Dissenting Opinion of Judge Schwebel

Document Number
072-19870527-ADV-01-05-EN
Parent Document Number
072-19870527-ADV-01-00-EN
Document File
Bilingual Document File

DISSENTING OPINION OF JUDGE SCHWEBEL

Whilejoining my colleagues in voting in favour of the Court's render-
ing an Advisory Opinionin this case, and infavour ofthe Court's reply to
question 1,1regret to be obliged to dissent from theOpinion as awhole in
viewof my disagreement with the Court's reply to the essential question,
question 2.

1havevoted infavour ofthe Court's reply to question 1with some hesi-
tation. That reply is, 1believe, correct, not because Judgement No. 333
of the United Nations Administrative Tribunal is sound, nor because

the Tribunal adequately or rightly responded to the question of whether
a legal impediment existed to the further employment by the United
Nations of Mr. Yakimetz after the expiration of his fixed-term contract
on 26 December 1983. On the contrary, the Tribunal's Judgement is
spangled with error and such inferential response as it may be said to
have given to the question of a legal impediment was unsupported by
the facts. Nevertheless, the Court's reply to question 1may be accepted
as correct within the narrow confines of that question, as the Court has
chosen - even more narrowly - to interpret it, namely: the Tribunal
did not fail to exercise itsjurisdiction since one may deduce from Judg-
ment 333'selliptical text,as elucidated withthe help of itsconcurring and
dissenting opinions, that the Tribunal did address its mind to the ques-
tion of whether a legal impediment to a career appointment existed. As
far as the text of that Judgement reveals, the Tribunal's mind was far

from clear; at any rate, the expression which the Judgement gives of the
Tribunal's ratiocinations in this regard is obscure. Nevertheless, for the
reasons which Judge Jennings sets forth in the dissenting opinion which
follows this opinion,the Court's reply to question 1is sustainable, since
the Judgement of theTribunal would not appearto constitute a failure to
exercisejurisdiction so much as an erroneous exercise ofit. Accordingly,
to vote in favour of the Court's answer to question 1 is by no means to
suggest that the results of the Tribunal's addressing its mind to the
issue of a legal impediment are correct. The Court's opinion rightly
stops short of any such holding or inference. 111 APPLICATION FOR REVIEW (DISS.OP.SCHWEBEL)

The essential issues of the Yakimetzcase are encompassed by ques-
tion 2. As the Secretary-General has acknowledged, the dispute between
the parties turns on "essentially whether the Applicant was given 'every
reasonable consideration' for a career appointment pursuant to General
Assembly resolution 37/126 . . .(A/AC.86/R. 118). If he was not, but
if the Tribunal held that he was, the question then arises whether the

Tribunal thus "erred on a question of lawrelating to the provisions of the
Charter of the United Nations".
Forthe reasons so ably and precisely set out inJudge Jennings' opinion
- and particularly because of the terms of the correspondence he fully
quotes which passed between the Secretary-General and Mr. Yakimetz,
which need not be repeated in this opinion - 1am convinced that, in
fact, the Secretary-General did not give Mr. Yakimetz's candidacy for a
career appointment "every reasonable consideration" - or indeed any
consideration. The letter written on behalf of the Secretary-General on
21 December 1983 is unambiguous and dispositive. It indicates that
Mr. Yakimetz's candidacy for a career appointment could not be given
every reasonable consideration because "Your situation" was "not
similar to that of 'most staff members' with comparable service records,

because your present contract was concluded on the basis of a second-
ment fromyour national civilservice". Itholdsthat, being seconded, and
having no "expectancy of renewal without the involvement of al1the
parties originally concerned", and having no "expectancy .. of conver-
sion to any other type of appointment", Mr. Yakimetz's name could not
be "'forwarded to the appropriate Appointment and Promotionbody for
reasonable consideration' for career appointment". 1 fail to see how
an analysis of the correspondence between the Secretary-General and
Mr. Yakimetz, particularly the letter of 21 December 1983,can sustain
another interpretation. 1find the construction placed upon that corres-
pondence by the Tribunal and by the Court unconvincing - more, in
Judge Jennings' term, "not possible".

Itis significant that the Tribunal itself could do no more than speak
of what the Secretary-General "apparently decided"; it relies upon an
alleged "plain and simple inference" which it purports to extract from
the text of the critical letter of 21 December 1983.It cannot rely on the
explicit language of that letter, which cuts the other way.
It is true that the letter of 21 December 1983States that "The Secre-
tary-General has given careful consideration tothe issues raised" by Mr.
Yakimetz in his counsel's letter of 13 December, among which was
Mr. Yakimetz's entitlement to "every reasonable consideration" for a
career appointment. But the terms of the letter of 21 December express-
ly exclude precisely that latter consideration; accordingly, the inference 112 APPLICATION FOR REVlEW (DISS.OP. SCHWEBEL)

which the Tribunal purports to discover, relying only on this reference
"to the issues" which the Secretary-General considered, is fanciful.
The specific governs the general. It is also significant that the Tribunal
feltobligedtocriticize the Secretary-General for hisfailure to statepli-
citly" before 26 December 1983that he had given "every reasonablecon-
sideration" to the Applicant's career appointment; theTribunal recorded
its dissatisfaction at the Secretary-General's "failure.. to record suffi-
ciently early and in specificterms the fact" that he had giventhat appoint-

ment the consideration "enjoined" by the General Assembly. Yet the
Tribunal nowhere supplies a particle of direct evidence in support of its
finding of that "fact" (which it acknowledges actually to be no more
than an inference), nor has a shred of such evidence been pleaded by the
Secretary-General at any stage of the case. For its part, the Court, which
has scrutinized the record of the case, has been unable to produce one
scrap of evidence in support of the Tribunal's finding that the Secretary-
General gave Mr. Yakimetz's candidacy for a career appointment every
reasonable or indeed any consideration.

There are two further factors which reinforce the conclusion which
Judge Jennings and Judge Evensen and 1share in this regard. They sit

uneasily with the inferential interpretation placed upon the relevant
correspondence by theTribunal and the Court.The first isthat the Secre-
tary-General debarred Mr. Yakimetz from the premises of the United
Nations, a debarral dictated shortly after Mr. Yakimetz's resignation
from Soviet officia1 positions and his application for asylum in the
United States, and maintained thereafter to the very end of Mr. Yaki-
metz's service in the Organization. It was explained in his Comments
submitted to the Court on 26 June 1985(but not explained to Mr. Yaki-
metz atthe operativetime) that this "decision not to permit the Applicant,
thecentre ofacontroversybetweentwomember States,to enterthe Head-
quarters buildings", was "an administrative decision taken in the light of
al1the circumstances of the case and in order to avoid potentially dis-
ruptive consequences for the functioning of the Secretariat" (para. 17).

The mildest observation that may be made in respect of this extraordi-
nary action is that it was hardly consistent with a then existing, contem-
poraneous disposition, or subsequent disposition, on the part of the
Secretary-General to extend to Mr. Yakimetz every reasonable con-
sideration for a career appointment. Can it really be supposed that, at
one and the same time, during a period for al1of which Mr. Yakimetz
remainedbarred from entering the Headquarters building, the Secretary-
General was giving every reasonable consideration to his careerappoint-
ment? Can itbe thought that it was the viewof the Secretary-General that
a staff member merited continued exclusionfrom his office and from the United Nations corridors and cafeteria and, at the same time, every rea-

sonable consideration for a permanent appointmentupon the expiration
of the fixed-term appointment which he was debarred from seming out
on United Nations premises? Would the "potentially disruptive conse-
quences" to which,postfacto,the Secretary-General alluded, have disap-
peared during the post-1983 period in which Mr. Yakimetz, holding a
permanent appointment, would have served, or does this comment of
the Secretary-General indicate that the controversial Mr. Yakimetz,
whose lunching in the cafeteria could be "disruptive", could not be
seriously considered for a United Nations career, even though his per-
formance ratings were excellent and even though resolution 37/126

required that he be given every reasonable consideration?

The second factor is that the Secretary-General failedto acknowledge,
let alone act upon, the application for a permanent appointment which
Mr. Yakimetz officially submitted on 9January 1984,days after the expi-
ration of his fixed-term appointment.That reaction, or lack of reaction, to
Mr. Yakimetz's application for a career appointment suggests not that
"every reasonable consideration" was given to it, but that noconsi-
deration was given to it. If there is another explanation of the Secretary-

General's failure to reply to Mr. Yakimetz's application which is more
favourable to the Secretary-General's position, it has not beenrth-
coming.

It might be speculated that the Secretary-General did not reply to
Mr.Yakimetz'sapplication for a career appointment of9Januaryecause
Mr. Yakimetz filed his application with the Administrative Tribunal on
6January. Butthat is conjecture. What is significant isthatthe Secretary-
General has never advanced thisargument,not to Mr. Yakimetz in Janu-
ary 1984as he could so readily have done, nor to theTribunal orthe Court

thereafter. One is left with the conclusionthat the failure to acknowledge
or respond to Mr. Yakimetz's application of 9 January confirms the
failure of the Secretary-General to give Mr. Yakimetz's candidacy every
or any reasonable consideration.

THENATURE OF AN ERROR OF LAW "RELATING TO" THE CHARTER A;ND
FURTHEO RBSERVAT~O ONQSUESTIO2 N,INCLUDING THETRIBUNALE RROR

RELATlNG TOARTICLE 101,PARAGRAP 1,OF THE CHARTER

Beforelooking more closelyatthe errors of lawrelating to provisions of
the Charter ofthe United Nations made bythe Administrative Tribunal in
this case, it may be useful to comment upon that provision of the Tribu-
nal'sStatute. The terms of Article 11ofthe Statute of the Tribunal, as well
as ittravauxpréparatoiresmake clear that an error of law "relating ton
provisions of the United Nations Charter need not squarely and directly engage a provision of the Charter. It is sufficient if such an error is "in
relationship to" the Charter, "has reference tomthe Charter, or "is con-
nected with" the Charter. (See the definitions under "relate" and "relat-
ing" found in The Oxford Dictionary,1910,Vol.VIII, pp. 397-398,and in
Webster'sThird New International Dictionary of the English Language,
Unabridged, 1976,p. 1916.)The phrase "the provisions" of the Charter

cannot mean al1the provisions of the Charter, because no error of the
Administrative Tribunal could apply to al1the provisions of the Charter;
that phrase must mean, "one or more provisions" ofthe Charter. Anerror,
if itis to furnish ground for objection to a judgement of the Tribunal,
must have a relationship to or be connected with at least one provision
. of the Charter. Moreover, when Article 11of the Statute of the Tribunal
was adopted, it was declared by the CO-sponsorsof the language in
question that : "Thewords 'relatingto theprovisionsof the Charter'covered
not only interpretations ofthe provisions of the Charter but also theinter-
pretation orapplication ofstaffregulations derivingfrom ChapterXVof the
Charter." (A/AC.78/SR.10, p. 3, quoted in Application for Review of
Judgement No. 273 of the United Nations Administrative Tribunal, I.C.J.
Reports 1982, p. 394,para. 9,and p.469,para. 21 ;emphasisadded.) It was
understood that :

"The CO-sponsorsintended bythe phrase: 'aquestion of lawrelat-
ing to the provisions of the Charter' to provide for a case not only
where the Administrative Tribunal might be considered to have
misinterpreted the Charter, but also where the Tribunal might
have interpreted and applied the Staff Regulations in a manner
considered to be inconsistent with the provisions of Chapter XV of

the Charter." (United Nations, GAOR, 10thSession,Annexes, Report
of the Special Cornmitteeon ReviewofAdministrative TribunalJudge-
ments,p. 10;quoted in I.C.J. Reports 1982,p. 471,para. 24.)

When the Secretary-General fails to apply a provision of a resolution
binding upon him whichtheGeneral Assemblyhasadopted in pursuance
of its authorityunder Article 101,paragraph 1,ofthe Charter, which pro-

vides that, "The staff shall be appointed by the Secretary-General under
regulations establishedby theGeneral Assembly", and when the Admini-
strative Tribunal omits to recognize that failure - and consequently
accepts a failure to apply the governing regulation - the Tribunal errs
on a question of law "relating to" the Charter. That is exactly the instant
case. It is exactly the kind of case which the General Assembly had in
mind when it adopted Article 11of the Statute of the Administrative Tri-
bunal, as the foregoing quotations from the travauxpréparatoiresshow.

It is of course true that the Secretary-General does not now acknow-
ledgethat he failed to apply aprovision ofa General Assemblyresolution
which he does acknowledge isbinding upon him. He rather has affirmedto the Administrative Tribunal and to this Court what hehad omitted to
affirm to Mr. Yakimetz: that he had given a career appointment for
Mr.Yakimetz everyreasonable consideration. The Secretary-General was
placed in a difficult position by the circumstances of theakimetzcase;
and his affirmations placed the Tribunal, and this Court, in a delicate
position. The reluctance of the Tribunal and the Court to discount
the Secretary-General's affirmations is understandable. But, as Judge

Jennings shows, the essence ofadministrative law and process entails the
possibility of disallowance of the executive'saffirmations. If what is the
fact depends solely on the executive'spost facto, unproved affirmation
of what was the fact, there is no utility in administrative law, processes,
and tribunals. For mypart, with everyrespect forthe Secretary-General's
goodwill and good faith, 1regret to be impelled to Saythat these unsup-
ported statements of the Secretary-General cannot be accepted as
governing.
It would be otherwise if the Secretary-General had substantiated his
alleged consideration not merely by broad and conclusory statements
made well after the operative time, solely in an adversarial context, and
exclusivelyto theTribunal and this Court (never,atthe operative time, to
Mr.Yakimetz). Itwould be othenvise ifthe Secretary-General's represen-
tative had not written to Mr. Yakimetz inthe terms of the letter of 21 De-

cember 1983.But at the operative time, the Secretary-General, far from
informing Mr. Yakimetzthat everyreasonableconsideration to his career
appointment had been given, was being given, or would be given, wrote
Mr. Yakimetz that he could not be given consideration for a career
appointment "because your present contract was concluded on the basis
of a secondment from your national civil service". 1do not believe that
the Secretary-General now can be heard to Saythe contrary of what he
said atthat determinative time.

THEROLE OF THE COURT IN THISCLASS OF CASE

The Court reassures itselfabout thejustice of an opinion about whicht
appears none too sure by maintaining that its proper role in this class of

case isnot to retry the case and to attempt to substitute itsown opinion on
the merits forthat oftheTribunal. Butthe Court does not equally empha-
sizewhat it held in 1982,that it is
"very much the businessofthis Courtto judge whether there isacon-
tradiction between a particular interpretation or application of Staff
Regulations and Rules by the Tribunal and any of the provisions of

the Charter" (I.C.J. Reports 1982,p. 359,para. 66).
TheCourt failsto stressthat, as itheld in 1973,theCourt's role isto deter-
mine if the circumstances of the case, "whether they relate to merits or
procedure", show that any objection made tothe judgement on one ofthe
grounds mentioned in Article 11is wellfounded: 116 APPLICATION FOR REVIEW (DISS.OP.SCHWEBEL)

"In so doing,the Court is not limited to the contents of the chal-
lenged award itself, but takes under its consideration al1relevant
aspects ofthe proceedings before theTribunalas well as al1relevant
matters submitted to the Court itself by the staff member and by the
Secretary-General with regard to the objections raised against that

judgement. These objections the Court examines on their merits in
the light of the information before it." (Applicationfor Reviewof
Judgement No. 158 of the United Nations Administrative Tribunal,
I.C.J.Reports1973,p. 188,para. 47.)

