Editorial

On 21 January 2014, the Indian Supreme Court in ShatrughanChauhan & Anr

commuted the death sentences of 13individuals after finding that there had been an “unexplainedand unreasonable delay” by the authorities in deciding ontheir petitions for mercy. Two other individuals had theirdeath sentences commuted to life on the ground of mentalillness. This judgment reaffirms the value of human rightsand respect for human life, as enshrined in the IndianConstitution. The Supreme Court also ruled that all death rowprisoners should have regular mental health checks and

appropriate medical care be given to those in need. Other general guidelines by the SupremeCourt on the treatment of persons on death row include: solitary confinement during the periodawaiting a decision on the mercy petition is unconstitutional; persons sentenced to death areentitled to legal aid, including for filing mercy petitions; a notice of at least 14 days must begiven prior to execution; a final meeting between the prisoner and their family and friendsshould be facilitated.

The power to consider mercy petition are vested in the President under Article 72 and theGovernor underArticle 161 of the Constitution. The power of pardon is essentially an executiveaction, which needs to be exercised in the aid of justice and not in defiance of it. "Further, it iswell settled that the power underArticle 72/161 of the Constitution of India is to be exercised onthe aid and advice of the Council of Ministers."

Although the mercy petition based on human rights and constitutional rights is well establishedand incorporated in the Indian legal system, there is tremendous amount of discussion in themedia/seminars to expedite it to bring it more in consonance with modern characteristic of theinternational legal system. International Institutions are increasingly emphasizing “If the deathpenalty is to be used at all, international law clearly requires that it must follow a trial that meetsthe highest standards of fairness and due process guarantees”.

A series of decisions of the Supreme Court of India in last one year made various observationson mercy petition. On issue of considering the supervening circumstances for commutation ofdeath sentence to life imprisonment, the Supreme Court in a

overturned an earlier judgment which drew a distinction between an offenceunder Indian Panel Code, 1860 and Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act i.e.,murders related to terrorism and others.

The Court also observed “Retribution has no constitutional value in the largest (democracy). InIndia, even an accused has de facto protection under the Constitution and it is the court's duty toshield and protect the same." Therefore, when the judiciary interferes in such matters, it does notreally interfere with the power exercised under Article 72/161 but only to uphold the de factoprotection provided by the Constitution to every convict including death convicts.

The Court also observed that a series of Constitution Benches of this Court have upheld theConstitutional validity of the death sentence in India over the span of decades but thesejudgments in no way take away the duty to follow the due procedure established by law in theexecution of sentence. Importantly the Supreme Court in laid downthat the death penalty can be awarded in rarest of rare case and any court which awarded thedeath penalty must give reason for the same.

{Petitioners} v. Union of India & Ors{Respondent(s)}

Navneet Kaur v. State of NCT ofDelhi and Anothers

Bachan Singh case (1980)

Dr. E. M. Sudarsana Natchiappan

President

Vice Presidents

Treasurer

INSIDE

Executive President

Secretary General

Dr. E. M. Sudarsana Natchiappan

Lakshmi Jambholkar

A. K. GanguliM. Gandhi

B. C. Nirmal

Narinder Singh

V.G. Hegde

Recent Activities ........................................ 2-3

Recent Developmentsin International Law .................................. 3-8

Current Issue of IJIL ................................... 8

Forthcoming Events .................................... 8

V.K. Krishna Menon Bhawan,9, Bhagwan Das Road,

New Delhi - 110001 (INDIA)Tel.: 23389524, 23384458-59 Fax: 23383783

E-mail: isil@giasdl01.vsnl.net.inWebsite: www.isil-aca.org

Published by:The Indian Society of International Law

For members only

1959

THE

INDI

ANSOCIETY OF INTERNATIONAL

LAW

The Indian Society

N E W S L E T T E R

of International Law

VOL. 13, No. 1, January - March 2014

2

RECENT ACTIVITIESSPECIAL LECTURE ONBIOTECHNOLOGY REGULATIONAND THE PRODUCTION OF FOODBY PROF. MARK PERRY, SCHOOL OFLAW, UNIVERSITY OF NEW ENGLAND

SPECIAL LECTURE ONINTERACTION BETWEENINTERNATIONAL INVESTMENTARBITRATION AND WTO LAW BY BYMR. GREG TEREPOSKY LLP,PARTNER AND MEMBER OF BLG'SINTERNATIONAL TRADE ANDARBITRATION GROUP

MONTHLY DISCUSSION FORUM

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ONINTERNATIONAL LAW AND

ISIL organized a Special Lecture on“Biotechnology Regulation and theProduction of Food” on 3 February 2014. Thelecture was delivered by Prof. Mark Perry,School of Law, University of New England.Shri Narinder Singh, Secretary General, ISILwelcomed the speaker and also gave thevote of thanks. India's stand on the subjectremained the focus of interaction. The lecturewitnessed lively interactions and discussionby the participants.

