety of Maritime Navigation, the SUA Convention was passed in 1988 with the goal of suppressing international terrorism. Italy criticised the prosecution pursuant to the SUA Convention as equating the incident to an act of terrorism, on 7 March 2014, India dropped the SUA charges against the marines. On 7 February 2014, the charges were downgraded from murder to violence meaning the marines would not face the penalty if convicted. Furthermore, they maintained that India lacked jurisdiction for arresting the two marines, since they were on an Italian ship in international waters, charged of security duties. As such, they were military personnel on duty in defense of a part of the national territory, from their side, Indian authorities longly delayed the formalization of accuses, thus stemming reaction from Italian authorities, which sought support from the European Parliament. The latter decided to back Italian position, with reference to the lack of any formal accuse which justified the detention. On January 2015 European Parliament issued a resolution, according to which human rights of the two Italian marines were violated. In the same month, one of the two marines, Massimiliano Latorre, underwent heart surgery in Italy, after he was allowed to repatriate for medical reasons, the Indian coast forms part of the High Risk Area for pirate attacks. The ICC – in a communication to the Italian Navy – confirmed the IMO number of the vessel thereby confirming it was indeed the Olympic Flair
Enrica Lexie case
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The High Risk Area planning chart published by United Kingdom Hydrographic Office (2011)
