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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 27 February 2017
At the fifty-first session of the General Assembly, the Sixth (Legal) Committee reviewed the annual reports of the International Law Commission (ILC), the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL), the Special Committee on the Charter of the United Nations and on the Strengthening of the Role of the Organization (Special Committee) and the Committee on Relations with the Host Country (Host Country Committee). The Sixth Committee also considered proposals for two new legal instruments relating to (1) the establishment of a permanent international criminal court, and (2) the non-navigational uses of international watercourses, as well as other topics concerning international terrorism, international humanitarian law, diplomatic and consular law, the United Nations internal justice system, the United Nations Decade of International Law (Decade) and the “New International Economic Order.” The topics are discussed in the order in which they were considered by the committee.
1 For a general description of the Sixth Committee and its role in the progressive development and codification of international law, see Virginia, Morris & Christiane Bourloyannis, M., The Work of the Sixth Committee at the Forty-seventh Session of the UN General Assembly, 87 AJIL 306, 306 nn.1, 2 (1993)Google Scholar.
2 For an extensive summary of the statements made during the debate and the action taken by the committee with respect to the various items, see the summary records to be published in UN Docs. A/C.6/51/SR.1-62 (1996-1997). The draft resolutions and decision recommended by the Sixth Committee following the debate, all of which were adopted by the General Assembly without change, are contained in the Reports of the Sixth Committee to the General Assembly on the various items. These Reports also contain information on the relevant documentation, including the summary records, for each item. See UN Docs. A/51/622-632 (1996) and A/51/869 (1997). For the resolutions and the decision adopted by the Assembly, see GA Res. 51/155- 163, 206-10, & 229 and Dec. 51/441.
3 Report of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law on the work of its twenty-ninth session, UN GAOR, 51st Sess., Supp. No. 17, UN Doc. A/51/17 (1996). Two additional sets of abstracts were issued in the Case-Law on UNCITRAL Texts (CLOUT) series. Id. at 58. The committee also had before it the communiqué issued at a ministerial meeting of the Movement of Non-aligned Countries at Colombia in May 1996, which “rejected in the strongest terms the extraterritorial application of the laws of any country in order to evaluate or influence policies of other countries” and “also rejected the use of coercive measures that have a tendency to restrict trade, in violation of international norms in force.” UN Doc. A/51/154, annex, at 3 (1996).
4 The United States expressed the view that the Model Law was an important milestone in the facilitation of trade based on the use of computers, and its enactment by many states would create a new legal infrastructure with the predictability needed to foster commerce in this new technological era.
5 Report of the Special Committee on the Charter of the United Nations and on the Strengthening of the Role of the Organization, UN GAOR, 51st Sess., Supp. No. 33, UN Doc. A/51/33 (1996).
6 In this context, the Russian Federation submitted a Draft declaration on the basic principles and criteria for the work of United Nations peace-keeping missions and mechanisms for the prevention and settlement of crises and conflicts. Id., para. 128.
7 GA Res. 50/51, annex, UN GAOR, 50th Sess., Supp. No. 49, Vol. 1, at 316, UN Doc. A/50/49 (1996). See also Virginia, Morris & Christiane Bourloyannis-Vrailas, M., The Work of the Sixth Committee at the Fiftieth Session of the UN General Assembly, 90 AJIL 491, 498 (1996)Google Scholar. In addition, the Sixth Committee had before it a Report of the Secretary-General on the implementation of the tasks conferred on him under Resolution 50/51. UN Doc. A/51/317 (1996).
8 The working group was chaired by Socorro Flores (Mexico), who Reported orally to the Sixth Committee on the results of its deliberations. See UN Doc. A/C.6/51/SR.49 (1996).
9 The Legal Counsel of the Organization made a statement before the Sixth Committee explaining that, despite the Secretariat’s efforts, the backlog in updating these publications has remained largely unresolved, due to the limited human and financial resources available for this project. See UN Doc. A/C.6/51/SR.5 (1996).
