Legal

As the Sixth Committee (Legal) began its annual review of the report of the International Law Commission today, the Committee Chairperson, Isabelle Picco (Monaco), welcomed the presence of legal advisers from numerous capitals and expressed her confidence that their participation would enrich the debate on the Commission’s work.

While approving a draft decision on the administration of justice at the United Nations, delegates of the Sixth Committee (Legal) this morning also discussed activities of the legal Programme of Assistance, and called for its funding from the United Nations regular budget, since the rule of law had steadily emerged as a universal aspiration.

When the Sixth Committee (Legal) today took up the issue of transboundary harm from hazardous activities, the discussion centred largely on how the draft articles on prevention of the harm and the draft principles on allocation of loss could be most effectively engaged, either in concert or independently of one another.

The 19 draft articles on diplomatic protection should be elaborated into a convention recommended by the International Law Commission, the representative of Chile told the Sixth Committee (Legal) today, as the Committee took up and completed its current consideration of the item, in a debate comparable to its discussion yesterday on State responsibility for internationally wrongful acts.

Whether an international convention was — or was not — needed on the issue of State responsibility for internationally wrongful acts was the crux of deliberation today as the Sixth Committee met to discuss the annual report of the Secretary-General on the subject.

The Sixth Committee (Legal) today took up and completed its current consideration of two items, one relating to the safeguarding of diplomatic and consular premises and the other relating to the report of the Special Committee on the Charter. It also concluded current debate on the Protocols Additional to the Geneva Conventions.

As the Sixth Committee began its deliberations on the status of the Protocols Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 1949, and relating to the protection of victims of armed conflicts, delegates expressed grave concerns about the accountability of Member States and urged greater compliance to all provisions in the Conventions and Additional Protocols.

When the Sixth Committee began debate today on the subject of the scope and application of universal jurisdiction (of law), delegates reviewed ways of furthering discussion on complex and controversial aspects of the question.

Stating that the rule of law was linked to sovereignty and control over the use of force and resources, as well as similarly sensitive matters, the United Nations Deputy Secretary-General and the Chairperson of the Rule of Law Resource and Coordination Group, Asha-Rose Migiro, told the Sixth Committee (Legal) at a briefing today that a 2011 high-level event for a review of activities in the area of the rule of law would be welcome.

Delegates warmly praised three achievements of the last session of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) as the Sixth Committee (Legal) today considered the Commission’s report of the session, held in New York from 21 June to 9 July. The Chairperson of the Commission, Ricardo Sandoval López (Chile), said it was one of the most fruitful sessions he could recall over the past 20 years.