The International Court of Justice launches new website
to mark the end of its sixtieth anniversary year
THE HAGUE, 16 April 2007. Today, as its sixtieth anniversary year draws to a close, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, launched its new website.
This user-friendly tool, which has a powerful search engine, contains five times more information than the old site, particularly on the 136 cases which the Court has dealt with since 1946. Easier to use, with its improved navigation, the site complies with international accessibility standards established for web users with visual impairments, who will thus be able to access the full range of content.
The new website can be accessed at the usual address: http://www.icj-cij.org .
The Court’s sixtieth anniversary Year started in April 2006, with a Colloquium for professionals on 10 and 11 April 2006, organized in co-operation with UNITAR (the United Nations Institute for Training and Research), http://www.unitar.org and a commemorative solemn sitting held on 12 April 2006 in the presence of Her Majesty Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, Messrs. Kofi Annan and Jan Eliasson, respectively former United Nations Secretary-General and General Assembly President, and Mr. Bernard R. Bot, former Dutch Minister for Foreign Affairs.
The jubilee was also marked by the visits of Their Majesties the King and Queen of Jordan on 31 October 2006, Mr. Ban Ki-moon, United Nations Secretary-General, on 1 February 2007, and of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland on 5 February 2007.
The launch of the new website of the Court brings to an end a year full of events and festivities, which was also characterized by substantial judicial work. During the past year, the Court has delivered its Judgment in the case concerning the Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (Bosnia and Herzegovina v. Serbia and Montenegro) and has twice issued Orders on requests for the indication of provisional measures in the case concerning Pulp Mills on the River Uruguay (Argentina v. Uruguay). The Court has also held public hearings in the case concerning Ahmadou Sadio Diallo (Republic of Guinea v. Democratic Republic of the Congo) and, more recently, in the case concerning Maritime Delimitation between Nicaragua and Honduras in the Caribbean Sea (Nicaragua v. Honduras)
Extensive content and new features
From now on, the Court’s entire jurisprudence since 1946 will be available online, as will that of its predecessor, the Permanent Court of International Justice. The full texts of ICJ and PCIJ decisions (in text format for the more recent cases and in PDF format for the older ones), as well as the principal documents from the written and oral proceedings of various cases, can be researched quickly and easily thanks to the high-performance search engine. Additional information concerning the functioning of the Court, its history, its Members, the judges ad hoc and the Registry will also be featured.
As in the past, the site will be available in the two official languages of the Court, English and French. It will also now be possible to navigate between English and French versions of any document in text format simply by clicking the mouse, while remaining on the same page. Given the Court’s worldwide scope and in order to enhance global accessibility of information about it, a number of documents will now also be available in the four other official languages of the United Nations: Arabic, Chinese, Russian and Spanish. Among these documents are the United Nations Charter, the Statute of the Court, the Court’s Annual Reports to the General Assembly since 1990 and the summaries of decisions of the Court (from 1946 to 2002).
The new site will offer detailed information for those wishing to visit the Court, including a calendar of events and hearings, directions to the Peace Palace, and online admission forms for groups wishing to attend hearings or presentations on the activities of the Court. Vacancy announcements and summer internship opportunities will appear in the section “Employment”.
A “press room” has been set up, where the media can find all information necessary to cover the work of the Court and to accredit themselves for hearings. A photo gallery will be permanently available, from which high-resolution digital photos can be downloaded free of charge for non-commercial use. In the future, audio and video material from hearings and readings of decisions will also be accessible.
Information Department:
Mrs. Laurence Blairon, Secretary of the Court, Head of Department
(+31 (0)70 302 2336)
Messrs. Boris Heim and Maxime Schouppe, Information Officers
(+31 (0)70 302 2337)
Ms Joanne Moore, Assistant Information Officer (+31 (0)70 302 2394)
The International Court of Justice http://www.icj-cij.org
to mark the end of its sixtieth anniversary year
THE HAGUE, 16 April 2007. Today, as its sixtieth anniversary year draws to a close, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, launched its new website.
This user-friendly tool, which has a powerful search engine, contains five times more information than the old site, particularly on the 136 cases which the Court has dealt with since 1946. Easier to use, with its improved navigation, the site complies with international accessibility standards established for web users with visual impairments, who will thus be able to access the full range of content.
The new website can be accessed at the usual address: http://www.icj-cij.org .
The Court’s sixtieth anniversary Year started in April 2006, with a Colloquium for professionals on 10 and 11 April 2006, organized in co-operation with UNITAR (the United Nations Institute for Training and Research), http://www.unitar.org and a commemorative solemn sitting held on 12 April 2006 in the presence of Her Majesty Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, Messrs. Kofi Annan and Jan Eliasson, respectively former United Nations Secretary-General and General Assembly President, and Mr. Bernard R. Bot, former Dutch Minister for Foreign Affairs.
The jubilee was also marked by the visits of Their Majesties the King and Queen of Jordan on 31 October 2006, Mr. Ban Ki-moon, United Nations Secretary-General, on 1 February 2007, and of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland on 5 February 2007.
The launch of the new website of the Court brings to an end a year full of events and festivities, which was also characterized by substantial judicial work. During the past year, the Court has delivered its Judgment in the case concerning the Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (Bosnia and Herzegovina v. Serbia and Montenegro) and has twice issued Orders on requests for the indication of provisional measures in the case concerning Pulp Mills on the River Uruguay (Argentina v. Uruguay). The Court has also held public hearings in the case concerning Ahmadou Sadio Diallo (Republic of Guinea v. Democratic Republic of the Congo) and, more recently, in the case concerning Maritime Delimitation between Nicaragua and Honduras in the Caribbean Sea (Nicaragua v. Honduras)
Extensive content and new features
From now on, the Court’s entire jurisprudence since 1946 will be available online, as will that of its predecessor, the Permanent Court of International Justice. The full texts of ICJ and PCIJ decisions (in text format for the more recent cases and in PDF format for the older ones), as well as the principal documents from the written and oral proceedings of various cases, can be researched quickly and easily thanks to the high-performance search engine. Additional information concerning the functioning of the Court, its history, its Members, the judges ad hoc and the Registry will also be featured.
As in the past, the site will be available in the two official languages of the Court, English and French. It will also now be possible to navigate between English and French versions of any document in text format simply by clicking the mouse, while remaining on the same page. Given the Court’s worldwide scope and in order to enhance global accessibility of information about it, a number of documents will now also be available in the four other official languages of the United Nations: Arabic, Chinese, Russian and Spanish. Among these documents are the United Nations Charter, the Statute of the Court, the Court’s Annual Reports to the General Assembly since 1990 and the summaries of decisions of the Court (from 1946 to 2002).
The new site will offer detailed information for those wishing to visit the Court, including a calendar of events and hearings, directions to the Peace Palace, and online admission forms for groups wishing to attend hearings or presentations on the activities of the Court. Vacancy announcements and summer internship opportunities will appear in the section “Employment”.
A “press room” has been set up, where the media can find all information necessary to cover the work of the Court and to accredit themselves for hearings. A photo gallery will be permanently available, from which high-resolution digital photos can be downloaded free of charge for non-commercial use. In the future, audio and video material from hearings and readings of decisions will also be accessible.
Information Department:
Mrs. Laurence Blairon, Secretary of the Court, Head of Department
(+31 (0)70 302 2336)
Messrs. Boris Heim and Maxime Schouppe, Information Officers
(+31 (0)70 302 2337)
Ms Joanne Moore, Assistant Information Officer (+31 (0)70 302 2394)
The International Court of Justice http://www.icj-cij.org