SEVEN JUDGES ELECTED TO LAW OF SEA TRIBUNAL
Press Release
SEA/1616
SEVEN JUDGES ELECTED TO LAW OF SEA TRIBUNAL
19990524 In two meetings today, the States parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea elected seven judges, by secret ballot, to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea. It was the first election of judges since the initial election on 1 August 1996.The Tribunal is the central forum for the settlement of disputes arising from the interpretation or application of the 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea. Established by the Convention, it reflects the principal legal systems of the world and contains an equitable geographical distribution. The 21 members of the Tribunal serve under a system of rotation, which ensures that seven seats are vacated for election every three years.
The judges elected today, to serve nine-year terms beginning on 1 October, were two each from the African and Asian Groups of States, and one each from the Eastern European Group, Latin American and Caribbean Group, and the Western European and Other States Group.
The following Tribunal members were elected this morning on the first ballot: José Luis Jesus (Cape Verde); Joseph Akl (Lebanon); Vicente Marotta Rangel (Brazil); Rudiger Wolfrum (Germany); and P. Chandrasekhara Rao (India). Elected at the afternoon meeting, following three rounds of voting to obtain the required two-thirds majority, were: Paul Bamelo Engo (Cameroon); and Anatoly Kolodkin (Russian Federation). Of the seven judges elected today, all but one -- Mr. Jesus (Cape Verde) -- were re-elections of judges currently serving on the Tribunal.
At the swearing-in ceremony of the first group of judges on 18 October 1996, former Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali said that their jurisdiction included almost 75 per cent of the earth's surface. Noting that maritime disputes could be a source of confrontation and conflict between States, he said the Tribunal had an important role to play upholding the rule of law, not only between States, but also among States, and the International Seabed Authority, companies and individuals engaged in the exploitation of the international seabed area.
Since its inauguration in 1996, the Tribunal has held seven sessions at its seat in Hamburg, Germany, including a case for the prompt release of a vessel and its crew. In 1997, the Tribunal had ordered the prompt release of the merchant ship "Saiga", its cargo and crew, off the coast of West Africa. The case was brought by Saint Vincent and the Grenadines against the Government of Guinea with regard to the alleged arrest of the ship. The judgement on the merits of the case -- which raised such important issues as freedom of navigation and the enforcement of customs laws -- is expected to be delivered towards the end of June.
The Convention on the Law of the Sea entered into force on 16 November 1994. It embodies a comprehensive framework and detailed rules governing nearly all aspects of jurisdiction over ocean space and exploitation of ocean resources, including defining the outer limits to which coastal States can claim jurisdiction in their adjacent waters. Its underlying purpose is to define States' rights and obligations in the use of the oceans, so as to avoid conflicts and promote stability in international relations.
There are presently 130 parties to the Convention, comprising 129 States and one entity, the European Community.
The States parties to the Convention on the Law of the Sea will meet again at a date and time to be announced.
Background of New Judges
Following are brief biographies of the new Tribunal members. Detailed biographies of new members, as well as other candidates, can be found in document SPLOS/33 issued 15 March 1999.
Jose Luis Jesus (Cape Verde) is currently Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Cape Verde. He also served as Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for the Great Lakes Region. In his many years of foreign service, Mr. Jesus was Ambassador of Cape Verde to Portugal, Spain and Israel, and Legal Adviser at the Permanent Mission of Cape Verde to the United Nations. He chaired the Preparatory Commission for the International Seabed Authority and for the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (1987-1995).
Joseph Akl (Lebanon) has served as President of the Seabed Disputes Chamber since his election to that post on 27 February 1997. He headed the Lebanese delegation to the United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea (1979-1982), and the Assembly of the International Seabed Authority (1996). He was a member of the Lebanese delegation during several sessions of the United Nations General Assembly, and representative of his country at the Sixth Committee (Legal) and at the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization). Also, in the foreign service, he served as Ambassador to Germany from 1983 to 1990, and following that, as Ambassador to Colombia from 1991 to 1994.
Law of Sea Convention - 3 - Press Release SEA/1616 38th & 39th Meetings (AM & PM) 24 May 1999
Paul Bamela Engo (Cameroon) was the Permanent Representative of Cameroon to the United Nations from 1984 to 1990, and again in 1996. He was Vice- President of the United Nations General Assembly at its forty-second session. Prior to his election to the Tribunal in 1996, he was Governor for the African region of the International Council of Environmental Law. He served as Cameroon's representative to several United Nations Committees, including as Chairman of the First Subcommittee of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of the Seabed and the Ocean Floor beyond the Limits of National Jurisdiction (1971).
P. Chandrasekhara Rao (India) was a member of the Indian delegation at several international conferences. He headed his delegation at the meeting of the International Seabed Authority in Kingston (1996), and during several annual sessions of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL). He was Legal Adviser for the Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations in New York from 1972 to 1976. For a number of years, he served his Government in the Ministry of Law and Justice.
Anatoly Kolodkin (Russian Federation) has served since 1991 as President of the Maritime Law Association, and since 1994 as President of the Russian International Law Association. He has been Chairman of the National Committee of the Russian Federation on the United Nations Decade of International Law since 1996, and has co-chaired the Expert Council on International Law of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation since 1997. For 10 years, he was head of the International Law of the Sea Department of the Central Marine Scientific Research Institute at St. Petersburg.
Vicente Marotta Rangel (Brazil) served as Legal Adviser to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Brazil (1990-1993). He was the Director of the Legal Department of the Brazilian Space Agency (1994-1997). He was also a member of the Brazilian delegation to the Geneva Diplomatic Conference on Humanitarian Law (1974-1977), and of the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea (1973-1982). He headed his country's delegation to the Diplomatic Conference for the Adoption of the Draft Unidroit Convention on the International Return of Stolen or Illegally Exported Cultural Objects (1995). He is a member of the International Law Association and the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague, among others, and has written numerous books and articles on international law.
Rudiger Wolfrum (Germany) has been Vice-President of the Tribunal since 5 October 1996, and President of the Chamber for Marine Environment Disputes since 20 February 1997. He chairs the Legal Working Group of the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meetings, which is preparing an annex to the Protocol of Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty concerning responsibility for environmental damage. He was a member of the German delegation to the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea from 1980 to 1982, and to the Preparatory Commission of the International Seabed Authority and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea in 1982. Since 1993, he has been Director of the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law, Heidelberg.
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