Indeed as the Court further held in the Faslacase, "where thejudgement
has been challenged on the ground of an error on a question of law relat-
ing tothe provisions of the Charter,the Court may ...be called upon to
review the actual substance of the decision" (ibid.,para. 48). The Court
further held that, in reviewproceedings, the Court does not regard itself
"as precluded from examining in full liberty the facts of the case or from
checking theTribunal's appreciation of the facts" (ibid.,p. 207,para. 85).
The extent ofthe Court's authority to examine infullliberty the factsof
the case and to pass upon the merits of the Tribunal's Judgement is con-
firmed by the fact that its advisory opinion in this class of case binds the

Secretary-General and theTribunal. Article 11,paragraph 3,oftheTribu-
nal's Statute provides :

"In any case in which a request has been made for an advisory
opinion,the Secretary-General shall either give effecttothe opinion
oftheCourt orrequest theTribunal to convenespecially in order that
it shallconfirm its original judgement, or give a newjudgement, in
conformity withtheopinion ofthe Court. Ifnot requested to convene
specially the Tribunal shall at its next session confirm itsjudgement
or bring it into conformity with the opinion of the Court."

Thephrase, "in conformity withtheopinion ofthe Court" in the first sen-
tence of the foregoing quotation governs the whole of that sentence, as its
punctuation demonstrates. Thus the Secretary-General himself either
must giveeffecttotheCourt's opinion ortheTribunal mustact to confirm

itsoriginaljudgement or giveanewjudgement, both ofwhichjudgements
must be "in conformity with the opinion of the Court". This ineluctable
interpretation isconfirmed bythesecondsentence ofthe foregoing provi-
sion,which likewiseobligestheTribunal to bring itsjudgement "into con-
formity with the opinion of the Court". Asthe Court itself recognized in
the Faslacase, "the opinion given by the Court is to have a conclusive
effect with respect to the matters in litigation" in the case before the
Administrative Tribunal (I.C.J.Reports 1973,p. 182,para. 39). This is a
"special effect to be attributed to the Court's opinion by Article 11of
the Statute of the United Nations Administrative Tribunal . . ."(ibid.,
p. 183,para. 39).
Moreover, it was recognized by itsCO-sponsorsin the course of adopt- 117 APPLICATION FOR REVIEW (DISS.OP.SCHWEBEL)

ing Article 11of the Tribunal's Statute that "the International Court of
Justice should be the final authority on interpretation oftheCharteror of
staffregulations based thereonwhich might be involved in the Tribunal's
decisions" (GAOR, 10th Session, FijithCommittee, 498th Meeting,p. 66
(emphasis added); see I.C.J.Reports1982,p.473,para. 27).TheCourt was

intended to be and, by the terms of the Tribunal's Statute, is "the final
judicial arbiter on questions of Charter law"; and "no organ would be
more competent to settle other issues arising fromthe grounds specified
for review" (Report of theFijithCommittee, GAOR, 10thSession, Agenda
item49,Annexes, p.40; see I.C.J.Reports 1982,p. 474,para. 28).It issigni-
ficant that not only was "the final authority" of the Court emphasized -
an authority which accordingly must be able to substitute its opinion on
the merits for that of the Administrative Tribunal, for an opinion which
does not govern cannot be "final". It isequallysignificant that itwasmade
clear by the Report of the Fifth Committee that the jurisdiction of the
Court was defined to embracethe "legitimate interest in ensuring proper
application of the Charter and the Staff Regulations ..." (ibid.).It could
not be plainer that, under Article 11of the Tribunal's Statute, the Court
is "the final authority on interpretation .. .of staff regulations based" on
the Charter, i.e., regulations established by the General Assembly under
Article 101,paragraph 1,oftheCharter - such asthat expressed by reso-
lution 37/126, IV,paragraph 5.

In view of the terms of the Tribunal's Statute and the foregoing inten-
tions of its draftsmen, and in view of the Court's proper holding that it
may examine "in full liberty the facts of the case" and check "the Tribu-
nal's appreciation of the facts" (I.C.J. Reports 1973,p. 207, para. 85), 1
believe that today's opinion of the Court, and previous opinions to like
effect, are on weak ground when they shelter behind the conclusion that,
"the Court's proper roleisnot to retrythe caseand to attempt to substitute
itsown opinion on the merits forthat oftheTribunal" (I.C.J.Reports1982,
p. 356,para. 58,adopted in this opinion in paras. 27and 89).On the con-
trary, the Court, when seised of a case of this kind, exercises "judicial
review ...The opinion of the Court is tobe given a reformatory charac-
ter." Since an objection on the ground that the Tribunal has erred on a

question of law relating to a provision of the Charter "relates not to the
validity of the judgment but to the merits of the judgment" of the
Tribunal, this ground affords the Court "true appellate jurisdiction" (Leo
Gross, "Participation of Individuals in Advisory Proceedings before
the International Court of Justice: Question of Equality between the
Parties", 52 American Journalof InternationalLaw(1958),p. 36.) This is the conclusion which Judge Oda, in his separate opinion, and
which 1,in my dissenting opinion, reachedin 1982inthe Mortishedcase,

after an examination of the drafting history of Article 11of the Statute
of the Administrative Tribunal; it remains correct today (see I.C.J.
Reports 1982,pp. 393-397,468-470,471, and Judge Oda's separate opin-
ion inthe current case,paras. 14-18).It isfullyjustified bythe intent ofthe
General Assembly in adopting Article 11of the Statute of the Adminis-
trative Tribunal, asthat intent is shown by the quotations from the tra-
vaux préparatoires set out above and in the cited Mortished opinions.
In such a case, the Court isentitled - if not required - to substitute its
opinion for that of the Tribunal on the merits, and both the Secretary-
General and the Tribunal are bound to conform their judgments to the
Court's opinion. What is at issue in the Yakimetz case is the Adminis-

trative Tribunal's "interpretation or application" - or misinterpreta-
tion or misapplication - "of staff regulations deriving from Chapter XV
of the Charter", an issue explicitly declared by the drafters of Article 11
of the Statute to be within the Court's competence. The Court is fully
empowered to givean opinion on the merits of that issue. Its failure to do
so constitutes a failure to exercise a responsibility validly entrusted to it
by the General Assembly.
It maybeaddedthat the exclusionary approach to itsjurisdiction which
the Court finds it convenient to adopt in the current case contrasts
tellingly with the extraordinarily expansive approach to its jurisdic-
tion which the Courtfound it convenient to adopt inthe case concerning
Military and Paramilitary Activities in and against Nicaragua (I.C.J.

Reports 1984,p. 392; (I.C.J. Reports 1986,p. 14).

While the critical error of law relating to a provision of the United
Nations Charter in this case lies in the Tribunal's failure to find that
the Secretary-General had not given Mr. Yakimetz7scandidacy every
reasonable consideration, and in its consequent failure to require the
Secretary-General to comply with a regulation binding upon him, estab-

lished bythe General Assemblyinpursuance of Article 101,paragraph 1,
of the Charter, still another error of law relates to Article 101,
paragraph 3, of the Charter. That provision in effect establishes three
"paramount" considerations in the employment of staff: efficiency,
competence, and integrity. It further provides that :"Due regard shall be
paid to the importance of recruiting staff on as wide a geographical
basis as possible." That lesser consideration in no way imports that a
change in the nationality of a staff member, much less actions mani-
festing an intent to seek a change in nationality, are considerations
relevant to the suitability for continued semice of such a staff mem-
ber. The Administrative Tribunal held in the Estabial case (Judgement119 APPLICATION FOR REVIEW (DISS.OP.SCHWEBEL)

No. 310) that considerations of geographical distribution may not be
given precedence over an employment decision which is to be reached
on the basis of an assessment of an official's efficiency, competence
and integrity. No less must the paramount considerations of efficiency,
competence and integrity govern considerations of nationality, which
are not even mentionedin theCharter.

For his part, however, the Secretary-General, in his actions relating to
Mr. Yakimetz, clearly gave weightto what he described as "the events of

10February 1983,and thereafter" (the date being that of Mr. Yakimetz's
communication to the Government of the USSR resigning his positions
withit);in hisComments tothe Court of 26June 1985,the Secretary-Gen-
eral acknowledged that al1the circumstances of which he took account
"obviously included the Applicant's proposed change of nationality"
(para. 14).For itspart, theTribunal defined asone ofthethree legalissues
ofthe case :"The consequences oftheapplication ofUnited Nations rules
and regulations in relation to the United States law on resident status and
citizenship." In that regard, it held:

"XII. The Applicant was entitled to act in any wayhe considered
best inhis interest, but he must necessarilyface the consequences for
hisactions.. .Another consequence ofhisactionsraised the question
of his suitability as an international civil servant. In Judgement
No. 326 (Fischman),the Tribunal referred to the widely held belief
mentioned in a report of the Fifth Committee of theGeneral Assem-
bly that

'International officials should be true representatives of the cul-
tures and personality of the country of which they were nationals,
and that those who elected to break their ties with that country
could no longer claim to fulfil the conditions governing employ-
ment in the United Nations',

and held that this 'mustcontinue to provide an essential guidance in
thismatter'. In the samejudgement, the Tribunal also recalled a part
of Information Circular ST/AFS/SER.A/238 of 19 January 1954
which stated, interalia,that

'The decision of a staff member to remain on or acquireperma-
nent residence status in... [the]country [ofhis duty station] in no
way represents an interest of theUnited Nations. On the contrary,
this decision may adversely affect the interests of the United Nations in the case of internationally recruited staff members
in the Professional category.. .'

The Applicant had been granted asylum in the United States of
America and there arose the problem of his having to waive privi-
legesand immunitieswith the permission ofthe Respondent. Such a
waiverwasnecessaryfor changing hisvisacategory under the United
States laws. However there was apparently no immediate problem

and itseemsthatno request wasmade totheRespondentfor agreeing
to the Applicant waiving his privileges and immunities. Besides,
a private bill was later introduced on the Applicant's behalf in the
United States House and Senate.

XIII. In viewofthe foregoing,the Tribunalconcludes that during
the period of his service with the United Nations the Applicant was
under secondment which, as already stated, could not be modified
except with the consent of al1three parties and that no tacit agree-
ment existed between the Applicant and the Respondent between
10February 1983and 26 December 1983changing the character of
their relationship.
XIV. With these conclusions in mind the Tribunal considered the
Applicant's plea that he was entitled to, but was denied, the right to
receive 'everyreasonable consideration' in terms of paragraph 5 of
General Assemblyresolution 37/126, IV,of 17December 1982."

It is one of several perplexities posed by the Administrative Tribunal's
Judgement that the Tribunal failsto make clear the relevance to itsJudge-
ment, ifany, ofparagraph XII and itsincorporation ofpassages ofitscon-
temporaneous Judgement No. 326 in the Fischman case (made by the
same Tribunal majority, i.e., President Ustor and Vice-President Sen).
Fischmanrefersto an allegedly "widely held belief' mentionedin areport
of the Fifth Committee that an international officia1who elects to break

his ties withhis country could no longer claimto fulfiltheconditions gov-
erning employment by the United Nations. Whatever the point of the
Tribunal's invocation inthe YakimetzJudgementof 8June 1984ofwhat it
said on 17May 1984inthe Fischmancase,what isclear isthat theTribunal
concluded that "an essential guidance inthis matter" (i.e.,Fischman)isthe
aforesaid "widely held belief" and that a "consequence of his [Mr. Yaki-
metz's]actions" in seekingto change hisnationality wasto raise "the ques-
tion of his [Mr. Yakimetz's]suitability as an international civil servant",
because of the doctrine set out in and quoted from Fischmanwhich pro-
vides "essential guidance". TheTribunal further held that "In viewofthe
foregoing" (para. XIII), and "With these conclusions in mind"
(para. XIV) - i.e., apparently, its foregoing holdings, among others, about Mr. Yakimetz's suitability - the Tribunal considered the Appli-
cant's pleas respecting entitlement to but denial of everyreasonable con-
siderationfor a career appointment.

In so holding, theTribunal committed an error of law relating to a pro-
vision ofthe United Nations Charter, namely Article 101,paragraph 3.As
noted above, a change of nationality, much less an intended change of
nationality, isnot, or should not be, a consideration "essentially" bearing
upon employment of United Nations staff. Achange ofnationality, while
it may marginally affect computation of national quotas, does not detract
from the efficiency,competence or integrity ofa staff member. It does not
throw into question the "suitability" of "an international civil servant"
forcontinued service.In certain circumstances,itmight evenbe evidence
that such a staff member sought to avoid receipt of, or compliance with,
"instructions from any government or from any other authority external
to the Organization". The Applicant indeed alleges the existenceof such
circumstances in this case. His allegations, for which some supporting
evidence has been introduced, have not been refuted or even denied.

This is not to Say that the Secretary-General transgressed Article 101,
paragraph 3, of the Charter in taking account of Mr. Yakimetz's pro-
posed change of nationality; such a proposed change was among the
circumstances he could weigh in the process of giving Mr. Yakimetz
considerationfor a career appointment - provided that he actually gave
Mr. Yakimetz that consideration. It is to Saythat the Tribunal's holding
that that proposed change put into question - it indicates, "essential"
question - Mr. Yakimetz's suitability for continued United Nations
servicedid transgress Article 101,paragraph 3,of the Charter.

The question before the Court in the Yakimetz case naturally is not
whether the Administrative Tribunal's Judgement in the Fischmancase

contained an error of law relating to a Charter provision, but whether the
reliance on the passage of the FischmanJudgement quoted by the Tribu-
nal in its Yakimetz Judgement imported an error into that Judgement,
and, if so,whether it isan error of law relating to a Charter provision. The
Tribunal found it appropriate to incorporate holdings in the Fischman
case into Yakimetz, holdings which attribute "essential guidance" to
a so-called "widely held belief" about the legal consequences to be
attached to a United Nations official's change of nationality. It thereby
invested maintenance of nationality of a United Nations officia1with an
essentiality or paramountcy which conflicts withthe terms of Article 101,
paragraph 3, of the Charter. Beliefs expressed in a United Nations committee, whether widely held or not, are not sources of law; still less
may they derogate from the terms of the Charter. The weight attached
by the Administrative Tribunal to that belief thus constitutes an error of
law relating to a provision of the Charter. That error does not appear to
have had dispositive effect on the Tribunal's Judgement; for this reason,
it may be treated as obiter dictumB .ut since the Court, as the Court

acknowledges, is obliged to assign error relating to a Charter provision
regardless of its impact on the operative part of the Tribunal's decision,
and whether or not it "has occasioned a failure of justice", the Court
should have held that, in this respect, the Administrative Tribunal erred
on a question of law relating to a provision of the Charter. The Court's
failure to do so is the more regrettable in view of the importance of
upholding a principle of the Charter which is vital to the maintenance
of the independence and exclusively international responsibility of the
Secretariat.

At the same time, it should be observed that the Court

"notes in this respect that the 'widely held belief' amounts to the
viewsexpressed by some delegates tothe Fifth Committee in 1953at
the Eighth Session of the General Assembly, which never material-
ized in an Assemblyresolution" (para. 84).

The Court furthermore quotes a statement of the Secretary-General that
differs sharply and refreshingly from the foregoing erroneous holding of
the Administrative Tribunal :

"Certainly, Respondent does not consider that a continuing rela-
tionship with a national government is a contractual obligation of
any fixed-term staff member - seconded or not -, nor would a
break between astaffmember and hisgovernment constitute in itself
grounds for terminating the fixed-term contract of a fixed-termstaff
member seconded or not. It isnot for Respondent to approve or dis-
approve Applicant's transfer of allegiance." (Para. 83.)

Equally, in its reasoning, the Court disowns :
"saying that a change or attempted change of nationality may be
treated as a factor outweighing the 'paramount' consideration de-
fined by Article 101,paragraph 3, of the Charter. .."(para. 87).

Nevertheless, in the end, and "on balance", the Court, reiterating that
itsproper role isnot to substitute its own opinion on the merits forthat of
the Tribunal, declines to find an error of law relating to a Charter provi-
sion here, on the grounds that the Tribunalfound as a fact that there had 123 APPLICATION FOR REVIEW (DISS.OP.SCHWEBEL)

been "reasonable consideration" of Mr. Yakimetz'scase, "and by impli-
cation that the Secretary-General had not been under a misapprehension

as to the effect of secondment" and that: "The provision of Article 101,
paragraph 3, of the Charter must have been present to the mind of the
Tribunal when it considered the question" (para. 89). Without further
explanation, the Court then concludes: "In the view of the Court, these
findingscannot be disturbed on the ground of error on a question of law
relating to the provisions of the Charter." (Zbid.)
The Court thus takes care not to approve the Tribunal's Judgement in
so far as it holds that a change of nationality or attempted change raises
essential questions about the suitability of a staff member for continued
employment. Since the Tribunal's Judgement on this important issue so
obviously conflicts with the letter and spirit of the Charter, the Court
could hardly do otherwise.