A Special lecture on “Interaction betweenInternational Investment Arbitration and WTOLaw” was organized by the ISIL on 13February 2014. The lecture was delivered Mr.Greg Tereposky LLP, Partner and Member ofBLG's International Trade and ArbitrationGroup on 13 February 2014. Shri NarinderSingh, Secretary General, ISIL welcomed thespeaker and Dr. V. G. Hegde gave the voteof thanks. The lecture witnessed livelyinteractions and discussion by theparticipants.

A monthly discussion on “WTO MinisterialConference at Bali with Special Reference toIndia” was held on 3 January 2014. Dr.Prabhas Ranjan, Assistant Professor, SAU,New Delhi initiated discussion on topic.A monthly discussion on “Death Penalty inthe Context of International Human RightsNorms” was held on 7 March 2014. Shri AnupSurendranath, National Law University,Dwarka, New Delhi initiated discussion on thetopic.

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LAWJOINTLY ORGANIZED WITH DELHIUNIVERSITY, DELHIThe Indian Society of International Law (ISIL)and the Faculty of Law, University of Delhi,Delhi jointly organized the InternationalConference on “International Law andIntellectual Property Law” on 22-23 March 2014at the ISIL premises.In addition to inaugural and valedictorysessions, 5 technical Sessions and two parallelsessions on identified themes have beenconducted. The Conference was attended by220 delegates including 7 foreign delegates.More than 200 abstracts were received for theconference in which 30 abstracts were selectedfor the presentation in the Conference. TheConference was inaugurated by Dr. E. M. S.Natchiappan, Union Minister of State forCommerce and Industry, Government of India.Prof. Ashwini Kumar Bansal, Dean, Faculty ofLaw, Delhi University, gave keynote address.Prof. JL Kaul, Vice Chancellor, VikramUniversity, Ujjain and Professor MariaFrabboni, University of Sussex Law School, UK

also addressed to the participants in theinaugural session. Dr. Rahmat Mohamad,Secretary General from Asian-African LegalConsultative Organisation (AALCO), Prof.Nekima Levy Pounds, University of St.Thomas Law School, Minniepolis, USA, MrFeng Qinghu, Deputy Sec General, AsianAfrican Legal Consultative Organisation(AALCO), Shri Hemant Singh, I P attorney,Shri Amarjit Singh Monga, I P attorney, Delhi,Justice Shri S. Ravindra Bhat Judge DelhiHigh Court, Shri Hari Subramaniam, I Pattorney, Shri Pravin Anand, I P attorney,Delhi, Ms. Pratibha Singh, I P atorney, Delhi,Dr. VL Mony and Shri G. R. Ragvendra,Registrar, Copyrights Division, MHRD. On 22and 23 March 2014, two parallel sessionswere conducted to have discussion on 30selected papers of participants. Shri RanjivDalal, Director, HIPA gave valedictoryaddress.

A delegation of 60 students and theirPrincipal Dr. Kavita Lalchandani H. S. N. C.Board's G J Advani Law College visited ISIL

VISIT OF STUDENTS

RECENT ACTIVITIES

January - March 2014

3

on 19 February 2014 and another delegationof 40 students from MMH Law College,Gaziabad with their Principal and teachersvisited ISIL on 30 February 2014. ShriNarinder Singh, Secretary General, ISIL andProf. Lakshmi Jambholkar, ExecutivePresident, ISIL spoke to the students anddescribed the activities of ISIL to the visitorsand also discussed the importance ofinternational law and career prospect in thisarea. On these occasions ISIL teaching staffsalso addressed the students.

A new legal instrument allowing children ortheir representatives to file a complaint withthe United Nations Committee on the Rightsof the Child is set to go into effect in April2014, following its final required ratificationmade on 14 January 2014 by Costa Rica.Costa Rica became the tenth country to ratifythe Optional Protocol to the Convention onthe Rights of the child on a CommunicationsProcedure. The Optional Protocol giveschildren who have exhausted all legalavenues in their own countries the possibilityof applying to the Committee to address thespecific violation related to the Convention onthe Rights of Children (CRC).

The United States and China drove

RECENT DEVELOPMENTSOPTIONAL PROTOCOL OF THECONVENTION ON THE RIGHTS OFCHILDREN

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTYAPPLICATIONS BROKE RECORDS IN2013, WIPO REPORTS

international patent filings to a record level lastyear with applications for the first timesurpassing the 200,000 mark, the UnitedNations WIPO, on 13 March 2014 reported,with record highs also reached for trademarkand design applications.The US accounted for 56 per cent of patentfilings, with Chinese applicants filing 29 percent of the 205,300 applications for intellectualproperty under the Patent Cooperation Treaty(PCT) System. Under this system, applicantscan simultaneously seek protection for aninvention in 148 countries throughout the worldby filing one international application. Accordingto WIPO, the overall 2013 figure represents a5.1 per cent growth in applications comparedwith 194,400 the previous year, when figuresstill trailed growth seen prior to the globalfinancial crisis in 2007.The Madrid System, which registerstrademarks, saw a 6.4 per cent rise inapplications to 46,829 in 2013, the highestnumber ever recorded. Germany filed 6,822applications, followed by the US with 6,043 andFrance with 4,239 in 2013. The Swisspharmaceutical company, Novartis, heads thelist of top applicants, with 228 applications.International industrial design applications filedunder the Hague System increased to 2,990filings in 2013, also another record,representing growth of 14.8 per cent.Switzerland, with 662 applications, overtookGermany, with 643 applications, as the largestuser of the system. Swatch AG of Switzerland,with 113 applications, continued to be thelargest individual filer.In line with growing investments in research

and development, the automobile industryhas seen a sharp increase in internationalpatent filings over the last three years, WIPOreported.