10 Report of the Secretary-General on Reform of the internal system of justice in the United Nations Secretariat, UN Doc. A/C.5/50/2 (1995). The amendments to existing legal instruments and the new legal instruments required to implement the Secretary-General’s proposals are annexed to the Report. The committee also had before it comments submitted by the UN Administrative Tribunal and the UN Staff Union, UN Docs. A/C.5/ 49/60/Add, 2 & Corr.1 and A/C.5/50/2/Add.1 (1995), and the Ninth Report of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions, UN Doc. A/50/7/Add.8 (1995), concerning the Secretary-General’s proposals.
11 Communication from the Sixth Committee regarding the legal implications of the reform of the internal system of justice of the Secretariat (agenda item 120), UN Doc. A/C.6/51/7, annex (1996).
12 No new documentation was considered under this item.
13 For the text of the official document adopted at the conference, see UN Doc. A/51/261 (1996).
14 The Sixth Committee had before it in connection with the item the Report of the Secretary-General containing an analytical review of existing international legal instruments relating to international terrorism, information on measures taken at the national and international levels regarding the prevention and suppression of international terrorism and on incidents caused by it, and a review of existing possibilities within the UN system for assisting states in organizing workshops and training courses on combating Crimes connected with international terrorism. The Report also contains a list of states parties to multilateral conventions that relate to various aspects of the problem and were concluded under the auspices of the UN system of organizations. UN Doc. A/51/336 & Add.l (1996).
15 India circulated a draft for such a convention. See UN Doc. A/C.6/51/6 (1996).
16 These consultations were coordinated by Silvia Fernández de Gurmendi (Argentina).
17 The committee met for that purpose from February 24 to March 7, 1997. Work on the convention is to continue during the 52d session of the General Assembly, from September 22 to October 3, 1997, in the framework of a working group of the Sixth Committee.
18 GA Res. 51/210, para. 9, UN GAOR, 51st Sess., Supp. No. 49, Vol. 1, at 346, UN Doc. A/51/49 (1996).
19 For the 1994 declaration, see GA Res. 49/60, annex, UN GAOR,
20 See Report of the International Law Commission on the work of its forty-sixth session, UN GAOR, 49th Sess., Supp. No. 10, at 197, para. 222, UN Doc. A/49/10 (1994). See also Crook, John R. & McCaffrey, Stephen C., The United Nations Starts Work on a Watercourses Convention, 91 AJIL 374 (1997)CrossRefGoogle Scholar; Kamil, Idris & Mpazi, Sinjela, The Law of the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses: The International Law Commission’s Draft Articles— An Overview, 3 Afr. Y.B. Int’l L. 183 (1995)Google Scholar.
21 See GA Res. 49/52, UN GAOR, 49th Sess., Supp. No. 49, supra note 19, at 293.
22 See GA Res. 51/206, UN GAOR, 51st Sess., Supp. No. 49, supra note 18, Vol. 1, at 341.
23 The International Law Commission itself had this question on its agenda for over 20 years. See United Nations, The Work of the International Law Commission 111, UN Sales No. E.95.V.6 (5th ed. 1996).
24 The working group adopted the draft Convention by a vote of 42 to 3, with 18 abstentions. (The negative votes were cast by China, France and Turkey; the United States voted in favor.) Separate votes were held on some controversial provisions.
25 The term watercourse is defined in Article 2(a) as “a system of surface waters and groundwaters constituting by virtue of their physical relationship a unitary whole and normally flowing into a common terminus.”
26 Report of the Preparatory Committee on the Establishment of an International Criminal Court, UN GAOR, 51st Sess., Supp. No. 22, Vols. 1 & 2, UN Doc. A/51/22 (1996). Volume I contains a summary of the views expressed during the proceedings. Volume II contains a compilation of the various proposals that consists of over three hundred pages.