What ispuzzling isthat the Court refrainsfromforthrightly denomina-
ting the Tribunal's evident error as an error of law relating to a Charter
provision because ofthe Court's conclusion that (a)the Tribunal found as
a fact that Mr. Yakimetz had been afforded reasonable consideration; (b)
the Tribunal found "by implication7'that the Secretary-General had no
misapprehension about the effect of secondment; and (c)the Tribunal
must have had the terms ofArticle 101,paragraph 3,"in mind". TheCourt
appears to believethat theTribunal's findings, or what the Court assumes
that theTribunal had in mind, cure, in some way,the Tribunal's manifest
misconstruction of Article 101,paragraph 3, of the Charter. To my mind,
however, this elusive reasoning of the Court illustrates again how far it
strainstoavoidexplicitrecognition ofthe Tribunal's errors oflawrelating

to provisions of the Charter.

The Court's attempts to explain away the Tribunal's error of law in
respect to Article 101,paragraph 3,of the Charter are particularly unper-
suasive when it is recalled that, in respect of factor (a), the Tribunal's
finding of "fact" is based on no facts whatever; it simply is an inference
- astheTribunal admits - and one which the Tribunal claims to derive
from the text of a letter, which text refutes the inference (as do the sur-
rounding circumstances of the case). As to factor (b),in which the Court
finds that the Tribunal "by implication" concluded that the Secretary-
Generalhad not been under amisapprehensionas to the effectof second-

ment, the weakness of the Tribunal's reasoning and of the Court's
reliance upon it is revealed by resort to "implication". "Implication" of
a fact cannot override demonstration of a contrary fact; and the com-
munications of the Secretary-General which Judge Jennings quotes
demonstrate that, at the operativetime, the Secretary-General obviously
was under the precise misapprehension as to the effect of secondment
which the Tribunal chooses to imply that he was not. As to factor (c)
- that the provision of Article 101,paragraph 3, of the Charter "musthave been present to the mind of the Tribunal when it considered the
question" - that may well be so. But the question is not whether the
Tribunal thought about the terms of Article 101, paragraph 3, but
whether it thought about them correctly. If it did not, and if it expressed
its error in its judgement, it committed an error of law relating to a

provision of the Charter. Actually, that is exactly what it did, when it
incorporated into its judgement in Yakimetzits erroneous holding in
Fischmanwhich invests a Secretariat official's change of nationality
with an essentiality or paramountcy which conflicts with the terms of
Article 101,paragraph 3.

For these reasons, 1regret to Saythatthe Court's conclusion that "these
findings cannotbe disturbed on theground of error on a question of law
relating tothe provisions oftheCharter" iswhat is truly disturbing. In my
view,the Court, taking coverbehind thejurisdictional barrier which ithas
found it politic to postulate, hasturned ablind eyetowards the Adminis-
trative Tribunal's errors of law relating to Charter provisions. The loser is
the United Nations andthe independent Secretariat which its Charter is
designed to protect.

The Court rejectsthe Applicant's contention thatthe Tribunal commit-
ted an error of law relating to Article 100,paragraph 1,of the Charter,
which provides :

"In the performance of their duties the Secretary-General and the
staff shall not seek or receive instructions from any government or
from any other authority external to the Organization. They shall
refrain from any action which might reflect on their position as
international officiaisresponsible onlytothe Organization."

The Court holds :

"His [Mr. Yakimetz's]argument rests on the following premises :
thatthe Secretary-Generai believed that he could not givethe Appli-
cant any further employment whatever without the consent of his
former national Government;that the Tribunal found that this was
the Secretary-General's belief; thatthat belief was wrong as a matter
of law; and that theTribunal failed to find that it was wrong in law.
The Court however does not consider eitherthat theTribunal found
the existence ofthe belief attributedto the Secretary-General, or that
theTribunal found that such abeliefwasorwould havebeen correct. In view ofthe nature of the decision actually taken by the Tribunal
on the facts of the case,it does not appear necessary to consider the
matter further." (Para. 77.)

In myview,the Court's terse interpretation ofArticle 100,paragraph 1,
asitapplies tothecurrent case,isunduly confining. It failsto take account
of the import for this case of the second sentence of Article 100,para-
graph 1.And itisdifficult to reconcile withthe construction ofArticle 100
whichthe Court rightlyadopted initsAdvisoryOpinionon Reparationfor
InjuriesSufferedinthe Serviceofthe UnitedNations.

It may be recalled that, in that landmark decision, the Court held that
the United Nations has the capacity to bring an international claim in

respect of the damage caused to the victim, its agent. In the course of
the proceedings, Mr. G. G. Fitzmaurice of the United Kingdom argued
for a liberal construction of Article 100of the Charter in the following
terms :
"In its written statement the United Kingdom Government has
suggested that the requisite basis may be found in Article 100of the
Charter which creates a special relationship of internationalalle-

giancebetween the Organization and its servants. This, it is sug-
gested, does forge between the Organization and its servants a link
going beyond the ordinary relationship of master and servant, and
which may provide the necessarybasis for claimsmade by the Orga-
nization on behalf of the servants themselves in respect of the
damage done to them.
If wefollowthe argument out, 1think we shall seehowthis comes
about. The special allegiance partially displaces the normal alle-
gianceowed by individuals to their national State, and, inal1matters
affecting the United Nations, replaces it by an allegiance due exclu-
sivelyto the Organization. Thus, where the servantconcerned suffers
injury in the course of doingthe work ofthe Organization,in respect
of which his allegiance isowed solely to the Organization, and even,
if necessary, as against his own national State, it seems not only an
appropriate, but even a necessaryconsequence of this position, that

the Organization should be regarded ashavingthe capacity to make a
claim in respect of the loss ordamage caused to him or his depen-
dents.

Indeed, one might go further and Saythat the effect of Article 100
of the Charter is that the Members of the United Nations can be
regarded as having implicitly recognized that such capacity must
exist if the Organization is to be in a position adequately to carry
out its functions. The point may be illustrated by considering the
case of a United Nations servantwho isrequired in the course of his
work to do something which his own national State disapproves of or considers to be contrary to its own interests. If he suffers injury in
the course ofdoing this, itisthen verypossible that his national State
will refuse to make any claim on his behalf, or will, at any rate, not
feel called upon to do so. Consequently, unless the Organization
itself be regarded as having the capacity to make claims on behalf
of these persons, and in respect of the loss or damage caused to
them,there willexist a lack of adequate protection, a position which
may be prejudicial to the good functioning of the Organization,
because if United Nations servants feel that they cannot look to

the Organization for protection if they suffer injury in carrying out
their duties, and that they must look, if at all, to their own national
State for protection, their allegiance is liable, to that extent, to be
divided, and the work of the Organization to suffer in consequence.
This is precisely the situation which it was the intention of Arti-
cle 100 of the Charter to guard against, and the Members of the
United Nations must be considered as having recognized this fact.
To put the matter in another way, the capacity of the Organization
to make a direct claim on behalf of its servants in respect of injuries
suffered by them in the course of performing their duties, is really
the necessary complement to or, as it were, the opposite facet of
the exclusive allegiance owed by them to the Organization; for you
cannot ask a man to be faithful solely to an international organiza-
tion in doing his work and even as against his own national State,
and yet expect him to remain solelydependent on that State forpro-
tection in case he suffers injury in the course of doing this same
work - especially when ... he may be placed in especial danger
by the very nature of this work. Such a position would be obviously
contrary to the principle enshrined in the Charter, and clearly

inherent inthe veryconception ofthe United Nations, thatthe Organ-
ization and its servants should function independently of al1consid-
erations of nationality: because, if they oughtto do so, then they
must also be enabledto do so,that is to Saythe Organization must
have such capacities as are necessary to bring this about, or, if you
prefer it, must not lack capacities in the absence of which this
independence maybeprejudiced." (I.C.J.Pleadings,OralArguments,
Documents, Reparation for Injuries Suffered in the Service of the
UnitedNations, 1949,pp. 123-124.)

TheCourt responsively construed Article 100ofthe Charter inthe follow-
ing way :
"Having regard to its purposes and functions already referred to,

the Organization mayfind itnecessary,and has infactfound itneces-127 APPLICATION FOR REVIEW (DISS. OP. SCHWEBEL)

sary,to entiust itsagents with important missions to be performed in
disturbedparts of the world. Many missions, from their verynature,
involvethe agents in unusual dangers to which ordinary persons are

not exposed. Forthe same reason, the injuries suffered by its agents
inthese circumstances willsometimeshave occurred in such a man-
ner that their national Statewould not bejustified inbringing a claim
forreparation on theground of diplomatic protection, or,at any rate,
would not feel disposed to do so. Both to ensure the efficient and
independent performance of these missions and to afford effective
supportto its agents, the Organization must provide them with ade-
quate protection

For this purpose, the Members of the Organization have entered
into certain undertakings, some of which are in the Charter and
others in complementary agreements. Thecontent of these undertak-
ings need not be described here; but the Court must stress the im-
portance of the duty to render to the Organization 'everyassistance'
which is accepted by the Members in Article 2, paragraph 5, of the
Charter. It must be noted that the effectiveworking of the Organiza-
tion - the accomplishment of its task, and the independence and
effectiveness ofthe work of itsagents - require that these undertak-
ingsshould be strictlyobserved. Forthat purpose, itisnecessarythat,
when an infringement occurs, the Organization should be ableto cal1

upon the responsible Stateto remedy itsdefault, and, in particular, to
obtain from the Statereparation forthe damage thatthe default may
have caused to its agent.
In order that thcagent may perform his duties satisfactorily, he
must feel that this protection is assured to him by the Organization,
and that he may count on it.Toensure theindependence ofthe agent,
and, consequently, theindependent action ofthe Organization itself,
itisessential that inperforming his dutieshe need not have to relyon
anyother protection than that ofthe Organization (saveofcoursefor
the more direct and immediate protection due from the State in
whose territory he may be). In particular, he should not have to rely
on the protection of his own State. Ifhe hadto rely on thatState, his

independence mightwell be compromised, contrary to the principle
appliedby Article 100of the Charter.And lastly, it is essential that
- whether the agent belongs to a powerful or to a weak State;to
one more affected or less affected by the complications of interna-
tional life; to one in sympathy or not in sympathy with the mission
of the agent - heshould know that in the performance of his duties
he is under the protection of the Organization. This assurance is
evenmore necessarywhenthe agent isstateless." (Z.C.J.Reports1949,
pp. 183-184;emphasis added.)

It was observed years ago of this holding of the Court that : 128 APPLICATION FOR REVIEW (DISS.OP. SCHWEBEL)

"The breadth of the Court's construction of Article 100is instruc-
tive.TheCourt wasprepared to hold, as in fact itdid, that in the rela-
tively unlikely eventof an agent of the Organization being injured in
the course of his duties in circumstances involvingthe responsibility
ofa State,or,rather, inthe contingency ofthe agent'santicipatingthe
possibility of the occurrence of such an event, his independence
might be compromised unless he were able to rely upon the very li-
mited protection afforded by the presentation of a monetary claim
postfacto, not by his State, but rather by the Organization. This atti-
tude of the Court is of importance for its possible approachto a less
indirect encroachment upon Article 100."(S.M. Schwebel,"The In-

ternational Character of the Secretariat of the United Nations",
XXX TheBritish YearBookof International Law (1953),p. 82.)

1sthere nota moredirect encroachment upon Article LOO inthe Admin-
istrative Tribunal's disposition of the Yakimetz case? If the Secretary-
General believed, as the evidenceuniformly indicates that he did believe,
that Mr.Yakimetzcould not be considered for acareer appointment inthe
absence ofthe consent ofthe USSR Government, and if,as it did,the Ad-
ministrative Tribunal failed soto find despite the evidence requiring that
finding, those errors may, in myview,be seen as errors "relating to" Arti-
cle 100,paragraph 1,ofthe Charter. Errordidnot consist ofthe Secretary-
General's seeking or receiving instructions from the Government of the
USSR in violation of the first sentence of that paragraph; consequently,
there isno error oftheTribunal infailing soto hold. Butif, under amisap-
prehension about the weightto attach to the lack of consent of the Soviet
Union to a career appointment for Mr. Yakimetz,the Secretary-General
gave that Sovietposition determinative weight, then the Secretary-Gene-

ral didnot merelycommit an error of law.He failed to fulfil his obligation
under the second sentence of Article 100,paragraph 1,to "refrain from
anyaction which might reflect"on hisposition as an international official
"responsible only to the Organization", because, in effect, he ceded
responsibility in this respect to a "government or .. .other authority
external to the Organization". Therein liesthe error relating to a Charter
provision. In my view,this conclusion is consistent both with the facts, in
so far as the factshavebeen placed before the Court,and withthe law, in
the construction of it earlier made by the Court in the Reparation for
Injuries Suffered in the Service of the United Nations case. It is equally
consonant with Judgement No. 431 of the Administrative Tribunal of
the International Labour Organisation, In re Rosescu. The failure of
the Administrative Tribunal to assignthis error constitutes an error of law
relating to a provision of the Charter. THEQUESTIO ONFWHETHE RSTATE MAYLAWFULLR YEQUIR EHAT ALL
OF ITSNATIONAL ENGAGE DYTHE UNITED NATIONS BESECONDED

The Court's opinion does not do more than to allude tothe rights and
duties of a State in respect of itsnationals who are secondedfor servicein

the United Nations Secretariat, though this is a question which was
argued in the course of the proceedings. In this regard, two observa-
tions may be made. The first isthat, as theGovernment of Canada rightly
submitted in its written statement
"the only interpretation of secondment that is consistent with the

terms of the Charter is that in such an arrangement an individual
makes his services available to the U.N. Secretariat, while the
member Stateconcerned grantsthe individual a right to return to his
previous employment. Any interpretation that seeks toprovide
member states with a veto power over any staffing decision of the
Secretary-General is contrary to the Charter.

The Secretary General undoubtedly has a legitimatenterest in
consulting with memberstates on staff appointments in the interests
of securing the highest standard of efficiency, competence and
integrity, or to seek out staff to improve the geographical distribu-
tion of employees in the Secretariat. Indeed, the relationship of an

employee with his or her country of nationality may be a factor in
determining the extent to which an individual fulfills the require-
ments of Article 101.The views of the member state, in this regard,
may be a relevant factor but cannot be the sole criterion ini-
sions of the Secretary General with respect to secondments.

If the appointment or re-appointment of an employee were re-
fused solelyfor want ofthe consent of the country of the employee's
nationality, or indeed of any other member state,such decision
would be contrary to Articles 100and 101of the U.N. Charter."

The second observation isthat it isficult to reconcile with theChar-
ter the policy pursued by certain States of Eastern Europe in requiring
that 100per cent of their nationals appointed to the Secretariat of the
United Nations have fixed-term contracts (theeport of the Secretary-

Generalon theCompositionof theSecretariat,/41/627 of 27 September
1986,pp. 31-35,shows that, whereas 100per cent of the nationals of the
Soviet Union are on fixed-termcontracts,percent of China's, 18.5per
cent of France's, 14per cent of the United Kingdom's and 16.4per cent
of the United States's nationals in the Secretariat serve on fixed-term
contracts).oes a United Nations Member which, by the terms of Arti-cle 100,paragraph 2, of the Charter, "undertakes to respect the exclu-
sively international character of the responsibilities of the Secretary-
General and the staff and not to seek to influence them in the discharge
of their responsibilities" fulfil those obligations when it requires that al1
of its nationals serving in the Secretariat be seconded from its Govern-
ment service? Can it be supposed that such nationals are well-placed to
fulfiltheir obligationnot to "seek orreceiveinstructions from any govern-
ment or any authority externai to the Organization" and to "refrain

from any action which might reflect on their position as international
officials responsible onlyto the Organization"?