Owing to the negative vote of one of itspermanent members, the United NationsSecurity Council, on 15 March 2014, failed toadopt a draft resolution which urged countriesnot to recognize the results of this weekend'sreferendum in Crimea. Thirteen of theCouncil's 15 members voted in favour of thedraft text, Russia voted against, and Chinaabstained. A veto by any of the Council's fivepermanent members – China, France,Russia, the United Kingdom and the UnitedStates – means a resolution cannot beadopted. The resolution would havereaffirmed Ukraine's “sovereignty,independence, unity and territorial integrity”and declared that Sunday's referendumwhich could lead to Crimea's break withUkraine and union with Russia, “can have novalidity”.Speaking ahead of the vote, RussianPermanent Representative to the UN, VitalyChurkin, said it was “no secret” that Russiawas planning to vote against the draft. Headded that Moscow would respect thedecision of the Crimeans but could not acceptthe basic assumption of the draft resolutionwhich aimed “to declare illegal the plannedMarch 16, 2014 referendum where residentsof the Republic of Crimea should decide ontheir future”. Liu Jieyi, PermanentRepresentative of China to the UN, said afterthe vote that Beijing sought a “balanced”solution to the conflict within a framework oflaw and order. He called for the creation of acoordination group, a support package forUkraine, and also called on countries torefrain from action which could furtherescalate the conflict.Deep disappointment and incredulity wasexpressed by several Council members, whonoted that this was the seventh time the bodywas convening to discuss the situation inUkraine. United States PermanentRepresentative Samantha Power, whosecountry sponsored the resolution, said thetext was aimed at finding a principled andpeaceful solution, and upheld UN principleson the sovereignty of its Member States.Russia has the power to veto a SecurityCouncil resolution, "but it does not have thepower to veto the truth," she said. United

UN ORGANS ON CRIMEAREFERENDUM

RECENT ACTIVITIES

January - March 2014

4

Kingdom's Mark Lyall Grant said the result oftoday's vote highlighted Russia's isolationover Crimea within the Council and from theinternational community. Meanwhile, GérardAraud of France quipped that Russia “vetoedthe UN Charter” with its “no” vote. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has said that “emotionshave been hardened” over the forthcomingreferendum.However, in a vote that reaffirmed Ukraine'sunity and territorial integrity, the UnitedNations General Assembly, on 27 March2014, adopted a measure underscoring thatthe mid-March referendum in Crimea that ledto the peninsula's annexation by Russia “hasno validity” and that the parties should“pursue immediately a peaceful resolution ofthe situation.” By a vote of 100 in favour to 11against, with 58 abstentions, the 193-memberAssembly called on all States, internationalorganizations and specialized agencies not torecognize any alteration of the status of theAutonomous Republic of Crimea and the cityof Sevastopol on the basis of the 16 March2014 referendum “and to refrain from anyaction or dealing that might be interpreted asrecognizing any such altered status.”Subsequently, Crimea declared itsindependence, which in turn was recognizedby Russia. In the immediate aftermath ofthose events, President Vladimir Putin signeda treaty to make Crimea part of Russia, whilethe Government in Kiev committed to neveraccept Crimea's independence orannexation.The non-binding text adopted by the GeneralAssembly, on 27 March 2014 containedsimilar language, underscoring that thereferendum held in Crimea has no validityand cannot form the basis for any alterationof the status of Crimea or of the city ofSevastopol. It calls on all States to “desistand refrain” from actions aimed at the partialor total disruption of Ukraine's national unityand territorial integrity, “including anyattempts to modify Ukraine's borders throughthe threat or use of force or other unlawfulmeans.”Finally, the Assembly resolution makesexplicit reference to the primacy of the UNCharter's call for the preservation of the unityand territorial integrity of all UN MemberStates, and also recalls the 1994Memorandum on Security Assurances inConnection with Ukraine's Accession to theTreaty on the Non-Proliferation of NuclearWeapons, the 1997 Treaty on Friendship,

Cooperation and Partnership between Ukraineand Russian, and other bilateral agreementsbetween Ukraine and Russia.