27 GA Res. 50/46, UN GAOR, 50th Sess., Supp. No. 49, supra note 7, Vol. 1, at 307.
28 The Preparatory Committee recommended the following substantive issues for consideration: (1) the definition and the elements of the Crimes; (2) the principles of Criminal law and penalties; (3) the organization of the court; (4) procedures; (5) the principle of complementarity and the trigger mechanism; (6) cooperation with states; (7) establishment of the court and its relationship with the United Nations; (8) final clauses and financial matters; and (9) other relevant matters. It further recommended that the General Assembly provide specific directions concerning its future work and working methods, including (1) meeting three or four times up to a total of nine weeks before the conference; (2) organizing its work to ensure its completion in April 1998 and to allow the widest possible participation of states; (3) establishing open-ended working groups to concentrate on negotiating proposals and producing a consolidated text to submit to the conference; (4) not scheduling simultaneous working group meetings; (5) using fully transparent working methods and working by general agreement to secure a universally acceptable convention; (6) not requiring Reports of debates; and (7) providing interpretation and translation services for working groups. Report of the Preparatory Committee, supra note 26, Vol. 1, at 75-76.
29 Id. at 76.
30 In addition to Volume I of the Report, see Christopher Keith, Hall, The First Two Sessions of the UN Preparatory Committee on the Establishment of an International Criminal Court, 91 AJIL 177 (1997)Google Scholar.
31 Report of the International Law Commission on the work of its forty-eighth session, UN GAOR, 51st Sess., Supp. No. 10, UN Doc. A/51/10 & Corr.1 (1996). The committee also had before it in connection with this item a note by the Secretary-General containing the draft articles adopted by the Commission at its forty-eighth session, UN Doc. A/51/332 & Corr.1 (1996). ,
32 See Robert, Rosenstock, The Forty-eighth Session of the International Law Commission, 91 AJIL 365 (1997)Google Scholar.
33 For the Convention, see GA Res. 59, annex, UN GAOR, 49th Sess., Supp. No. 49, supra note 19, vol. 1, at 299.
34 The Chair of the working group, Felicity Jane Wong (New Zealand), Reported orally to the Sixth Committee on the results of the discussions in the group. See UN Doc. A/C.6/51/SR.48 (1996).
35 The committee had before it for the consideration of this item the Report of the Secretary-General on the implementation of the third term (1995-1996) of the Decade, containing an analysis of Replies received from states and international governmental and nongovernmental organizations and bodies, as well as information on UN activities relevant to the progressive development of international law and its codification. See UN Doc. A/51/278 & Add.1 (1996).
36 The creation of such a library was proposed by the Secretary-General in 1995. See UN Doc. A/50/726, para. 123 (1995).
37 The Sixth Committee had before it in connection with the item the Report of the Secretary-General containing information on the topic submitted by 11 states, as well as a list of states parties to the Protocols Additional as of June 18, 1996. UN Doc. A/51/215 & Corr.1 & Add.1 (1996).
38 Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and Relating to the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts, opened for signature Dec. 12, 1977, 1125 UNTS 3 (Protocol I); and Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and Relating to the Protection of Victims of Non-International Armed Conflicts, opened for signature Dec. 12, 1977, 1125 UNTS 609 (Protocol II).
39 UN Docs. A/INF/50/3 (1995), A/51/257 & Add.l (1996). (The Secretary-General’s Reports are prepared on an annual basis to facilitate comparison and are considered by the Sixth Committee on a biennial basis.)
40 On the Reporting procedures, see Virginia, Morris & Christiane Bourloyannis-Vrailas, M., The Work of the Sixth Committee at the Forty-ninth Session of the UN General Assembly, 89 AJIL 607, 609 n.16 (1995)Google Scholar.
41 Report of the Committee on Relations with the Host Country, UN GAOR, 51st Sess., Supp. No. 26, UN Doc. A/51/26 (1996).