In view of these considerations, the recommendation containedin the
report of the "Group of 18" that "no more than 50 per cent of the
nationals of any one Member State employed by the United Nations
should be appointed on a fixed-term basis" isto be welcomed. (Report of
theGroup of High-LevelInter-Governmental Experts to Reviewthe Effi-
ciency of the Administrative and Financial Functioning of the United
Nations, GAOR,Forty-JirstSession,SupplementNo. 49, A/41/49, p. 22.)
Also to be welcomed, if for distinguishable reasons, is the judgment on

8April 1986ofthe United StatesDistrict Court for the Eastern District of
Pennsylvania in Hintonv. Devine(Civ. No. 84-1130),declaring unconsti-
tutional the International Organizations Employees Loyalty Program
instituted pursuant to US Executive Order No. 10422of 9 January 1953.
It is reported that the United States Government has decided not to
appeal that judgment and that it has suspended the investigative pro-
gramme of Executive Order No. 10422.(SeeMark A. Roy, "US. Loyalty
ProgramforCertain UN EmployeesDeclared Unconstitutional", 80Amer-
icanJournalofInternationalLaw(1986),p. 984.)

1 believe that the observations of the late Secretary-General of the
United Nations, Dag Hammarskjold, on the question of secondment
remain as valid today - in their legal as well as political conclusion-
as they were when he setthem outin a famous Lecture delivered to Con-
gregation at Oxford University on 30 May 1961 :

"A risk of national pressure onthe international officia1may also
be introduced, in a somewhat more subtle way, by the terms and
duration of his appointment. A national official, seconded by his
government for a year or two with an international organization, is

evidently in a different position psychologically - and one might
Say, politically- from the permanent international civil servant
who does not contemplate a subsequent career with his nationalgovernrnent. This was recognized by the Preparatory Commission
in London in 1945when it concluded that members of the Secre-
tariat staff could not be expected 'fully to subordinate the special
interests of their countries to the international interest if they are
merely detached temporarily from national administrations and
dependentupon them fortheirfuture'. Recently,however, assertions
have been made that it is necessary to switch from the present
system, which makes permanent appointments and career service
the rule, to a predominant system of fixed-term appointments to be
granted mainly to officials seconded by their governments. This

line is prompted by governments which show little enthusiasm for
making officials available on a long-term basis, and, moreover,
seem to regard - as a matter of principle or, at least, of 'realistic'
psychology - the international civil servant primarily as a
national officia1representing his country and its ideology. On this
view, the international civil service should be recognized and de-
veloped as being an 'intergovernmental' secretariat composed prin-
cipally of national officials assigned by their governments, rather
than as an 'international' secretariat as conceived from the days
of the League of Nations and until now. In the light of what 1have
already said regarding the provisions of the Charter, 1 need not
demonstrate that this conception runs squarely against the prin-
ciples of Articles 100and 101.

This isnot to Saythat there isnot room for a reasonable number of
'seconded' officials in the Secretariat. It has in fact been accepted
that itishighly desirable to have anumber of officials available from
governrnents for short periods, especiallyto perforrn particular tasks
calling for diplomatic or technical backgrounds. Experience has
shown that such seconded officials, true to their obligations under
the Charter, perform valuable servicebut asamatter ofgood policyit
should, of course, be avoided as much as possible to put them on
assignments in which their status and nationality might be embar-
rassing to themselves orthe parties concerned. However,this isquite
different from having a large portion of the Secretariat - Say,in

excess of one-third - composed of short-term officials. To have so
large a proportion of the Secretariat staff in the seconded category
would be likelyto impose serious strains on itsabilityto function asa
body dedicated exclusively to international responsibilities. Espe-
ciallyifthere wereany doubts astothe principles ruling their workin
the minds of the governments on which their future might depend,
this might result in a radical departure from the basicconcepts ofthe
Charterandthe destruction ofthe international civilserviceas ithas
been developed inthe League and up to now in the United Nations."132 APPLICATION FOR REVIEW (DISS.OP.SCHWEBEL)

(Re International Civilservant inLawand inFact,Oxford atthe Clar-
endon Press, 1961,pp. 17-19.)

As the Court's Opinion records, hearings in this case were not held, a
decision which was the more understandable because neither the Secre-
tary-General nor Mr. Yakimetz requested oral argument. Had hearings
taken place, however, it may be that certain significant factual uncertain-
ties might have been resolved. At al1eventstheCourt could have decided
to hold hearings in this case and isat liberty to do soinfutureuch cases.
A matter which has been the subject of some misunderstanding has,

1 believe, been usefully clarified by the following statement of the
Secretary-General :

"One ofthe objectionsagainst the present systemof reviewby ICJ
advisory opinions is the truncated Court procedure foreseen. Be-
cause no way was seen for individual applicants to appear through
counsel in oral proceedings in the Court, the General Assembly, in
the resolution by which it adopted article 11of the UNAT statute
(957(X),para. 2),recommendedthat neitherStates northe Secretary-
General seek to present oral statements in such an ICJ proceeding.
The Secretary-General and al1interested States have sofar complied
with this request, but unease has been expressed that this does vio-
lenceto thejudicial procedures ofthe Court, that insomecasesa hear-
ing may be necessary forthe proper presentation of a case and that
the entire procedure isthus at the mercyofany State that might insist
on its right to make an oral statement under article 66(2)of the ICJ
Statute (which would result inthe type of inequality of arms vis-à-vis

the applicantthat would almost surely cause the Court to abortthe
proceeding).

However, this entire procedural limitation appearsto be unneces-
sary.Under article 11(2)ofthe UNAT statute, the Secretary-General
is obliged to transmit to the Court the views ofthe applicant in the
Tribunal proceeding asto which theCourt's opinion was requested.
Inthe 'appeals'sofar brought to the Court under UNAT statute arti-
cle 11 and the one brought under ILOAT statute article XII, the
applicant's views were presented to the Court by having the exe-cutive head concerned (respectively the United Nations Secretary-
General andthe UNESCO Director-General)forward directly, with-
out any editing or censorship, al1written communications received
from the applicant or his counsel. Precisely in thesame way, if oral
proceedings were held, counsel selected by the applicant (and
acceptable to the Court) could be introduced as the Secretary-
General's special representative to express the applicant's views.
With respect to this proposa1 the President of the Court has indi-
cated 'that the Court, which has stressed on several occasions the
maintenance of the principle of equality among the parties, will
continue to bear it in mind in determining its own procedure in
each particular case'.

Whether or not UNAT statute article 11ismaintained unchanged,
or isrestricted to purely State-initiatedproceedings..or a newtype
of reference to the Court is introduced ... the General Assembly
might consider changing the recommendation in its resolution
957 (X)in the sense indicated ... This recommendation should be
formulated broadly enough so as also to apply to reviews sought
under article XII of the ILOAT statute." (Report of the Secretary-
General on the feasibility of establishing a single administrative
tribunal,A/C.5/397, paras. 88-90.)

(Signed)Stephen M. SCHWEBEL.

Bilingual Content

DISSENTING OPINION OF JUDGE SCHWEBEL

Whilejoining my colleagues in voting in favour of the Court's render-
ing an Advisory Opinionin this case, and infavour ofthe Court's reply to
question 1,1regret to be obliged to dissent from theOpinion as awhole in
viewof my disagreement with the Court's reply to the essential question,
question 2.

1havevoted infavour ofthe Court's reply to question 1with some hesi-
tation. That reply is, 1believe, correct, not because Judgement No. 333
of the United Nations Administrative Tribunal is sound, nor because

the Tribunal adequately or rightly responded to the question of whether
a legal impediment existed to the further employment by the United
Nations of Mr. Yakimetz after the expiration of his fixed-term contract
on 26 December 1983. On the contrary, the Tribunal's Judgement is
spangled with error and such inferential response as it may be said to
have given to the question of a legal impediment was unsupported by
the facts. Nevertheless, the Court's reply to question 1may be accepted
as correct within the narrow confines of that question, as the Court has
chosen - even more narrowly - to interpret it, namely: the Tribunal
did not fail to exercise itsjurisdiction since one may deduce from Judg-
ment 333'selliptical text,as elucidated withthe help of itsconcurring and
dissenting opinions, that the Tribunal did address its mind to the ques-
tion of whether a legal impediment to a career appointment existed. As
far as the text of that Judgement reveals, the Tribunal's mind was far

from clear; at any rate, the expression which the Judgement gives of the
Tribunal's ratiocinations in this regard is obscure. Nevertheless, for the
reasons which Judge Jennings sets forth in the dissenting opinion which
follows this opinion,the Court's reply to question 1is sustainable, since
the Judgement of theTribunal would not appearto constitute a failure to
exercisejurisdiction so much as an erroneous exercise ofit. Accordingly,
to vote in favour of the Court's answer to question 1 is by no means to
suggest that the results of the Tribunal's addressing its mind to the
issue of a legal impediment are correct. The Court's opinion rightly
stops short of any such holding or inference. OPINION DISSIDENTE DE M. SCHWEBEL

[Traduction]

Je me suisassociéà mes collègues envotant pour la décisionde donner
un avisconsultatif enl'espèceetpourla réponsedelaCour à laquestion 1,
mais je me vois obligé,a regret, de me dissocier de l'avis dans son en-
semble car je n'approuve pas la réponsede la Courà la question essen-

tielle,savoirla question 2.

OBSERVATIO SUNRLAQUESTION 1

J'ai voté,non sans hésitation,pour la réponseque la Cour a donnéeà
la question 1.Je crois que cette réponseest bonne, mais non parce que
le jugement no 333 du Tribunal administratif des Nations Unies est
bien fondé,ni parce que le Tribunal a répondu dûment ou correctement
à la question de savoir s'il existait un obstacle juridique au renouvelle-
ment del'engagementde M.Yakimetz àl'organisation desNations Unies

après la venue à expiration de son contrat de durée déterminée,le
26 décembre 1983.Au contraire, le jugement du Tribunal est entaché
d'erreurs etla réponseen quelque sorte déductivequi a étédonnée à la
question de l'obstacle juridique n'étaitpas étayéepar les faits. Néan-
moins, la réponsede la Cour àla question 1peut être considérée comme
correcte dans les limites étroitesde cette question, telle que la Cour a
choisi de l'interpréter de façon encore plus étroite: le Tribunal n'a
pas manquéd'exercersajuridiction puisqu'on peutdéduiredu texteellip-
tique du jugement no333,éclairé par l'opinion concordante et l'opinion
dissidente qui y sont jointes, que le Tribunal a fait porter sa réflexionsur
la question de savoir s'il existaitun obstacle juridique nomination

de carrière. Pour autant que le texte de cejugement le laisse voir, la ré-
flexion du Tribunal était loin d'claire; en tout cas lejugement netra-
duit pas clairement les ratiocinations du Tribunal ce sujet. Pour les
raisons que sir Robert Jennings expose dans l'opinion dissidente qui suit
la présente opinion, la réponsede la Cour àla question 1 peut cepen-
dant se défendre, puisque, par son jugement, le Tribunal semble moins
avoirmanquéd'exercersajuridiction que l'avoir exercéde façon erronée.
Par conséquent,voter pour la réponsede la Cour a la question 1n'im-
plique nullement que les résultats des réflexions du Tribunal sur la
question de l'obstaclejuridique soient corrects.Ajuste titre, la Cour s'est
retenue de formuler de telles conclusions ou déductions dans son avis

consultatif. 111 APPLICATION FOR REVIEW (DISS.OP.SCHWEBEL)

The essential issues of the Yakimetzcase are encompassed by ques-
tion 2. As the Secretary-General has acknowledged, the dispute between
the parties turns on "essentially whether the Applicant was given 'every
reasonable consideration' for a career appointment pursuant to General
Assembly resolution 37/126 . . .(A/AC.86/R. 118). If he was not, but
if the Tribunal held that he was, the question then arises whether the

Tribunal thus "erred on a question of lawrelating to the provisions of the
Charter of the United Nations".
Forthe reasons so ably and precisely set out inJudge Jennings' opinion
- and particularly because of the terms of the correspondence he fully
quotes which passed between the Secretary-General and Mr. Yakimetz,
which need not be repeated in this opinion - 1am convinced that, in
fact, the Secretary-General did not give Mr. Yakimetz's candidacy for a
career appointment "every reasonable consideration" - or indeed any
consideration. The letter written on behalf of the Secretary-General on
21 December 1983 is unambiguous and dispositive. It indicates that
Mr. Yakimetz's candidacy for a career appointment could not be given
every reasonable consideration because "Your situation" was "not
similar to that of 'most staff members' with comparable service records,

because your present contract was concluded on the basis of a second-
ment fromyour national civilservice". Itholdsthat, being seconded, and
having no "expectancy of renewal without the involvement of al1the
parties originally concerned", and having no "expectancy .. of conver-
sion to any other type of appointment", Mr. Yakimetz's name could not
be "'forwarded to the appropriate Appointment and Promotionbody for
reasonable consideration' for career appointment". 1 fail to see how
an analysis of the correspondence between the Secretary-General and
Mr. Yakimetz, particularly the letter of 21 December 1983,can sustain
another interpretation. 1find the construction placed upon that corres-
pondence by the Tribunal and by the Court unconvincing - more, in
Judge Jennings' term, "not possible".

Itis significant that the Tribunal itself could do no more than speak
of what the Secretary-General "apparently decided"; it relies upon an
alleged "plain and simple inference" which it purports to extract from
the text of the critical letter of 21 December 1983.It cannot rely on the
explicit language of that letter, which cuts the other way.
It is true that the letter of 21 December 1983States that "The Secre-
tary-General has given careful consideration tothe issues raised" by Mr.
Yakimetz in his counsel's letter of 13 December, among which was
Mr. Yakimetz's entitlement to "every reasonable consideration" for a
career appointment. But the terms of the letter of 21 December express-
ly exclude precisely that latter consideration; accordingly, the inference OBSERVATIO SURS LAQUESTION 2