The United Nations Human Rights Council(HRC), on 27 March 2014, voted to open aninternational inquiry into alleged war crimescommitted by both the Sri Lankan Governmentand the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam(LTTE) in the final stages of a decades-longconflict that ended in 2009. Adopted by a voteof 23 in favour to 12 against with 12abstentions, the HRC requested the Office ofthe UN High Commissioner for Human Rights(OHCHR) to undertake a “comprehensiveinvestigation” into alleged serious violations andabuses of human rights and related crimes byboth parties, and to establish the facts andcircumstances of such alleged violations “with aview to avoiding impunity and ensuringaccountability.”The Sri Lankan Government declared victoryover the rebel LTTE in May 2009, after aconflict that had raged on and off for nearlythree decades and killed thousands of people.The final months of the conflict had generatedconcerns about alleged violations ofinternational human rights and humanitarianlaw. By its action on 27 March 2014, the HRCreiterated its call on the Government toimplement the constructive recommendationsmade in the report of the Lessons Learnt andReconciliation Commission. It also called on theGovernment to release publicly the results of itsinvestigations into alleged violations by securityforces, including the attack on unarmedprotesters in Weliweriya in August 2013, andthe report of 2013, by the court of inquiry of theSri Lanka Army.In her address to the HRC, High Commissionerfor Human Rights Navi Pillay stressed the needto ensure justice and accountability, includingthrough the establishment of an independentand credible investigation, saying: “This isessential to advance the right to truth for all inSri Lanka and create further opportunities forjustice, accountability and redress.”The HRC has in the past called on the SriLankan Government to take credible steps toensure accountability for alleged seriousviolations committed during the final months ofthe conflict.

UN HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCILAPPROVES INQUIRY INTO ALLEGEDABUSES IN SRI LANKA WAR

ICJ RULES AGAINST JAPAN'SWHALING ACTIVITIES IN THE

ANTARCTICOn 31 March 2014, the United NationsInternational Court of Justice (ICJ) has ruledagainst Japan in a case involving charges byAustralia that the country was using ascientific research programme to mask acommercial whaling venture in the Antarctic.The ICJ ordered a temporary halt to theactivities, largely involving fin, humpback andminke whales, finding that the JapaneseWhaling Research Programme under SpecialPermit in the Antarctic (JARPA II) is “not inaccordance with three provisions of theSchedule to the International Convention forthe Regulation of Whaling (ICRW).” In May2010, Australia instituted proceedingsalleging that Japan was pursuing a largescale programme of whaling under JARPA II,and was in breach of its ICRW obligations, aswell as its other international obligations forthe preservation of marine mammals and themarine environment.In its application, Australia requested that theICJ order Japan to “end the researchprogramme, revoke any authorizations,permits or licences allowing the programme'sactivities; and provide assurances andguarantees that it will not take any furtheraction under the JARPA II or 'any similarprogramme until such programme has beenbrought into conformity with its obligationsunder international law.”Though Japan rejected the charges andcountered that its scientific researchprogramme was in line with treaty obligations,12 of the 16 ICJ Judges found that thecountry was in violation of three ICRWSchedule provisions and, following Australia'srequest, ordered that the country “revoke anyextant authorization, permit or license to kill,take or treat whales in relation to JARPA II,and refrain from granting any further permits”for that programme.The Court noted that there are threeadditional aspects of JARPA II which “castfurther doubt” on its characterization as ascientific research programme: the open-ended time frame of the programme; itslimited scientific output to date; and the lackof cooperation between JARPA II and otherdomestic and international researchprogrammes in the Antarctic Ocean.“Even if a whaling programme involvesscientific research, the killing, taking andtreating of whales pursuant to such aprogramme does not fall within Article VIIIunless these activities are 'for purposes of'

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS

January - March 2014

5

scientific research,” explained the ICJ in apress release on 31 March 2014, adding thatit found no evidence of such purpose inJARPA II.

Legal & Treaties Division, Ministry of ExternalAffairs, Government of India created aDatabase on its websitehttp://www.mea.gov.in/treaty.htm. TheDatabase provides an accessible andsearchable link or series of links to theTreaties/Agreements/MoUs etc. which havebeen entered into by the Government of theRepublic of India with Foreign Countries. Asa beginning, the database providesTreaties/Agreements/MoUs from 1983 on-wards, more documents covering yearsbefore 1983, would be made accessible indue course.

Protocol on MLA in Criminal Matters wassigned on 14 February 2014 between KyrgyzRepublic and Republic of India.

