REGIONAL ORGANIZATIONS AT THE CONFERENCE

ILA 2010’s general opening session was unique as it was the first time six regional and sub regional organizations were all represented at the conference. The panel at that session was made up of leading officials of African, American, Asian, European and Latin American regional associations of international law, as well as the president of the French Society of International Law. The session was also an occasion to discover that the African Foundation of International Law had been unseated as the youngest regional society of international law by…the Latin-American Society of International Law. The Latin-American Society of International Law will be holding its first congress from 8 -9 September 2010.

In honour of the bicentennial of the independence of several Latin American countries from Spain, one of the subjects for discussion at the congress is the contribution of Latin America to the development of international law. Marcelo Kohen, the General Secretary of the society had in this connection noted that many existing of international law – such as uti possidetis, as well as the rules on water ways, diplomatic protection, the prohibition of conquest and forced disappearance - drew inspiration from pre-existing Latin-American regional rules.

The chair of the panel had called on its members to comment on the list of topics selected for discussion at the conference. Xue Hanqin (Asian Society of International Law) was of the opinion that the majority of the issues listed were inextricably linked to the problem of development – of satisfying essential or basic human needs. For example, the negotiations on climate change are concerned with what constitutes the right principle of sustainable development. The list, in her view, demonstrated that development was in the final analysis, the most urgent issue to be solved by international society; that development is important for achieving peace and justice. A similar point was made by Ruiz-Fabri of the European Society. She had noted that structural poverty cannot be considered in isolation from the problem of access to natural resources, and drew attention to the integrated approach of the European Union in dealing with societal problems.

The regional association leaders also identified issues that could have been addressed by the conference as important for achieving international peace and justice. For example, Kwakwa of the African Foundation cited issues such as the problem of refugees, territorial delimitation, economic, social and cultural rights; and the perception of many that the International Criminal Court is only going after African leaders. Kohen of the Latin American Society felt the conference could have addressed the problem of (in)equitable trade as well as a certain tendency and belief - since the Cold War – to use military force as a means of solving problems. He felt more attention should be devoted to developing peaceful means of solving international problems, including the problem of gross violations of human rights abroad.

Caron of the American Society of International Law had considered in more general terms, ways in which the international legal system can be improved so as to better safeguard peace and justice. In this connection, he had commented on the tendency of lawyers to look to past precedents for guidance in solving present problems. He pointed out that some of the issues we face today - such as climate change and biotechnology - are new challenges which may require completely new approaches or new laws. We cannot always extend to the past to solve present problems, he noted. Jean-Pierre Cot, on the other hand, referred to the need for fast decision making by international courts. He considered slow decision making, especially on urgent issues, to be a factor that affects the ability of an international court to adequately contribute to international peace and security. Urgent procedures, he asserted, are just as important at the international level as they are at the national level.