Les problèmes essentiels de l'affaire Yakimetzsont visésdans la ques-

tion 2. Comme le Secrétaire général l'a reconnu, les Parties s'opposent
((essentiellement sur le point de savoir si le cas du requéranta été«pris
équitablementen considération » aux fins d'une nomination de carrière
conformément [à] la résolution 37/126 de l'Assemblée générale...))
(A/AC.86/R. 118).S'ilne l'apaspas étéeq tue leTribunal déclarequ'il l'a
étéi,ls'agitalors de savoir si,cefaisant, le Tribunalcommis une erreur
de droit concernant les dispositions de la Charte desNations Unies ».
Pour lesraisons précisesque sir RobertJennings expose fort bien dans
son opinion dissidente - et au vu notamment de la teneur de la corres-
pondance échangéeentre le Secrétaire général eM t . Yakimetz, que sir
Robert Jennings cite entièrement et sur laquelle il n'est pas besoin de

revenir dans la présente opinion - je suis convaincu qu'en réalitéle
Secrétaire généran l'a pas pris ((équitablementen considération » - ni
mêmepris du tout en considération - le cas de M. Yakimetz aux fins
d'une nomination de carrière. La lettre écrite au nom du Secrétaire
généralle 21 décembre 1983est claire et nette. Il y est dit que le cas de
M. Yakimetz ne peut êtrepris équitablement en considération aux fins
d'une nomination de carrièreet il est ajouté«votre situation n'estpas la
mêmeque celle de «la plupart des fonctionnaires » ayant des états de
servicecomparablespuisque votre présentcontrata étéconclusur labase
d'un détachementde la fonctionpublique de votre pays ».Il y est déclaré
que, puisqu'il est détachéet que cela ne saurait par conséquentl'auto-

riser« àcompter sur une prolongation sans la participation de toutes les
parties initialement en cause»et puisque son engagement ne 1'«autorise
pas ..à compter ..sur une nomination d'un type différent»,son nom ne
peut pas être((transmis à l'organe compétenten matièrede nominations
et de promotions afin que [son]cas soit équitablementpris en considéra-
tion » aux fins d'une nomination de carrière».Je ne vois pas comment
une analyse de la correspondance entre le Secrétairegénéral et M. Yaki-
metz,en particulier de la lettre du 21décembre1983,peut étayer uneautre
interprétation.J'estimeque l'interprétationque leTribunal et la Cour ont
donnéede cette correspondance n'est pas convaincante et même,pour
reprendre les termes de sir Robert Jennings, qu'elle n'estas possible».
Il est intéressantde relever que le Tribunal lui-mêmen'a pu que se ré-

férer àce qu'«il semble que le défendeur ait décidé»;se fondant sur la
teneur de la lettre décisivedu 21 décembre 1983,le Tribunal prétend
qu'«on ne peut qu'en déduire »ce qu'ilen déduit.Or ilne peut se fonder
sur lestermes mêmesde cette lettre, quiindiquent le contraire.
Certes il est dit dans la lettre du 21 décembre1983que «le Secrétaire
général a examiné attentivemenltes questions » soulevéespar M. Yaki-
metz dans la lettre de son conseil endate du 13décembre1983et notam-
ment laquestion du droit de M. Yakimetz àcequeson cassoit «pris équi-
tablement en considération »aux finsd'une nomination de carrière.Mais
lestermes delalettre du 21décembre excluentexpressémentcetteprise en 112 APPLICATION FOR REVlEW (DISS.OP. SCHWEBEL)

which the Tribunal purports to discover, relying only on this reference
"to the issues" which the Secretary-General considered, is fanciful.
The specific governs the general. It is also significant that the Tribunal
feltobligedtocriticize the Secretary-General for hisfailure to statepli-
citly" before 26 December 1983that he had given "every reasonablecon-
sideration" to the Applicant's career appointment; theTribunal recorded
its dissatisfaction at the Secretary-General's "failure.. to record suffi-
ciently early and in specificterms the fact" that he had giventhat appoint-

ment the consideration "enjoined" by the General Assembly. Yet the
Tribunal nowhere supplies a particle of direct evidence in support of its
finding of that "fact" (which it acknowledges actually to be no more
than an inference), nor has a shred of such evidence been pleaded by the
Secretary-General at any stage of the case. For its part, the Court, which
has scrutinized the record of the case, has been unable to produce one
scrap of evidence in support of the Tribunal's finding that the Secretary-
General gave Mr. Yakimetz's candidacy for a career appointment every
reasonable or indeed any consideration.

There are two further factors which reinforce the conclusion which
Judge Jennings and Judge Evensen and 1share in this regard. They sit

uneasily with the inferential interpretation placed upon the relevant
correspondence by theTribunal and the Court.The first isthat the Secre-
tary-General debarred Mr. Yakimetz from the premises of the United
Nations, a debarral dictated shortly after Mr. Yakimetz's resignation
from Soviet officia1 positions and his application for asylum in the
United States, and maintained thereafter to the very end of Mr. Yaki-
metz's service in the Organization. It was explained in his Comments
submitted to the Court on 26 June 1985(but not explained to Mr. Yaki-
metz atthe operativetime) that this "decision not to permit the Applicant,
thecentre ofacontroversybetweentwomember States,to enterthe Head-
quarters buildings", was "an administrative decision taken in the light of
al1the circumstances of the case and in order to avoid potentially dis-
ruptive consequences for the functioning of the Secretariat" (para. 17).

The mildest observation that may be made in respect of this extraordi-
nary action is that it was hardly consistent with a then existing, contem-
poraneous disposition, or subsequent disposition, on the part of the
Secretary-General to extend to Mr. Yakimetz every reasonable con-
sideration for a career appointment. Can it really be supposed that, at
one and the same time, during a period for al1of which Mr. Yakimetz
remainedbarred from entering the Headquarters building, the Secretary-
General was giving every reasonable consideration to his careerappoint-
ment? Can itbe thought that it was the viewof the Secretary-General that
a staff member merited continued exclusionfrom his office and from theconsidération;par conséquent,la déduction que le Tribunal prétenddé-

couvrir, en se fondant seulement sur la mention des«questions » soule-
véesque le Secrétairegénéral aexaminées, est fantaisiste. C'estaller du
particulier au général.l est égalementsignificatif que le Tribunal se soit
senti obligéde reprocher au Secrétairegénéral e n'avoirpasindiqué«de
façon spécifique» avant le 26 décembre1983qu'il avait«pris équitable-
ment en considération »lecas du requérantaux fins d'une nomination de
carrière; le Tribunal a marquésa réprobation parceque le Secrétaire gé-
néral n'avaitpas indiquésuffisammenttôt etde façonspécifique»lefait
qu'il avaitpris le cas en considération aux fins d'une nomination de car-
rière comme l'y «enjoignait» l'Assemblée générale .r le Tribunal ne
donne nulle part dans lejugement la moindre preuve directeàl'appui de
sa conclusion concernant ce fait (qu'ilreconnaît d'ailleurs n'rien de
plus qu'une déduction);le Secrétaire général n'eanpas non plus donné

à un stade quelconque de l'affaire. Pour sa part, la Cour, qui a examiné
minutieusement le dossier, n'a pas pu apporter une preuve quelcon-
que à l'appui de la conclusion du Tribunal selon laquelle le Secrétaire
général avaitpris équitablement en considération la candidature de
M. Yakimetz à un poste de carrière,ni même qu'il l'avatu tout prise en
considération.
Deuxautresélémentsrenforcentla conclusion que sir Robert Jennings,
M. Evensen et moi-mêmepartageons àcesujet.Comme moi, ils sont mal
à l'aise devant l'interprétation déductiveque le Tribunal et la Cour ont
donnéede la correspondance pertinente. Le premier de ces élémentsest
que le Secrétairegénéral a interditM. Yakimetz de pénétrerdans l'en-
ceinte de l'organisation des Nations Unies, interdiction qui lui a été si-
gnifiée peuaprèsqu'il eut démissionnéde toutes ses fonctions officielles
dans la fonction publique soviétique et présentsa demande d'asile aux

Etats-Unis, et quia étmaintenue jusqu'à lafin de sonengagement àl'Or-
ganisation. Dans les observations présentées la Cour le 26juin 1985au
nom du Secrétairegénéral,il est expliqué(ce qui ne l'avait pas été à
M. Yakimetz à l'époque pertinente)quela ((décision..d'interdire au re-
quérant,qui était au centre d'une controverseentre deux Etats Membres,
de pénétrerdans les bâtiments du Siègeétaitune décision administrative
priseà la lumièrede toutes les circonstances de l'affaire et afin deàparer
l'éventualitde conséquencessusceptibles de troubler lefonctionnement
du Secrétariat.))(par.7).
Le moins qu'on puisse dire de cette décision extraordinaire est qu'elle
ne laisse guèresupposer que le Secrétairegénéral était alors disposéà
l'époque,ou qu'ill'aétépar lasuiteàprendre le casde M.Yakimetzéqui-
tablement en considérationaux fins d'une nomination de carrière.Peut-
on vraiment supposer que, au cours detoutelapériodependant laquelle il

étaitinterdit M. Yakimetz de pénétrerdans l'enceinte del'organisation,
le Secrétairegénéral a prisson cas équitablement en considération aux
fins d'une nomination de carrière? Peut-on penser que le Secrétairegé-
néralétait d'avisqu'un fonctionnaire, méritantd'êtreempêché d'accéder
à sonbureau, auxcouloirs desbâtiments du Siègeet àlacafétéria,méritait United Nations corridors and cafeteria and, at the same time, every rea-

sonable consideration for a permanent appointmentupon the expiration
of the fixed-term appointment which he was debarred from seming out
on United Nations premises? Would the "potentially disruptive conse-
quences" to which,postfacto,the Secretary-General alluded, have disap-
peared during the post-1983 period in which Mr. Yakimetz, holding a
permanent appointment, would have served, or does this comment of
the Secretary-General indicate that the controversial Mr. Yakimetz,
whose lunching in the cafeteria could be "disruptive", could not be
seriously considered for a United Nations career, even though his per-
formance ratings were excellent and even though resolution 37/126

required that he be given every reasonable consideration?

The second factor is that the Secretary-General failedto acknowledge,
let alone act upon, the application for a permanent appointment which
Mr. Yakimetz officially submitted on 9January 1984,days after the expi-
ration of his fixed-term appointment.That reaction, or lack of reaction, to
Mr. Yakimetz's application for a career appointment suggests not that
"every reasonable consideration" was given to it, but that noconsi-
deration was given to it. If there is another explanation of the Secretary-

General's failure to reply to Mr. Yakimetz's application which is more
favourable to the Secretary-General's position, it has not beenrth-
coming.

It might be speculated that the Secretary-General did not reply to
Mr.Yakimetz'sapplication for a career appointment of9Januaryecause
Mr. Yakimetz filed his application with the Administrative Tribunal on
6January. Butthat is conjecture. What is significant isthatthe Secretary-
General has never advanced thisargument,not to Mr. Yakimetz in Janu-
ary 1984as he could so readily have done, nor to theTribunal orthe Court

thereafter. One is left with the conclusionthat the failure to acknowledge
or respond to Mr. Yakimetz's application of 9 January confirms the
failure of the Secretary-General to give Mr. Yakimetz's candidacy every
or any reasonable consideration.

THENATURE OF AN ERROR OF LAW "RELATING TO" THE CHARTER A;ND
FURTHEO RBSERVAT~O ONQSUESTIO2 N,INCLUDING THETRIBUNALE RROR

RELATlNG TOARTICLE 101,PARAGRAP 1,OF THE CHARTER

Beforelooking more closelyatthe errors of lawrelating to provisions of
the Charter ofthe United Nations made bythe Administrative Tribunal in
this case, it may be useful to comment upon that provision of the Tribu-
nal'sStatute. The terms of Article 11ofthe Statute of the Tribunal, as well
as ittravauxpréparatoiresmake clear that an error of law "relating ton
provisions of the United Nations Charter need not squarely and directlyaussi que son cas soit pris équitablementen considérationaux fins d'une
nomination de carrière à l'expiration d'un engagement de duréedéter-
minée qu'ilétait empêché d'honorer dans l'enceinte de l'organisation?
Les «conséquencessusceptibles de troubler ..», auxquelles le Secrétaire
générala fait allusion après coup, auraient-elles disparu après 1983,
quand M.Yakimetz, devenu titulaire d'un postepermanent, aurait rempli
ses fonctions, ou cette remarque du Secrétairegénéral indique-t-elleque
le cas de M. Yakimetz, fonctionnaire discuté dont la présencela café-
tériapourdéjeuner aurait pu «troubler »quoi que ce soit, ne pouvait pas

être pris sérieusementen considérationen vue d'une nomination de car-
rièreà l'organisation, malgrésesétatsde serviceexcellents et bien quela
résolution37/126 exigeât que son cas fût pris équitablementen considé-
ration?
Lesecondélémentestque leSecrétairegénéral n'paasaccuséréception
de la candidature deM. Yakimetz à un poste permanent, présentéeoffi-
ciellement par lui le 9janvier 1984,soit quelquesjours après la venue
expiration de son engagement de duréedéterminéee ,t qu'ily a moins en-
core donnésuite.Cetteréaction,ou ce manque de réaction devantla can-
didature de M. Yakimetz àun poste de carrièrelaisse présumernon pas

que son cas a été((pris équitablementen considération», mais qu'il n'a
pas étépris en considérationdu tout. Peut-être l'absencede réponsedu
Secrétaire général à la candidature de M. Yakimetz s'explique-t-elle
autrement, d'une façonplus favorableà la position du Secrétairegénéral,
mais cette explicationn'a pas été fournie.
On peut supposerque le Secrétaire généranl'apas répondu à M.Yaki-
metz,qui avaitprésentésacandidature àun poste de carrièrele9janvier,
parce que ce dernier avait introduitsa requête auprèsdu Tribunal admi-
nistratif le 6 janvier. Mais ce n'est qu'une conjecture. Ce qui est signifi-
catif, c'estque le Secrétairegénél 'ajamais fait valoir cet argument, ni

auprès de M. Yakimetz en janvier 1984comme il aurait fort bien pu le
faire, ni par la suite devant le Tribunal ou la Cour. On ne peut qu'en
conclure que l'absence d'accuséde réceptionou de réponseà la candida-
ture présentée le 9janvier parM. Yakimetz confirme que le Secrétaire
général n'apas pris équitablementni mêmeprisdu tout en considération
cette candidature.

NATURE DE L'ERREURDE DROIT ((CONCERNANT » LA CHARTE OBSERVATIONS

COMPLÉMENTAIRES SUR LA QUESTION 2,Y COMPRIS L'ERREUR DU TRIBUNAL
CONCERNANT L'ARTICLE 101, PARAGRAPHE 1,DE LACHARTE

Avant d'examiner deplusprèsleserreurs de droit concernant lesdispo-
sitions de la Charte des Nations Unies, que le Tribunal administratif a
commises en l'espèce,il convient peut-êtrede formuler des observations
sur la disposition pertinente du statut du Tribunal. Les termes de l'ar-
ticle 11 du statut du Tribunal, de mêmeque les travaux préparatoires,
montrent clairement qu'une erreur de droit((concernant(relating to)les engage a provision of the Charter. It is sufficient if such an error is "in
relationship to" the Charter, "has reference tomthe Charter, or "is con-
nected with" the Charter. (See the definitions under "relate" and "relat-
ing" found in The Oxford Dictionary,1910,Vol.VIII, pp. 397-398,and in
Webster'sThird New International Dictionary of the English Language,
Unabridged, 1976,p. 1916.)The phrase "the provisions" of the Charter

cannot mean al1the provisions of the Charter, because no error of the
Administrative Tribunal could apply to al1the provisions of the Charter;
that phrase must mean, "one or more provisions" ofthe Charter. Anerror,
if itis to furnish ground for objection to a judgement of the Tribunal,
must have a relationship to or be connected with at least one provision
. of the Charter. Moreover, when Article 11of the Statute of the Tribunal
was adopted, it was declared by the CO-sponsorsof the language in
question that : "Thewords 'relatingto theprovisionsof the Charter'covered
not only interpretations ofthe provisions of the Charter but also theinter-
pretation orapplication ofstaffregulations derivingfrom ChapterXVof the
Charter." (A/AC.78/SR.10, p. 3, quoted in Application for Review of
Judgement No. 273 of the United Nations Administrative Tribunal, I.C.J.
Reports 1982, p. 394,para. 9,and p.469,para. 21 ;emphasisadded.) It was
understood that :

"The CO-sponsorsintended bythe phrase: 'aquestion of lawrelat-
ing to the provisions of the Charter' to provide for a case not only
where the Administrative Tribunal might be considered to have
misinterpreted the Charter, but also where the Tribunal might
have interpreted and applied the Staff Regulations in a manner
considered to be inconsistent with the provisions of Chapter XV of

the Charter." (United Nations, GAOR, 10thSession,Annexes, Report
of the Special Cornmitteeon ReviewofAdministrative TribunalJudge-
ments,p. 10;quoted in I.C.J. Reports 1982,p. 471,para. 24.)

When the Secretary-General fails to apply a provision of a resolution
binding upon him whichtheGeneral Assemblyhasadopted in pursuance
of its authorityunder Article 101,paragraph 1,ofthe Charter, which pro-

vides that, "The staff shall be appointed by the Secretary-General under
regulations establishedby theGeneral Assembly", and when the Admini-
strative Tribunal omits to recognize that failure - and consequently
accepts a failure to apply the governing regulation - the Tribunal errs
on a question of law "relating to" the Charter. That is exactly the instant
case. It is exactly the kind of case which the General Assembly had in
mind when it adopted Article 11of the Statute of the Administrative Tri-
bunal, as the foregoing quotations from the travauxpréparatoiresshow.