On 17 March 2014, Congo ratified the UnitedNations Convention on Contracts for theInternational Carriage of Goods Wholly orPartly by Sea, known as the Rotterdam Rulesbecame the third State Party to theConvention. The Rotterdam Rules have beensigned by 25 States and were ratified by theRepublic of Congo, Spain and Togo. TheRules will enter into force on the first day ofthe month following the expiration of one yearafter the date of deposit of the twentiethinstrument of ratification or accession.The Republic of Congo made accession tothe United Nations Convention on the Use ofElectronic Communications in InternationalContracts (the Electronic Communications

INDIAN TREATIES DATABASE:LEGAL & TREATIES DIVISION, MEA,GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

SIGNING OF PROTOCOL ON MUTUALLEGAL ASSISTANCE TREATY INCRIMINAL MATTERS EXCHANGEOF INSTRUMENT OF RATIFICATION

CONGO RATIFIED THE UNCONVENTION ON CONTRACTSFOR THE INTERNATIONALCARRIAGE OF GOODS WHOLLYOR PARTLY BY SEA AND ALSOACCEDED TO THE UNCONVENTION ON THE USE OFELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONSIN INTERNATIONAL CONTRACTS

Convention), became the fifth State Party to theConvention. The Convention will enter intoforce for the Republic of Congo on 1 August2014. The adoption of the ElectronicCommunications Convention removes anydoubt about the acceptability of using electroniccommunications to satisfy written formrequirements arising under the Convention onthe Recognition and Enforcement of ForeignArbitral Awards, 1958 (the "New YorkConvention") and the United NationsConvention on Contracts for the InternationalSale of Goods, 1980 ("CISG").The Dominican Republic, Honduras, theRepublic of Congo, the Russian Federation andSingapore are States parties to the ElectronicCommunications Convention. Fifteen otherStates have signed the Convention, but not yetratified it, and several other States, includingAustralia, have started the procedure forbecoming a party. The Convention is openindefinitely for accession and ratification.

Underscoring the substantive work of the SixthCommittee (Legal) in year 2013 on theadvancement of international law, the GeneralAssembly stressed, through the adoption of 21resolutions, 3 decisions and 2 procedural itemsin 23 reports, on 16 December 2013, the crucialrole of international law in maintaining peaceand security. Those reports reflected the widerange of issues debated by the SixthCommittee during its sixty-eighth session,including combating international terrorism, thelaw of transboundary aquifers, and universaljurisdiction, as well as new topics addressingenvironmental issues. Delegations had, inthose resolutions, highlighted significantachievements in the development ofinternational law, noting the finalization of majortexts addressing commerce, trade and treaties.However, as in past years, the Committeeunderscored the critical financial situation of theProgramme of Assistance in the Teaching,Study, Dissemination and Wider Appreciation ofInternational Law.The finalization and adoption of the Rules onTransparency in Treaty-based Investor StateArbitration had been acknowledged in thereport of the United Nations Commission onInternational Trade Law (UNCITRAL), whichcontained four resolutions on the work of that

ADOPTING 21 SIXTH COMMITTEERESOLUTIONS, GENERAL ASSEMBLYHIGHLIGHTS SIGNIFICANTACHIEVEMENTS IN DEVELOPMENT OFINTERNATIONAL LAW

body. The texts had also urged theSecretary-General to publish, includingelectronically, the Guide to Enactment of theUNCITRAL Model Law on Cross-BorderInsolvency, part four of the UNCITRALLegislative Guide on Insolvency Law and theUNCITRAL Guide on the Implementation of aSecurity Rights Registry to Governments andinterested bodies.Reflecting the Sixth Committee's trademarkconsensus, the Assembly also hadacknowledged the growing number ofdecisions by international courts, tribunalsand other bodies that referred to the draftarticles on responsibility of States forinternationally wrongful acts, a topic in whichthe International Law Commission hadfocused on for 40 years. Noting thosearticles' contribution to the development ofinternational law, the Assembly had urgedboth the Secretary-General to update thecompilation of such decisions and invitedGovernments to submit information on theirpractice in that regard.A highlight of the Sixth Committee's sessionhad been the successful completion of theInternational Law Commission's Guide toPractice on Reservations to Treaties, whichhad taken almost two decades to complete.The Assembly, unanimously adoptingresolutions on the Commission's work, thenencouraged the widest-possibledissemination that Guide.However, while the resolution on the UnitedNations Programme of Assistance in theTeaching, Study, Dissemination and WiderAppreciation of International Law had beensimilar to texts on the matter adopted in pastyears, the Sixth Committee took into accountthe serious financial situation that threatenedthe continuation of the United NationsRegional Courses in International Law andthe United Nations Audiovisual Library ofInternational Law.The need for more reliable funding, inparticular for the Regional Courses and theAudiovisual Library, of Programme activitieswhich contributed immensely to thedevelopment of international law had becomecritical. Therefore, the Assembly authorizedthe provision of financing from the regularbudget and, when necessary, by voluntarycontributions. It also reiterated its request tothe Secretary-General to provide thenecessary resources to the Programmebudget for the biennium 2014-2015 in orderto ensure its continued effectiveness and

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS

January - March 2014

6

further development.The General Assembly met to consider the23 reports of the Sixth Committee (Legal) andto take action on 26 draft resolutions andprocedural items, contained therein.

