Fallo corte

INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE
Peace Palace, Carnegieplein 2, 2517 KJ The Hague, Netherlands Tel.: +31 (0)70 302 2323 Fax: +31 (0)70 364 9928 Website: www.icj-cij.org

Press Release
Unofficial

No. 2011/6 8 March 2011

Certain Activities carried out by Nicaragua in the Border Area (Costa Rica v. Nicaragua) Request for the indication of provisional measures The Court requests the Partiesto refrain from sending to, or maintaining in the disputed territory, including the caño, any personnel, whether civilian, police or security; it authorizes Costa Rica, in certain specific circumstances, to dispatch civilian personnel there charged with the protection of the environment; and it calls on the Parties not to aggravate or extend the dispute before the Court or make it more difficult toresolve THE HAGUE, 8 March 2011. The International Court of Justice (ICJ), the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, today gave its decision on the request for the indication of provisional measures submitted by Costa Rica in the case concerning Certain Activities carried out by Nicaragua in the Border Area (Costa Rica v. Nicaragua). In its Order, the Court indicates the followingprovisional measures: “(1) Unanimously, Each Party shall refrain from sending to, or maintaining in the disputed territory, including the caño, any personnel, whether civilian, police or security; (2) By thirteen votes to four, Notwithstanding point (1) above, Costa Rica may dispatch civilian personnel charged with the protection of the environment to the disputed territory, including the caño, butonly in so far as it is necessary to avoid irreparable prejudice being caused to the part of the wetland where that territory is situated; Costa Rica shall consult with the Secretariat of the Ramsar Convention in regard to these actions, give Nicaragua prior notice of them and use its best endeavours to find common solutions with Nicaragua in this respect;
IN FAVOUR:

President Owada;Vice-President Tomka; Judges Koroma, Al-Khasawneh, Simma, Abraham, Keith, Bennouna, Cançado Trindade, Yusuf, Greenwood, Donoghue; Judge ad hoc Dugard; Judges Sepúlveda-Amor, Skotnikov, Xue; Judge ad hoc Guillaume;

AGAINST:

-2(3) Unanimously, Each Party shall refrain from any action which might aggravate or extend the dispute before the Court or make it more difficult to resolve; (4) Unanimously, EachParty shall inform the Court as to its compliance with the above provisional measures.” History of the proceedings The history of the proceedings can be found in Press Releases Nos. 2010/38 of 19 November 2010 (on the Application instituting proceedings) and 2011/5 of 23 February 2011 (on the request for the indication of provisional measures submitted by Costa Rica). Reasoning of the Court Primafacie jurisdiction (paras. 49-52) Having noted that Nicaragua, in the present proceedings, did not contest its jurisdiction to entertain the dispute, the Court considers that the instruments invoked by Costa Rica appear, prima facie, to afford a basis on which the Court might have jurisdiction to rule on the merits, enabling it to indicate provisional measures if it considers that the circumstancesso require. Plausible character of the rights whose protection is being sought and link between these rights and the measures requested (paras. 53-62) The Court recalls that its power to indicate provisional measures under Article 41 of the Statute has as its object the preservation of the respective rights of the parties pending its decision. Therefore, the Court may exercise this power only ifit is satisfied that the rights asserted by a party are at least plausible, and that a link exists between the rights which form the subject of the proceedings before the Court on the merits of the case and the provisional measures being sought. ⎯ Plausible character of the rights whose protection is being sought (paras. 55-59) Costa Rica alleges that the rights claimed by it and forming the...