It is of course true that the Secretary-General does not now acknow-
ledgethat he failed to apply aprovision ofa General Assemblyresolution
which he does acknowledge isbinding upon him. He rather has affirmeddispositions de la Charte des Nations Unies ne doit pas mettre ouverte-
ment et directement en cause une disposition de la Charte. II suffit que
l'erreur soit«en relation avec » la Charte, qu'elle s'y ((rapporte))ou s'y
((rattache».(Voirlesdéfinitionsdestermes relateet relatingdans ne Ox-
.fordDictionary,vol.VIII, 1910,p. 397-398,etdans le Webster'sThirdNew
International Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged, 1976,
p. 1916.)Les mots ales dispositions)) de la Charte ne sauraient s'appli-
quer à toutes les dispositions de cet instrument car le Tribunal ne peut
commettre d'erreur visant toutes ces dispositions; ils s'appliquent néces-
sairement à ({uneou plusieurs dispositions » de la Charte. Pour qu'une
erreur puisse constituer un motif de contestation d'un jugement du Tri-
bunal, ilfaut qu'elle soiten relation avecau moins unedes dispositions de

la Charte ou qu'elle serattache au moins à l'une d'elles.De plus, lorsque
l'article Il du statut du Tribunal a étéadopté,les auteurs du libelléen
question ont déclaréque: Les mots ((concernanltes dispositionsde la
Charte» ne visent pas seulement l'interprétation des dispositions de la
Charte, mais aussi l'interprétation ou l'applicatiodu statut dupersonnel
édicté enapplication du chapitre XVde la Charte.))(A/AC.78/SR.10, p. 3,
citéen l'affaire de laDemandede réformation dujugement no273du Tri-
bunaladministratifdesNations Unies,C.1-J.Recueil1982,p. 394, par. 9,et
p. 469,par. 21 ;les italiques sont de moi.) Il étaitentendu que:

«Dans l'espritdesauteurs, laformule erreur de droitconcernant
les dispositions de laCharte» visait non seulement le cas où le Tri-
bunal administratif aurait apparemment mal interprétéla Charte
mais aussi le cas où, en interprétant et en appliquant certains des
articles du statut du personnel, il aurait apparemment agi d'une fa-
çon incompatible aveclesdispositions du chapitre XVdelaCharte. »
(Nations Unies, Documentsofficielsde 1'Assembléegénérale, dixième
session,annexes, rapport du Comité spécial chargé d'étudier la ques-
tion de laréformation desjugements du Tribunal administratif, p. 10,

citédans C.I.J.Recueil1982,p. 471,par. 24.)
Lorsque le Secrétairegénéran l'applique pas une disposition d'une ré-
solution qu'il esttenu d'appliquer et que l'Assembléegénérale aadoptée
en vertu du pouvoir que lui confère l'article 101, paragraphe 1, de la
Charte, lequel dispose que: Le personnel est nommépar le Secrétaire

généralconformément aux règles fixéespar l'Assembléegénérale)),et
lorsque le Tribunal administratif omet de relever cette carence - et ac-
cepte ainsi la non-application de cette règle applicable - le Tribunal
commet une erreur de droit ((concernant )la Charte. C'estexactement ce
qui s'est passé enl'espèce.Ce sont précisémentles cas de ce genre que
l'Assembléegénéraleentendait viser lorsqu'elle a adoptél'article 11du
statut du Tribunal administratif, comme le montrent les citations destra-
vaux préparatoiresreproduites ci-dessus.
Certes, le Secrétaire généran le reconnaît pas maintenant avoir omis
d'appliquer une disposition d'une résolution de l'Assembléegénérale
qu'il admet devoirappliquer. Mais il a affirmédevant le Tribunal admi-to the Administrative Tribunal and to this Court what hehad omitted to
affirm to Mr. Yakimetz: that he had given a career appointment for
Mr.Yakimetz everyreasonable consideration. The Secretary-General was
placed in a difficult position by the circumstances of theakimetzcase;
and his affirmations placed the Tribunal, and this Court, in a delicate
position. The reluctance of the Tribunal and the Court to discount
the Secretary-General's affirmations is understandable. But, as Judge

Jennings shows, the essence ofadministrative law and process entails the
possibility of disallowance of the executive'saffirmations. If what is the
fact depends solely on the executive'spost facto, unproved affirmation
of what was the fact, there is no utility in administrative law, processes,
and tribunals. For mypart, with everyrespect forthe Secretary-General's
goodwill and good faith, 1regret to be impelled to Saythat these unsup-
ported statements of the Secretary-General cannot be accepted as
governing.
It would be otherwise if the Secretary-General had substantiated his
alleged consideration not merely by broad and conclusory statements
made well after the operative time, solely in an adversarial context, and
exclusivelyto theTribunal and this Court (never,atthe operative time, to
Mr.Yakimetz). Itwould be othenvise ifthe Secretary-General's represen-
tative had not written to Mr. Yakimetz inthe terms of the letter of 21 De-

cember 1983.But at the operative time, the Secretary-General, far from
informing Mr. Yakimetzthat everyreasonableconsideration to his career
appointment had been given, was being given, or would be given, wrote
Mr. Yakimetz that he could not be given consideration for a career
appointment "because your present contract was concluded on the basis
of a secondment from your national civil service". 1do not believe that
the Secretary-General now can be heard to Saythe contrary of what he
said atthat determinative time.

THEROLE OF THE COURT IN THISCLASS OF CASE

The Court reassures itselfabout thejustice of an opinion about whicht
appears none too sure by maintaining that its proper role in this class of

case isnot to retry the case and to attempt to substitute itsown opinion on
the merits forthat oftheTribunal. Butthe Court does not equally empha-
sizewhat it held in 1982,that it is
"very much the businessofthis Courtto judge whether there isacon-
tradiction between a particular interpretation or application of Staff
Regulations and Rules by the Tribunal and any of the provisions of

the Charter" (I.C.J. Reports 1982,p. 359,para. 66).
TheCourt failsto stressthat, as itheld in 1973,theCourt's role isto deter-
mine if the circumstances of the case, "whether they relate to merits or
procedure", show that any objection made tothe judgement on one ofthe
grounds mentioned in Article 11is wellfounded:nistratif et devant la Cour ce qu'il avait omis de diàeM. Yakimetz, à

savoir qu'il avait pris son cas équitablement en considération aux fins
d'une nomination de carrière.Le Secrétairegénérasl'esttrouvédansune
position difficile en raison des circonstances de l'espèceet ses affirma-
tionsont mis leTribunal etla Cour dans une situationdélicate.Leshésita-
tions du Tribunal et de la Cour à écarterles affirmations du Secrétaire
général sont compréhensibles.Toutefois,comme sir Robert Jennings le
démontre,le droit et la procédurese caractérisent en matièreadministra-
tivepar le fait qu'il estpossible de rejeter lesaffirmations de l'administra-
tion. Sicequ'estun fait dépenduniquement de ceque l'administration en
dit après coup, sans preuve, le droit, la procédure et les tribunaux sont
inutiles en matière administrative.Pour ma part, avec tout le respect que
j'ai pour labonnevolontéetlabonne foidu Secrétairegénéralje , doisdire

à regret que lesdéclarationsqu'ila faitessanspreuveàl'appui ne peuvent
êtreacceptéescommes'imposant.
Il en irait autrement si,pour établirqu'il avaitpris le casen considéra-
tion, comme ille prétend,le Secrétairegénéranle s'étaitpas bornéa faire
des déclarations généraleset péremptoiresbien aprèsle moment crucial,
dans un cadre purement contentieux et devant le Tribunal et la Cour ex-
clusivement(il n'a rien ditde pareilM.Yakimetzau moment crucial). Il
en irait autrement si le représentantdu Secrétairegénéral avait rédigéen
des termes différentssa lettre du 21 décembre1983 à M. Yakimetz. Loin
d'informer M. Yakimetz que son cas était, avait été ou serait pris équita-
blement en considération auxfinsd'une nomination de carrière.le Secré-

taire générallui a écritce moment-là qu'il nepouvait pas leprendre en
considération aux fins d'une nomination de carrière «puisque [son]pré-
sent contrat était conclu sur la base d'un détachementde la fonction pu-
blique de [son]pays».Je ne croispas que le Secrétairegénéralpuissedire
maintenant le contraire de ce qu'il a dit au moment déterminant.

LE RÔLEDE LA COUR DANS LESAFFAIRESDE CEGENRE

La Cour se rassure sur lajustesse d'un avis dont elle ne paraît pas très
sûreenaffirmant qu'ellen'apas pour rôle,dans lesaffaires de cegenre,de
refaire le procès ni d'essayer de substituer son opinion sur le fondle

du Tribunal. Mais elle n'insiste pas autant sur le fait, relevépar elle
en 1982,que
«il luiincombe au plus haut degré..de rechercher sil'interprétation
ou l'application particulière que le Tribunal fait de ce statut et de ce
règlement contredit une disposition de la Charte» (C.Z.J. Re-

cuei 1982,p: 359,par. 66).
La Cour omet de soulignerque, comme elle l'a déclaré en1973,son rôle
estde déterminers'ilressortdescirconstances de l'espèce,concernant le
fond ou la procédure »,qu'une contestation formuléecontre lejugement
pour l'un des motifs mentionnés àl'article 11est fondé: 116 APPLICATION FOR REVIEW (DISS.OP.SCHWEBEL)

"In so doing,the Court is not limited to the contents of the chal-
lenged award itself, but takes under its consideration al1relevant
aspects ofthe proceedings before theTribunalas well as al1relevant
matters submitted to the Court itself by the staff member and by the
Secretary-General with regard to the objections raised against that

judgement. These objections the Court examines on their merits in
the light of the information before it." (Applicationfor Reviewof
Judgement No. 158 of the United Nations Administrative Tribunal,
I.C.J.Reports1973,p. 188,para. 47.)

Indeed as the Court further held in the Faslacase, "where thejudgement
has been challenged on the ground of an error on a question of law relat-
ing tothe provisions of the Charter,the Court may ...be called upon to
review the actual substance of the decision" (ibid.,para. 48). The Court
further held that, in reviewproceedings, the Court does not regard itself
"as precluded from examining in full liberty the facts of the case or from
checking theTribunal's appreciation of the facts" (ibid.,p. 207,para. 85).
The extent ofthe Court's authority to examine infullliberty the factsof
the case and to pass upon the merits of the Tribunal's Judgement is con-
firmed by the fact that its advisory opinion in this class of case binds the

Secretary-General and theTribunal. Article 11,paragraph 3,oftheTribu-
nal's Statute provides :

"In any case in which a request has been made for an advisory
opinion,the Secretary-General shall either give effecttothe opinion
oftheCourt orrequest theTribunal to convenespecially in order that
it shallconfirm its original judgement, or give a newjudgement, in
conformity withtheopinion ofthe Court. Ifnot requested to convene
specially the Tribunal shall at its next session confirm itsjudgement
or bring it into conformity with the opinion of the Court."

Thephrase, "in conformity withtheopinion ofthe Court" in the first sen-
tence of the foregoing quotation governs the whole of that sentence, as its
punctuation demonstrates. Thus the Secretary-General himself either
must giveeffecttotheCourt's opinion ortheTribunal mustact to confirm

itsoriginaljudgement or giveanewjudgement, both ofwhichjudgements
must be "in conformity with the opinion of the Court". This ineluctable
interpretation isconfirmed bythesecondsentence ofthe foregoing provi-
sion,which likewiseobligestheTribunal to bring itsjudgement "into con-
formity with the opinion of the Court". Asthe Court itself recognized in
the Faslacase, "the opinion given by the Court is to have a conclusive
effect with respect to the matters in litigation" in the case before the
Administrative Tribunal (I.C.J.Reports 1973,p. 182,para. 39). This is a
"special effect to be attributed to the Court's opinion by Article 11of
the Statute of the United Nations Administrative Tribunal . . ."(ibid.,
p. 183,para. 39).
Moreover, it was recognized by itsCO-sponsorsin the course of adopt- «Ce faisant, la Cour ne s'en tient pas à la teneur de la décision

contestéeelle-même maiselleprend enconsidérationtous lesaspects
de la procédure quis'estdéroulée devantle Tribunal ainsi que tous
les élémentspertinents que le fonctionnaire et le Secrétaire général
lui soumettent au sujet des objections soulevéescontre lejugement.
La Cour examine cesobjections au fond, comptetenu des renseigne-
ments dont elle dispose.)) (Demande de réformationdu jugement
no158duTribunaladministratifdesNations Unies,C.I.J.Recueil1973,
p. 188,par. 47.)

En effet, comme la Cour l'a déclaréplus loin dans l'affaireFasla,«si un
jugement était contesté en raison d'uneerreur de droitconcernant les dis-
positions de la Charte, la Cour ..pourrait ..être appelée à examiner la
décisionau fond »(ibid.,par. 48).LaCour aen outre affirméque,dans une

procédurede réformation,elle ne s'estimepas ((empêchéd e'examiner les
faits delacause entoute libertéou decontrôler l'appréciationdesfaits par
le Tribunal»(ibid.,p. 207,par. 85).
Lepouvoir qu'a la Cour d'examiner lesfaits de la cause en touteliberté
et de statuersur le fond du jugement du Tribunal est confirmépar le fait
que lesavisconsultatifs qu'elledonnedans desaffairesdecegenre s'impo-
sent au Secrétairegénéral eatu Tribunal. Selon l'article 1paragraphe 3,
du statut du Tribunal :

((Chaque fois que la Cour est priéede donnerun avis consultatif,
le Secrétairegénéral oubien donne effet à l'avisde laCour, ou bien
prie le Tribunal de se réunirspécialementpour confirmer sonjuge-
ment initial ou rendre un nouveau jugement, conformément à l'avis
de la Cour. S'iln'estpas invité seréunir spécialement, leTribunal,

à sa session suivante, confirme sonjugement ou le rend conforme a
l'avisde la Cour.))

Les mots ((conformément à l'avisde la Cour», qui figurent dans la pre-
mièrephrase de la citation ci-dessus, commandent l'ensemble de la pro-
position, comme le montre la ponctuation. Il faut donc soit que le Secré-
taire général lui-mêmdeonne effet à l'avisde la Cour, soit que leTribunal
semette en devoir de confirmer sonjugement initial ou de rendre un nou-
veau jugement, chacun de cesjugements devant êtreconfirméou rendu
((conformément à l'avis de la Cour ».Cette interprétation inévitable est
étayéepar la seconde phrase de la disposition précitée,qui oblige de
mêmeleTribunal à rendre sonjugement ((conforme àl'avisde la Cour ».
Commela Cour l'areconnu elle-même enl'affaireFasla,((l'avisrendu par
la Cour [doit]avoir un effet décisoireà l'égarddes questions en litige))

dans l'affaireportéedevant leTribunal administratif (C.I.J.Recueil1973,
p. 182,par. 39).C'estlà un ((effetspécialque l'article 11du statut du Tri-
bunal administratif des Nations Unies attribueà l'avisde la Cour »(ibid.,
p. 183,par. 39).
De plus,lors de l'adoption del'article 11du statut du Tribunalminis- 117 APPLICATION FOR REVIEW (DISS.OP.SCHWEBEL)

ing Article 11of the Tribunal's Statute that "the International Court of
Justice should be the final authority on interpretation oftheCharteror of
staffregulations based thereonwhich might be involved in the Tribunal's
decisions" (GAOR, 10th Session, FijithCommittee, 498th Meeting,p. 66
(emphasis added); see I.C.J.Reports1982,p.473,para. 27).TheCourt was

intended to be and, by the terms of the Tribunal's Statute, is "the final
judicial arbiter on questions of Charter law"; and "no organ would be
more competent to settle other issues arising fromthe grounds specified
for review" (Report of theFijithCommittee, GAOR, 10thSession, Agenda
item49,Annexes, p.40; see I.C.J.Reports 1982,p. 474,para. 28).It issigni-
ficant that not only was "the final authority" of the Court emphasized -
an authority which accordingly must be able to substitute its opinion on
the merits for that of the Administrative Tribunal, for an opinion which
does not govern cannot be "final". It isequallysignificant that itwasmade
clear by the Report of the Fifth Committee that the jurisdiction of the
Court was defined to embracethe "legitimate interest in ensuring proper
application of the Charter and the Staff Regulations ..." (ibid.).It could
not be plainer that, under Article 11of the Tribunal's Statute, the Court
is "the final authority on interpretation .. .of staff regulations based" on
the Charter, i.e., regulations established by the General Assembly under
Article 101,paragraph 1,oftheCharter - such asthat expressed by reso-
lution 37/126, IV,paragraph 5.