Sixth Committee Rapporteur TOFIGMUSAYEV (Azerbaijan) introduced thereports, noting that the agenda itemsallocated to the Committee, with theexception of the election of officers,represented the Organization's priorities inthe legal sphere, including the promotion ofjustice and international law; drug control,crime prevention and combating internationalterrorism in all its forms and manifestations;and organizational matters andadministration. He told the Assembly thatthere would be no report in respect of agendaitem 5, “Election of officers of the MainCommittees”. Consistent with previouspractice, elections for the Sixth Committee'ssixty-ninth session would be taken up at alater stage in the course of the currentsession.First, taking up the report, Responsibility ofStates for internationally wrongful acts(document A/68/460), the Assembly adoptedthe resolution contained therein without avote. By the text, the Assemblyacknowledged that a growing number ofdecisions by international courts, tribunalsand other bodies referred to the draft articleson responsibility of States for internationallywrongful acts. It requested the Secretary-General to update the compilation of suchdecisions and invite Governments to submitinformation on their practice in that regard.The Assembly next turned to the report,Criminal accountability of United Nationsofficials and experts on mission (documentA/68/461), adopting the resolution containedtherein without a vote. By that text, theAssembly strongly urged States to takemeasures ensuring that officials committingsuch crimes would be brought to justice.Likewise, it requested the Secretary-Generalto bring credible allegations of such crimes tothe attention of those nationals' States, andto request that those States provide thestatus of their investigative or prosecutionefforts.The Assembly next addressed the Report ofthe United Nations Commission onInternational Trade Law (UNCITRAL) on thework of its forty-sixth session (documentA/68/462), which contained four resolutions,

Action on Texts

all of which were adopted without vote. Byresolution I, an omnibus of the report, theAssembly, among other provisions,commended the Commission for the finalizationand adoption of its Rules on Transparency inTreaty-based Investor State Arbitration andwelcomed the activities of the UNCITRALRegional Centre for Asia and the Pacific in theRepublic of Korea.In resolution II, on revision of the Guide toEnactment of the UNCITRAL Model Law onCross-Border Insolvency and part four of theUNCITRAL Legislative Guide on InsolvencyLaw, the Assembly requested the Secretary-General to publish, including electronically,those documents and transmit them toGovernments and interested bodies. It alsorecommended that States considerimplementing the Model Law, and utilizing theGuide to assess the economic efficiency of theirinsolvency law regimes.Resolution III, on the UNCITRAL Guide on theImplementation of a Security Rights Registry,had the Assembly request the Secretary-General to publish the Guide, including throughelectronic means, and to disseminate it broadlyto Governments and other bodies, includingnational and international financial institutionsand chambers of commerce. The Secretary-General should also recommend that all Statesgive favourable consideration to the Guidewhen revising relevant legislation,administrative regulations or guidelines.In resolution IV, United Nations Commission onInternational Trade Law Rules on Transparencyin Treaty-based Investor-State Arbitration andArbitration Rules (as revised in 2010, with newarticle 1, paragraph 4, as adopted in 2013), theAssembly, among other things, invited MemberStates, which had included the rules in theirtreaties, to inform UNCITRAL accordingly.The Assembly next took up the report, UnitedNations Programme of Assistance in theTeaching, Study, Dissemination and WiderAppreciation of International Law (documentA/68/463), adopting the resolution containedtherein without a vote. While the text wassimilar to resolutions adopted in past years onthe matter, changes were included that tookinto account the serious financial situationthreatening the continuation of the UnitedNations Regional Courses in International Lawand the United Nations Audiovisual Library ofInternational Law.By that text, the Assembly concluded that therewas a need for more reliable funding forProgramme activities, in particular for the

Regional Courses and the AudiovisualLibrary, for which it authorized the provisionof financing from the regular budget and,when necessary, by voluntary contributions.The Assembly also reiterated its request tothe Secretary-General to provide thenecessary resources to the programmebudget for the biennium 2014-2015 in orderto ensure the Programme's continuedeffectiveness and further development.The Report of the International LawCommission on the work of its sixty-third andsixty-fifth sessions (document A/68/464) wastaken up next, with the two resolutionscontained therein adopted without a vote. Bythe text of resolution I, reservations totreaties, the Assembly welcomed thesuccessful completion of the Commission'swork on the subject and its adoption of theGuide to Practice on Reservations toTreaties, including the guidelines and adetailed commentary thereto, andencouraged its widest possibledissemination.While recommending the Commissioncontinue its work on its current programme'stopics, the Assembly drew Governments'attention in resolution II to the importance ofinforming the Commission of their views onvarious agenda topics. It also stressed thedesirability of further enhancing the dialoguebetween the Commission and the SixthCommittee, and underlined the importance ofthe records and topical summary of the SixthCommittee's debate for the Commission'sdeliberations.Considering the report, Diplomatic protection(document A/68/465), the Assembly alsoadopted the corresponding resolution withouta vote. By that text, the Assemblycommended the articles on diplomaticprotection to the attention of Governmentsand invited them to submit comments to theSecretary-General, including on theCommission's recommendation to elaboratea convention based on those articles.Next before the Assembly was the report,Consideration of prevention of transboundaryharm from hazardous activities and allocationof loss in the case of such harm (documentA/68/466). By the text of the resolutioncontained therein, also adopted without avote, the Assembly commended toGovernments the draft articles ontransboundary harm from hazardousactivities and the draft principles on theallocation of loss in the case of such harm. It

