This session will deal with the advisory opinion delivered on 25 February 2019 by the International Court of Justice on the Legal Consequences of the Separation of the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius in 1965.

The findings of the Court on several important legal issues, such as the law of decolonisation, the scope of the right of peoples to self-determination and its relationship with the principle of territorial integrity, the legal value of UN General Assembly resolutions, the validity of agreements concluded between administering powers and the representatives of the population of a colony upon independence, the right of forcibly removed persons to return to their land and the consequences of the breach of erga omnes obligations, will be addressed and analysed. Attention will similarly be given to the possible impact of the advisory opinion on other existing situations, such as the British Sovereign Base Areas in Cyprus, the French presence in Mayotte and the right of return of Palestinian refugees.

This session will be an opportunity to discuss and reflect upon the ICJ’s advisory jurisdiction and judicial policy. In the Chagos opinion, the Court concluded, amongst other things, that the process of decolonisation of Mauritius was not lawfully completed and that the United Kingdom is under an obligation to bring to an end its administration of the Chagos Archipelago as soon as possible. This opinion may be considered to be in striking contrast with the way in which the Court has approached other cases, such as the Nuclear Disarmament cases brought by the Marshall Islands and the Kosovo advisory opinion, in which the Court appears to have been reluctant to properly handle highly sensitive issues. Which factors could explain such apparent behavioral inconsistency? Tentative answers to this question will be given.

Panel: 

• Andrea Bianchi, Professor of International Law, The Graduate Institute
• Marcelo Kohen, Professor of International Law, The Graduate Institute
• Moderator: Ms Julia Miklasova, PhD candidate, The Graduate Institute 

The interventions of the panelists will be followed by a Q&A session.

The text of this relatively short opinion is available on the ICJ’s website

If you would like to attend, you are strongly encouraged to read the opinion beforehand.