In view of the terms of the Tribunal's Statute and the foregoing inten-
tions of its draftsmen, and in view of the Court's proper holding that it
may examine "in full liberty the facts of the case" and check "the Tribu-
nal's appreciation of the facts" (I.C.J. Reports 1973,p. 207, para. 85), 1
believe that today's opinion of the Court, and previous opinions to like
effect, are on weak ground when they shelter behind the conclusion that,
"the Court's proper roleisnot to retrythe caseand to attempt to substitute
itsown opinion on the merits forthat oftheTribunal" (I.C.J.Reports1982,
p. 356,para. 58,adopted in this opinion in paras. 27and 89).On the con-
trary, the Court, when seised of a case of this kind, exercises "judicial
review ...The opinion of the Court is tobe given a reformatory charac-
ter." Since an objection on the ground that the Tribunal has erred on a

question of law relating to a provision of the Charter "relates not to the
validity of the judgment but to the merits of the judgment" of the
Tribunal, this ground affords the Court "true appellate jurisdiction" (Leo
Gross, "Participation of Individuals in Advisory Proceedings before
the International Court of Justice: Question of Equality between the
Parties", 52 American Journalof InternationalLaw(1958),p. 36.) tratif, ceux qui l'avaient proposé ont reconnu qu'il convenait «que la

Cour internationale de Justice soit l'autoritécompétenteen dernier res-
sortpour interpréterlesdispositions de laCharteoudu statutdupersonnel
que lesdécisionsdu Tribunal peuvent mettre en jeu» (Nations Unies, Do-
cumentsofficielsdeIAssembléegénérale, dixième session, CinquièC moem-
mission,49geséance,p. 70 (les italiques sont de moi); voir C.I.J.Recueil
1982,p. 473,par. 27).La Cour était censéeêtre,e atux termes du statut du
Tribunal elle est,«l'organe judiciaire suprême quipouvait statuer sur le
droit de la Charte»; «aucun organe n'étaitcompétentpour régler les
autres différends au sujet desquels une demande de réformation était
recevable» (Nations Unies, Documents officielsde l'Assemblée générale,
dixième session, annexes,apport de la CinquièmeCommission, point 49
de l'ordre du jour, p. 43; voirC.I.J.Recueil1982,p. 474, par. 28). Il est
intéressantde relever qu'on ne s'est pas borné à souligner que la Cour
était((l'autoritécompétenteen dernier ressort»,ce qui devait par consé-

quent lui permettre de substituer son opinion sur le fond à celle du
Tribunal administratif puisqu'une opinion quine s'imposepas nesaurait
êtredonnée «en dernier ressort)). Les auteurs du rapport de la Cin-
quième Commission ont aussi préciséque lajuridiction de la Cour avait
été conçuede manière à englober l'intérêltégitime«à l'application cor-
recte de la Charte et du statut du personnel))(ibid.).On ne saurait dire
plus clairement que, d'après l'article 11du statut du Tribunal, la Cour
est ((l'autorité compétenteen dernier ressort pour interpréter les dis-
positions ...du statut du personnel » fondéessur la Charte, c'est-à-dire
les règles fixéespar l'Assembléegénéraleen vertu de l'article 101,para-
graphe 1,de laCharte, telle que celle qui est formuléedansla section IV,
paragraphe 5,de la résolution 37/126 de l'Assembléegénérale.
Vulestermes utilisésdans lestatut du Tribunal etlesintentions susmen-
tionnéesde ses rédacteurs, etcompte tenu du fait que la Cour a estimé à

juste titre qu'ellepeut ((examiner les faits de la cause en toute li»eeté
((contrôler l'appréciation des faitspar le Tribunal » (C.I.J.Recueil1973,
p. 207,par. 85),j'estime que le présentavis de la Cour et ceux qu'elle a
donnésdans le même sensne sontpas solidement fondésdansla mesure
où ils s'abritent derrière la conclusion suivant laquelle la Cour n'as
pour rôle de refaire leprocèsni d'essayerde substituer son opinion sur le
fond à celle du Tribunal..» (C.I.J. Recueil 1982,p. 356, par. 58; cette
conclusion est reprise aux paragraphes 27 et 89 du présent avis). Au
contraire,lorsqu'elle est saisied'une affairede cegenre,la Cour joue «un
rôle de réformationjudiciaire...L'avisde la Cour doit avoir un caractère
réformateur.» Etant donnéqu'une objection formulée à l'encontre d'un
jugement au motif que le Tribunal a commis une erreur de droit concer-
nant une disposition de laCharte «se rapportenon à la validitédu juge-

ment mais àladécisionsurlefond »prise par leTribunal, cemotif confère
à la Cour «une véritable compétence d'appel » (Leo Gross, «Participa-
tion of Individuals in Advisory Proceedings before the International
Court of Justice :Question of Equality between the Parties », American
Journalof InternationalLaw, 1958,vol. 52,p. 36). This is the conclusion which Judge Oda, in his separate opinion, and
which 1,in my dissenting opinion, reachedin 1982inthe Mortishedcase,

after an examination of the drafting history of Article 11of the Statute
of the Administrative Tribunal; it remains correct today (see I.C.J.
Reports 1982,pp. 393-397,468-470,471, and Judge Oda's separate opin-
ion inthe current case,paras. 14-18).It isfullyjustified bythe intent ofthe
General Assembly in adopting Article 11of the Statute of the Adminis-
trative Tribunal, asthat intent is shown by the quotations from the tra-
vaux préparatoires set out above and in the cited Mortished opinions.
In such a case, the Court isentitled - if not required - to substitute its
opinion for that of the Tribunal on the merits, and both the Secretary-
General and the Tribunal are bound to conform their judgments to the
Court's opinion. What is at issue in the Yakimetz case is the Adminis-

trative Tribunal's "interpretation or application" - or misinterpreta-
tion or misapplication - "of staff regulations deriving from Chapter XV
of the Charter", an issue explicitly declared by the drafters of Article 11
of the Statute to be within the Court's competence. The Court is fully
empowered to givean opinion on the merits of that issue. Its failure to do
so constitutes a failure to exercise a responsibility validly entrusted to it
by the General Assembly.
It maybeaddedthat the exclusionary approach to itsjurisdiction which
the Court finds it convenient to adopt in the current case contrasts
tellingly with the extraordinarily expansive approach to its jurisdic-
tion which the Courtfound it convenient to adopt inthe case concerning
Military and Paramilitary Activities in and against Nicaragua (I.C.J.

Reports 1984,p. 392; (I.C.J. Reports 1986,p. 14).

While the critical error of law relating to a provision of the United
Nations Charter in this case lies in the Tribunal's failure to find that
the Secretary-General had not given Mr. Yakimetz7scandidacy every
reasonable consideration, and in its consequent failure to require the
Secretary-General to comply with a regulation binding upon him, estab-

lished bythe General Assemblyinpursuance of Article 101,paragraph 1,
of the Charter, still another error of law relates to Article 101,
paragraph 3, of the Charter. That provision in effect establishes three
"paramount" considerations in the employment of staff: efficiency,
competence, and integrity. It further provides that :"Due regard shall be
paid to the importance of recruiting staff on as wide a geographical
basis as possible." That lesser consideration in no way imports that a
change in the nationality of a staff member, much less actions mani-
festing an intent to seek a change in nationality, are considerations
relevant to the suitability for continued semice of such a staff mem-
ber. The Administrative Tribunal held in the Estabial case (Judgement Telle est la conclusionà laquelle M. Oda, dans son opinion indivi-
duelle, et moi-même, dans mon opinion dissidente, étions parvenus
en 1982dans l'affaireMortished,aprèsavoirétudiéla genèsede l'article 11
du statut du Tribunal administratif; cette conclusion demeure exacte
aujourd'hui (voir C.I.J. Recueil1982,p. 393-397,468-470,471,et l'opinion
individuelle de M. Oda en la présente espèce,par. 14-18).Elle est pleine-
mentjustifiéepar l'intention quianimait l'Assembléegénéralelorsqu'elle
aadoptél'article11du statutduTribunaladministratif, tellequ'elleressort
des citationsdestravaux préparatoires mentionnées ci-dessus et desdites

opinions relativesà l'affaire Mortished.Dans un tel cas,la Cour ale droit
- si ce n'est ledevoir- de substituer son opinion sur le fondà celle du
Tribunal, ettant leSecrétairegénéralqueleTribunalsont tenus derendre
leurs décisionsconformes à l'avisde la Cour. Dans l'affaire Yakimetz,ce
qui estencause, c'est l'interprétation oul'application»(voirlamauvaise
interprétationou application) «du statut du personnel édictéen applica-
tion du chapitre XV de la Charte », que les rédacteursde l'article 11du
statut ont déclaré explicitemententrerdans la compétencede la Cour. La
Coura tout pouvoir pourdonner un avissur le fond de cettequestion. Ne
pas lefaireconstitueunmanquement àl'exerciced'une responsabilitéqui

lui a étévalablementconfiéepar l'Assemblée générale.
On peut ajouter que la conception exclusive de sa compétence que la
Cour juge bon d'adopter en la présente affaire contraste de façon révéla-
trice avec la conception extraordinairement extensive qu'elle ajugébon
d'adopter enl'affaire desActivitésmilitairesetparamilitairesau Nicaragua
etcontre celui-ci(C.1.J.Recueil1984,p. 392; C.I.J.Recueil1986,p. 14).

L'INTERPRÉTATION ERRONÉE QUE LE TRIBUNA LONNE DE L'ARTICLE 101,

PARAGRAPHE 3,DE LA CHARTE

Dans la présente affaire,la principale erreur de droit que leTribunal a
commise concernant une disposition de la Charte des Nations Unies ré-
side dans le fait qu'il n'a pas statué quele Secrétairegénéral n'avait pas
pris la candidature de M. Yakimetz équitablement en considération et
qu'ilne lui a pas par conséquentdemandéde seconformer à une disposi-
tion réglementairequi étaitcontraignante pour lui et que l'Assemblée gé-
nérale avaitadoptéeen application duparagraphe 1de l'article 101de la

Charte. Mais le Tribunal a encore commis une autre erreur de droit, qui
concerne leparagraphe3de l'article 101de la Charte. Enfait,cettedispo-
sition introduit trois considérations ((dominantes pour le recrutement
du personnel :letravail, la compétenceet l'intégrité,eitlestajou:«Sera
dûmentprise enconsidérationl'importance d'un recrutementeffectuésur
une base géographique aussilarge que possible. »Cette considération de
moindre'importance n'implique en rien que le fait qu'un fonctionnaire
change de nationalité et moins encore le fait qu'il entreprend des dé-
marchesrévélantsonintention d'essayerde changer denationalitéconsti-119 APPLICATION FOR REVIEW (DISS.OP.SCHWEBEL)

No. 310) that considerations of geographical distribution may not be
given precedence over an employment decision which is to be reached
on the basis of an assessment of an official's efficiency, competence
and integrity. No less must the paramount considerations of efficiency,
competence and integrity govern considerations of nationality, which
are not even mentionedin theCharter.

For his part, however, the Secretary-General, in his actions relating to
Mr. Yakimetz, clearly gave weightto what he described as "the events of

10February 1983,and thereafter" (the date being that of Mr. Yakimetz's
communication to the Government of the USSR resigning his positions
withit);in hisComments tothe Court of 26June 1985,the Secretary-Gen-
eral acknowledged that al1the circumstances of which he took account
"obviously included the Applicant's proposed change of nationality"
(para. 14).For itspart, theTribunal defined asone ofthethree legalissues
ofthe case :"The consequences oftheapplication ofUnited Nations rules
and regulations in relation to the United States law on resident status and
citizenship." In that regard, it held:

"XII. The Applicant was entitled to act in any wayhe considered
best inhis interest, but he must necessarilyface the consequences for
hisactions.. .Another consequence ofhisactionsraised the question
of his suitability as an international civil servant. In Judgement
No. 326 (Fischman),the Tribunal referred to the widely held belief
mentioned in a report of the Fifth Committee of theGeneral Assem-
bly that

'International officials should be true representatives of the cul-
tures and personality of the country of which they were nationals,
and that those who elected to break their ties with that country
could no longer claim to fulfil the conditions governing employ-
ment in the United Nations',

and held that this 'mustcontinue to provide an essential guidance in
thismatter'. In the samejudgement, the Tribunal also recalled a part
of Information Circular ST/AFS/SER.A/238 of 19 January 1954
which stated, interalia,that

'The decision of a staff member to remain on or acquireperma-
nent residence status in... [the]country [ofhis duty station] in no
way represents an interest of theUnited Nations. On the contrary,
this decision may adversely affect the interests of the Unitedtuent des considérations pertinentes pour déterminersi ce fonctionnaire
répond auxconditions requises pour rester au service de l'Organisation.
Le Tribunal administratif a déclarédans l'affaire Estabial (jugement
no310)que desconsidérationsderépartitiongéographique nedoiventpas
pouvoir l'emporter lorsqu'il s'agit de déciderd'une nomination qui doit

reposer sur une évaluationdu travail, dela compétenceetde l'intégritédu
fonctionnaire. Ces considérations dominantes de travail, de compétence
etd'intégrité doiventprimertout autantsur lesconsidérationsde nationa-
lité,qui nesont mêmepas mentionnéesdans la Charte.
Or, le Secrétaire générald, ans les mesures qu'il a prises l'égardde
M.Yakimetz, apour sa part clairement donnédu poids àce qu'ila décrit
comme «lesévénementsintervenusle1Ofévrier1983etpar la suite»(cette
date étantcelleà laquelle M.Yakimetz a fait savoir au Gouvernement de
l'union soviétiquequ'il démissionnaitde sesfonctions); dans lesobserva-
tions qu'il a présentéesàla Cour le 26juin 1985,le Secrétaire généraa l
reconnu que, dans leur ensemble, les circonstances dont il avait tenu
compte ((englobaient manifestement l'intention du requérantde changer
de nationalité» (par. 14).Pour sapart, le Tribunal a énoncé comme suit
l'une des trois questions juridiques en l'espèce:«Les conséquencesde

l'application du statut etdu règlementdu personnel de l'organisation des
Nations Unies compte tenu de la législation des Etats-Unis relative àla
résidence età la citoyenneté.»A ce sujet il a concl:

«XII. Le requérant était endroit d'agir de la façon qu'iljugeait
répondre au mieux à ses intérêtsm, ais il doit accepter les consé-
quences de sesactes. Uneautre conséquencede sesactes amène àse
demander si le requérant répondait aux conditions requises d'un
fonctionnaire international.Dans sonjugement no326(Fischman)l,e
Tribunal a évoqué uneopinion largement répandue qui avait été
ainsi formulée dans un rapport de la Cinquième Commission de
l'Assembléegénérale :

«Les fonctionnaires internationaux doivent véritablement re-
présenterla culture et la personnalitédu pays dont ils sont les res-
sortissants et..ceux qui choisissent de rompre les liens qui les
unissentà cepays nepeuvent plus prétendreremplir lesconditions
qui régissentl'emploià l'organisation des Nations Unies »,

et le Tribunal a considéréque cette position (([devait] continuer de
jouer un rôle déterminant à cet égard». Dans le mêmejugement,
le Tribunal a également cité un extrait de la circulaire
ST/AFS/SER.A/238 du 19janvier 1954 où il est notamment in-
diquéque :

«La décisiond'un fonctionnaire de conserver ou d'acquérir le
statut de résidentpermanent dans ..lepays [deson lieu d'affecta-
tion]ne vanullement dans lesensdesintérêts del'organisation des
Nations Unies. Au contraire, cettedécisionpeut nuire aux intérêts Nations in the case of internationally recruited staff members
in the Professional category.. .'