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS

January - March 2014

7

invited Member States to submit furthercomments on any future action, in particularon the form of the respective articles andprinciples. It also requested the Secretary-General to submit a compilation of decisionsof international courts, tribunals and otherbodies referring to the articles and theprinciples.Turning next to the Report of the SpecialCommittee on the Charter of the UnitedNations and on the Strengthening of the Roleof the Organization (document A/68/467), theAssembly adopted the resolution containedtherein without a vote. Through that text,among other provisions, it commended theprogress made in the preparation of studiesfor the Repertory of Practice of UnitedNations Organs, as well as the progressmade towards updating the Repertoire of thePractice of the Security Council. It furtherreiterated its call for voluntary contributions tothe Trust Fund for the elimination of thebacklog in the Repertory and for updating theRepertoire.Also adopted without a vote was theresolution contained in the report, The rule oflaw at the national and international levels(document A/68/468). In so doing, theAssembly reaffirmed its role in encouragingthe progressive development of internationallaw and its codification, and in urging Statesto abide by all their obligations underinternational law. It also stressed theimportance of adherence to the rule of law atthe national level and the need to strengthensupport to Member States, upon theirrequest, in the domestic implementation oftheir respective international obligations.In that context, the Assembly called forenhanced dialogue among all stakeholderson placing national perspectives at the centreof rule of law assistance. Also, by that text,the Assembly encouraged the Secretary-General and the United Nations system toaccord high priority to rule of law activitiesand stressed the need to provide the Rule ofLaw Unit with the necessary funding andstaff.The Assembly next took up the Committee'sreport, The scope and application of theprinciple of universal jurisdiction (documentA/68/469), and adopted the correspondingresolution without a vote. By that text, itinvited Member States and relevantobservers to submit, before 30 April 2014,information and observations on the matter,including, where appropriate, information on

the relevant applicable international treatiesand their national legal rules and judicialpractice, among other provisions.The Assembly then went on to consider thereport, The law of transboundary aquifers(document A/68/470), adopting without a votethe resolution contained within it. TheAssembly, by the provisions of the text,commended the draft articles to the attention ofGovernments as guidance for bilateral orregional agreements and arrangements andencouraged the International HydrologicalProgramme of the United Nations Educational,Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)to continue offering assistance to concernedStates.In explanation of position after the action, therepresentative of Paraguay said her countryhad a 5 per cent share of the Guaraní aquiferand gave great weight to discussions on thetopic in the United Nations. While herdelegation had been in consensus of the draftresolution, Paraguay's legislation had not yetratified the instrument contained therein.By adopting without a vote the resolutioncontained in the report, Measures to eliminateinternational terrorism (document A/68/471),the Assembly called upon all Member States,the United Nations and other international,regional and subregional organizations toimplement the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy and to adopt furthermeasures to prevent terrorism and tostrengthen international cooperation incombating terrorism.Among other provisions in the text, it also calledupon States to refrain from financing,encouraging, providing training for or otherwisesupporting terrorist activities, and urged them toensure that their nationals or other persons andentities within their territory that wilfully providedor collected funds for the benefit of persons orentities who committed, or attempted tocommit, facilitate or participate in thecommission of terrorist acts were punished bypenalties consistent with the grave nature ofsuch acts.Also by that text, the Assembly urged all Statesthat had not yet done so to consider becomingparties to relevant conventions and protocols,calling for them to cooperate in preventing andsuppressing terrorist acts. It further decided toestablish a working group with a view tofinalizing the process on the draft compre-hensive convention on international terrorism.The Committee's report, Revitalization of thework of the General Assembly (document

A/68/592) was considered next, and thecorresponding resolution was adoptedwithout a vote. By that action, the Assemblyapproved the provisional programme of workof the Sixth Committee for its sixty-ninthsession.Pressing ahead, the Assembly took note ofthe Committee's report, Programme planning(document A/68/472), which stated that theCommittee had concluded its consideration ofthe item without taking action.The Assembly then took up the Report of theCommittee on Relations with the HostCountry (document A/68/474). Theresolution within it was adopted without avote. Among the text's provisions, the hostcountry was requested to continue solving,through negotiations, problems that mighthinder the work of delegations and missionsto the United Nations. It urged the hostcountry to also continue to take appropriateaction, such as the training of police, security,customs and border control officers, with aview to maintaining respect for diplomaticprivileges and immunities, and if violationsoccurred, to ensure that such cases wereproperly investigated and remedied, inaccordance with applicable law.In addition, the Assembly requested the hostcountry to remove remaining travelrestrictions imposed on certain missions andto enhance the issuance of entry visas torepresentatives of Member States. It alsonoted with concern the continuing difficultiessome Permanent Missions experienced inobtaining suitable banking services andwelcomed the efforts of the host country infacilitating the opening of bank accounts forthose missions.In explanation of position after the action, therepresentative of Argentina said her countryhad supported the resolution and that, inregards to paragraph 8, her country hadcooperated with authorities on a voluntarybasis. Her delegation's comment in the SixthCommittee on the topic did not apply to theresolution.The Assembly then adopted, without a vote,a decision to defer a request for Observerstatus for the Cooperation Council of Turkic-speaking States in the work of the GeneralAssembly (document A/68/475) until its sixty-ninth session. The international organizationaims to promote comprehensive cooperationamong its four founding member States (Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS

January - March 2014

8

Turkey). It serves as a regional instrumentfor enriching international cooperation in theCentral Asian and Caucasian regions.The Assembly then took note of the report,Observer status for the InternationalConference of Asian Political Parties in thework of the Assembly (document A/68/476).The sponsors on the matter had decided notto pursue the request at the current session,while reserving the right to present it at afuture session. Therefore, the Committeeconcluded its consideration of the itemwithout taking action. The Conference,launched in Manila in 2000 by 46 politicalparties in Asia, seeks to build bridges ofpolitical cooperation, establish networksamong mainstream political parties in Asia,promote regional cooperation and create anenvironment for sustained peace and sharedprosperity in the region.The Assembly also had before it a reportcontaining a decision to defer the request forObserver status for the InternationalChamber of Commerce in the work of theGeneral Assembly (document A/68/477) untilthe sixty-ninth session. The organization isdescribed as a world business organizationthat, by grouping together tens of thousandsof member companies and associations frommore than 120 countries, makes rules gover-ning the conduct of business across borders.The Assembly completed consideration of theLegal Committee's work with four reportsrequesting observer status in the GeneralAssembly. The first, Observer status for the

Indian Journal of International LawVol. 53 No. 4 October - December 2013

CONTENTSARTICLESNon-Appearance before the InternationalTribunal for the Law of the Sea

Recognition and Enforcement of ForeignDivorces: The Philippine Dilemma and ItsConsequences on the Rights of Spousesand their Children

Tafsir M. Ndiaye

Elizabeth H. Aguiling-Pangalangan

African Charter on Human and People'sRights and Protection of Human Rights

Manoj Kumar Sinha

An Appraisal of United Nations Efforts inInternational Environmental Protection

Gaius E. Okwezuzu

SHORTER ARTICLES & CURRENTDEVELOPMENT

Global Commitment towards Protection ofWomen against Acid Violence

Engaging with Security and State from aGendered Lens in the South AsianContext: Indian State's Construction of

Vageshwari Deswal

Internal Security in 2010-2011 and StateResponses to It

New Acquisitions to the ISIL Library fromOctober to December 2013

Pooja Bakshi

OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS

BOOK REVIEW

SELECT ARTICLE AND NEWACQUISITIONS

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS/FORTHCOMING EVENTS

FORTHCOMING EVENTS43rd Annual Conference, 11-12 April2014

Summer Course on International Law,26 May to 6 June 2014

V. K. Krishna Menon Lecture, 30 June2014

Convocation and Inauguration of the P.G. Diploma Courses, 1 September 2014

14th Henry Dunant Memorial Moot Court(National-Zonal Round) Competition2014, 18th - 20th July 2014: SouthRound

14th Henry Dunant Memorial Moot Court(National-Zonal Round) Competition2014, 1st - 3rd August 2014: NorthRound

14th Henry Dunant Memorial Moot Court(National-Zonal Round) Competition2014, 16-17 August 2014: India Round

Convocation and Inauguration of the P.G. Diploma Courses, 1 September 2014

Induction-level Training Programme forIndian Economic Services, 20-25October 2014

Training Workshop for Indian ForestService Officers on "IPR-WTOAccountability- Scope of Patent", 20-21November 2014

World Congress on International Law, 9-11 January 2015

International Institute for the Unification ofPrivate Law in the General Assembly(document A/68/478), was adopted without avote. The Institute, an independentintergovernmental organization comprising over60 member States, was created by multilateraltreaty, and formulates uniform law instruments,international instruments, principles and rules.The second report, Observer status for theInternational Anti-Corruption Academy in theGeneral Assembly (document A/68/479), wasalso adopted without a vote. The Academy ispresented as an international organization, withmembership open to all Member States of theUnited Nations and international organizations.Next was the report on Observer status for thePan African Intergovernmental Agency forWater and Sanitation for Africa in the GeneralAssembly (document A/68/480). The Agency isdescribed as an intergovernmental organizationthat meets in letter and in spirit the criteria forobserver status set forth in General Assemblydecision 49/426. It was adopted without a vote.The final report considered by the Assembly,Observer status for the Global Green GrowthInstitute in the General Assembly (documentA/68/481), was adopted without a vote. TheInstitute is the sole international organizationdedicated to assisting developing States tocreate a green economy, as agreed upon atRio+20. With its core activity in green growthplanning and implementation, it providestechnical assistance and capacity-building andis currently working in 18 different countries.

January - March 2014