And yet for all the Ortega administration's enthusiasm, it is unclear how much the latest
World Court decision really helps the Nicaraguan cause, which continues to be hampered by complete intransigence on the part of authorities in Bogota.
Under existing procedures, framing questions to the
World Court is entirely a prerogative of states, either as contending parties or, as with the Kosovo opinion, operating through the UN.
An answer in the affirmative--that the Supreme Court would be obliged to obey the
World Court and order police officers imprisoned for five years--would have been subject to withering skepticism by the Court.
More to the point, notwithstanding Ocampo's good intentions, the
world court cannot put Bashir in the dock because Sudan as yet does not come under the jurisdiction of the
world court.
Chief Justice John Roberts stated that Article 94 of the UN Charter provides only that "each member of the United Nations undertakes to comply" with
World Court decisions, and that further action by Congress would be needed if the United States were to be subject to
World Court decisions.
LEAVE ISLET DISPUTE TO
WORLD COURT (The Daily Yomiuri as translated from the Yomiuri Shimbun)
entrance into the
World Court (1923), an effort that led to the organization of the first Conference on the Cause and the Cure of War in 1925.
Supreme Court is scheduled to hear a case that tests whether Jose Medellin, a Mexican national on death row in Texas, has a right to a new hearing in federal court after the
World Court ruling, the Los Angeles Times reported.
THE
WORLD COURT IN ACTION: JUDGING AMONG THE NATIONS.
Since the founding of the United Nations in 1945, the ICJ--also known as the "
World Court"--has functioned essentially as the judicial arm of the UN system.
And the United States is certain to veto any pro-Palestinian United Nations resolution ordering Israel to abide by the decision of the
World Court.
Israel's prime minister, Ariel Sharon, has ordered construction to continue on the West Bank security barrier, despite a
World Court ruling declaring the project illegal.