The Applicant had been granted asylum in the United States of
America and there arose the problem of his having to waive privi-
legesand immunitieswith the permission ofthe Respondent. Such a
waiverwasnecessaryfor changing hisvisacategory under the United
States laws. However there was apparently no immediate problem

and itseemsthatno request wasmade totheRespondentfor agreeing
to the Applicant waiving his privileges and immunities. Besides,
a private bill was later introduced on the Applicant's behalf in the
United States House and Senate.

XIII. In viewofthe foregoing,the Tribunalconcludes that during
the period of his service with the United Nations the Applicant was
under secondment which, as already stated, could not be modified
except with the consent of al1three parties and that no tacit agree-
ment existed between the Applicant and the Respondent between
10February 1983and 26 December 1983changing the character of
their relationship.
XIV. With these conclusions in mind the Tribunal considered the
Applicant's plea that he was entitled to, but was denied, the right to
receive 'everyreasonable consideration' in terms of paragraph 5 of
General Assemblyresolution 37/126, IV,of 17December 1982."

It is one of several perplexities posed by the Administrative Tribunal's
Judgement that the Tribunal failsto make clear the relevance to itsJudge-
ment, ifany, ofparagraph XII and itsincorporation ofpassages ofitscon-
temporaneous Judgement No. 326 in the Fischman case (made by the
same Tribunal majority, i.e., President Ustor and Vice-President Sen).
Fischmanrefersto an allegedly "widely held belief' mentionedin areport
of the Fifth Committee that an international officia1who elects to break

his ties withhis country could no longer claimto fulfiltheconditions gov-
erning employment by the United Nations. Whatever the point of the
Tribunal's invocation inthe YakimetzJudgementof 8June 1984ofwhat it
said on 17May 1984inthe Fischmancase,what isclear isthat theTribunal
concluded that "an essential guidance inthis matter" (i.e.,Fischman)isthe
aforesaid "widely held belief" and that a "consequence of his [Mr. Yaki-
metz's]actions" in seekingto change hisnationality wasto raise "the ques-
tion of his [Mr. Yakimetz's]suitability as an international civil servant",
because of the doctrine set out in and quoted from Fischmanwhich pro-
vides "essential guidance". TheTribunal further held that "In viewofthe
foregoing" (para. XIII), and "With these conclusions in mind"
(para. XIV) - i.e., apparently, its foregoing holdings, among others, del'organisation dans lecas desfonctionnaires recrutéssurleplan
international qui appartiennent à la catégorie des administra-
teurs..»

Les Etats-Unis d'Amérique ayantaccédé à lademande d'asile du
requérant,le problème de la renonciation par ce dernier ses privi-
lèges et immunités avec l'autorisation du défendeur aurait dû se
poser, puisqu'une telle renonciation étaitnécessairepour modifier
sontype devisaconformément àla législationdes Etats-Unis.Toute-
fois, aucun problèmene s'estapparemment posédans l'immédiatet
ilsemble qu'il n'aitjamais édemandéau défendeurd'accepterque

lerequérantrenonce àsesprivilègesetimmunités.De plus, un projet
de loivisant uniquement lecaspersonnel du requéranta étéultérieu-
rement présenté à la Chambre des représentants et au Sénat des
Etats-Unis.
XIII. Compte tenu de ce qui précède, leTribunal conclut que le
requérantétaitdétaché pendantsa périodede service à l'ONU etque
cettesituation administrative,comme ilaétédit plus haut,ne pouvait
être modifiéesans le consentement destrois parties en cause; leTri-
bunal conclut égalementqu'aucun accord tacite n'existaitentre lere-
quérantetledéfendeur,entrele 10févrieret le26décembre1983,qui
aurait modifiéle caractèrede leurs relations.
XIV. C'est en ayant ces conclusions à l'esprit que le Tribunal a

examiné l'argumentdu requérantselon lequel il avait droit- droit
qui luiauraitétédénié- àceque son cassoit «pris équitablementen
considération»conformémentauparagraphe 5de la section IVdela
résolution 37/126 de l'Assembléegénérale endate du 17 dé-
cembre 1982. »

Une énigme poséepar le jugement du Tribunal administratif, parmi
d'autres, provient de ce que le Tribunal ne précise pas quelleimportance
peuvent avoir, dans sonjugement, le paragraphe XII et lesextraits qui s'y
trouvent du jugement no 326 prononcé àla mêmeépoque en l'affaire
Fischman(jugement rendu à la même majorité, composéd eu président,
M. Ustor, et du vice-président,M. Sen). Dans ce dernier jugement, il est
question d'une «opinion largement répandue »mentionnéedans un rap-
port de la CinquièmeCommission etselonlaquelle lefonctionnaire inter-
national qui choisit de rompre ses liens avecson pays ne peut plus pré-
tendre remplir les conditions qui régissentl'emploi l'organisation des
Nations Unies. Quelle que soit la raison pour laquelle le Tribunal a in-

voqué,dans son jugement du 8juin 1984rendu en l'affaire Yakimetz, ce
qu'il avait dit en l'affairechmanle 17mai 1984,ilest clair que le Tri-
bunal a conclu que cette<(opinion largement répandue » jouait« un rôle
déterminantàcet égard» (c'est-à-dire dans l'affaire Fischman)et,àpro-
pos de M. Yakimetz,qu'une «conséquencede sesactes»visant àessayer
de changer de nationalité amenait à se demander s'il ((répondait aux
conditions requises d'un fonctionnaireinternational,comptetenu de la
doctrineexposéedans l'affaire Fischmanet citée en l'espèce,octrine qui about Mr. Yakimetz's suitability - the Tribunal considered the Appli-
cant's pleas respecting entitlement to but denial of everyreasonable con-
siderationfor a career appointment.

In so holding, theTribunal committed an error of law relating to a pro-
vision ofthe United Nations Charter, namely Article 101,paragraph 3.As
noted above, a change of nationality, much less an intended change of
nationality, isnot, or should not be, a consideration "essentially" bearing
upon employment of United Nations staff. Achange ofnationality, while
it may marginally affect computation of national quotas, does not detract
from the efficiency,competence or integrity ofa staff member. It does not
throw into question the "suitability" of "an international civil servant"
forcontinued service.In certain circumstances,itmight evenbe evidence
that such a staff member sought to avoid receipt of, or compliance with,
"instructions from any government or from any other authority external
to the Organization". The Applicant indeed alleges the existenceof such
circumstances in this case. His allegations, for which some supporting
evidence has been introduced, have not been refuted or even denied.

This is not to Say that the Secretary-General transgressed Article 101,
paragraph 3, of the Charter in taking account of Mr. Yakimetz's pro-
posed change of nationality; such a proposed change was among the
circumstances he could weigh in the process of giving Mr. Yakimetz
considerationfor a career appointment - provided that he actually gave
Mr. Yakimetz that consideration. It is to Saythat the Tribunal's holding
that that proposed change put into question - it indicates, "essential"
question - Mr. Yakimetz's suitability for continued United Nations
servicedid transgress Article 101,paragraph 3,of the Charter.

The question before the Court in the Yakimetz case naturally is not
whether the Administrative Tribunal's Judgement in the Fischmancase

contained an error of law relating to a Charter provision, but whether the
reliance on the passage of the FischmanJudgement quoted by the Tribu-
nal in its Yakimetz Judgement imported an error into that Judgement,
and, if so,whether it isan error of law relating to a Charter provision. The
Tribunal found it appropriate to incorporate holdings in the Fischman
case into Yakimetz, holdings which attribute "essential guidance" to
a so-called "widely held belief" about the legal consequences to be
attached to a United Nations official's change of nationality. It thereby
invested maintenance of nationality of a United Nations officia1with an
essentiality or paramountcy which conflicts withthe terms of Article 101,
paragraph 3, of the Charter. Beliefs expressed in a United Nations continuaità jouer un «rôle déterminant».Le Tribunal a d'autre part dé-
claréquec'est «comptetenu de cequi précède»(par. XIII) et «ayant ces

conclusions àl'esprit»(par. XIV) - apparemmentsesconclusionsprécé-
dentes et parmi elles celles l'amenantàse demander si M. Yakimetz ré-
pondait aux conditions requises - que le Tribunal avait examiné les
thèsesdu requérant suivantlesquelles il étaiten droit de s'attendre, droit
quiluiaurait été dénié,àcequesoncasfûtpris équitablementenconsidé-
ration aux fins d'une nomination de carrière.
Le Tribunal, en concluant de la sorte, a commis une erreur de droit
concernant une disposition de la Charte des Nations Unies, à savoir le
paragraphe 3de l'article 101.Commeje l'aiindiquéci-dessus,un change-
ment de nationalité.etmoins encorel'intention dechanger"de nationalité.
ne constituepas oune devraitpas constituerune condition((déterminante »
pour le recrutement à l'organisation. Un changement de nationalité

peut certes avoir un effet marginal sur les calculs de répartition par pays
mais iln'enlèverien aux qualitésde travail,de compétenceou d'intégrité
d'un fonctionnaire.Il nesoulèvepaslaquestion de savoirsiun «fonction-
naire international» répond aux «conditions requises » pour être main-
tenu au service de l'organisation. Dans certaines circonstances, ce chan-
gementpeut mêmeprouver quel'intéresséa tenté d'éviter de recevoir des
«instructions [d'un]gouvernement [oud'une]autoritéextérieure àl'Orga-
nisation » ou de devoir y obéir.Ce sont d'ailleurs de telles circonstances
qu'invoque le requéranten l'espèce.Sesallégations,qui sont étayées par
certaines preuves, n'ont éténi réfutéesni mêmedémenties. Cela ne si-
gnifie pas que le Secrétaire générala enfreint le paragraphe 3 de l'ar-
ticle 101en tenant compte de l'intention de M. Yakimetz de changer de

nationalité;une telleintentionfaisaitpartie descirconstances dont ilpou-
vait tenir compte au moment de prendre en considération le cas de
M. Yakimetz aux fins d'une nomination de carrière - sitant est qu'il l'a
véritablement pris en considération. Cela signifie que le Tribunal a en-
freint le paragraphe 3 de l'article 101de la Charte en concluant que l'in-
tention de M.Yakimetz de changer"de nationalité amenait à sedemander
- ce qu'il a considérécomme «déterminant» - si M. Yakimetz répon-
dait aux conditions requises pour rester au service del'organisation.
Dansl'affaire Yakimetz,la Cour n'a naturellement pas àsedemander si
le jugement rendu par le Tribunal administratif dans l'affaire Fischman
contientune erreur de droit concernant une disposition de la Charte; elle

doit sedemander sileTribunal,ens'appuyant sur lepassage dujugement
rendu enl'affaire Fischmanqui estcitédans lejugement rendu enl'affaire
Yakimetz,a introduit une erreur dans ce dernier jugement et, dans l'affir-
mative, s'ils'agit d'une erreur de droit concernant une disposition de la
Charte. Le Tribunal a estiméqu'il convenait de reprendre en l'affaire
Yakimetz certaines conclusions auxquelles il était parvenu en l'affaire
Fischman,conclusions qui accordent un «rôle déterminant » à la pré-
tendue «opinion largement répandue» quant aux conséquences juri-
diques à attribuer au changement de nationalité d'un fonctionnaire de
l'organisation. Le Tribunal a ainsi donné à la conservation par un fonc- committee, whether widely held or not, are not sources of law; still less
may they derogate from the terms of the Charter. The weight attached
by the Administrative Tribunal to that belief thus constitutes an error of
law relating to a provision of the Charter. That error does not appear to
have had dispositive effect on the Tribunal's Judgement; for this reason,
it may be treated as obiter dictumB .ut since the Court, as the Court

acknowledges, is obliged to assign error relating to a Charter provision
regardless of its impact on the operative part of the Tribunal's decision,
and whether or not it "has occasioned a failure of justice", the Court
should have held that, in this respect, the Administrative Tribunal erred
on a question of law relating to a provision of the Charter. The Court's
failure to do so is the more regrettable in view of the importance of
upholding a principle of the Charter which is vital to the maintenance
of the independence and exclusively international responsibility of the
Secretariat.

At the same time, it should be observed that the Court

"notes in this respect that the 'widely held belief' amounts to the
viewsexpressed by some delegates tothe Fifth Committee in 1953at
the Eighth Session of the General Assembly, which never material-
ized in an Assemblyresolution" (para. 84).

The Court furthermore quotes a statement of the Secretary-General that
differs sharply and refreshingly from the foregoing erroneous holding of
the Administrative Tribunal :

"Certainly, Respondent does not consider that a continuing rela-
tionship with a national government is a contractual obligation of
any fixed-term staff member - seconded or not -, nor would a
break between astaffmember and hisgovernment constitute in itself
grounds for terminating the fixed-term contract of a fixed-termstaff
member seconded or not. It isnot for Respondent to approve or dis-
approve Applicant's transfer of allegiance." (Para. 83.)

Equally, in its reasoning, the Court disowns :
"saying that a change or attempted change of nationality may be
treated as a factor outweighing the 'paramount' consideration de-
fined by Article 101,paragraph 3, of the Charter. .."(para. 87).

Nevertheless, in the end, and "on balance", the Court, reiterating that
itsproper role isnot to substitute its own opinion on the merits forthat of
the Tribunal, declines to find an error of law relating to a Charter provi-
sion here, on the grounds that the Tribunalfound as a fact that there hadtionnaire des Nations Unies de sa nationalitéun caractère déterminant
ou dominant qui estincompatible avec lestermes du paragraphe 3de I'ar-
ticle 101de la Charte. Lesopinions expriméesau sein d'une commission
des Nations Unies, que celles-ci soient largement répanduesou non, ne
sontpas une source de droit et cela d'autant moins qu'ellesdérogentaux
termes de la Charte. L'importance attribuée par leTribunal administratif
à ces opinions constitue par conséquent une erreur de droit concernant
une disposition de la Charte. Cetteerreurne semble pas avoir eu un effet
décisifsur lejugement du Tribunal; c'est pourquoi elle peut être consi-
déréecomme un obiterdictum.Etant donnéque la Cour, ainsi qu'elle le
reconnaît, est tenue de releveruneerreurconcernantune disposition de la
Charte, qu'elle ait ou non provoquéun mal-jugéet indépendamment de
son influence sur le dispositif dujugement du Tribunal, elle aurait dû dé-
clarer,à ce propos, que leTribunal administratif avaitcommis une erreur
de droit concernant une disposition de la Charte. Il est d'autant plus re-

grettable que laCour aitomis delefaire qu'ilimporte defairerespecter un
principe de la Charte essentiel pour préserverl'indépendanceet la res-
ponsabilitéexclusivement internationale du Secrétariat.
Parallèlement,il convient de souligner quela Cour
((relèveà ce sujet que ladite ((opinion largement répandue»traduit
un point de vue exprimé àla Cinquième Commission en 1953par
quelques représentants,au cours de la huitièmesession de I'Assem-

bléegénérale,point de vue qui ne s'estjamais concrétisédans une
résolutionde celle-ci»(par. 84).
D'autre part, la Cour cite une déclaration du Secrétaire généralqui
contraste fortement et agréablement avecla conclusion erronéedu Tri-
bunal administratif exposéeci-dessus :

«Le défendeur ne considère certes pas que le maintien des rap-
ports avec un gouvernement national est une obligation contrac-
tuelle d'un fonctionnaire engagépour une duréedéterminée,qu'il
.soit détachéou non, ni qu'une rupture entre un fonctionnaire et son
gouvernement constituerait en soiun motif de mettre finà son enga-
gement de duréedéterminée,qu'il soit détachéou non. Il n'appar-
tient pas au défendeur d'approuver ou de désapprouverle transfert
d'allégeancedu requérant. » (Par. 83.)

De même,dans ses motifs, la Cour s'estrefusée à

((dire qu'un changementde nationalité,ouune tentative de change-
ment de nationalité, puisse êtretraité commuen facteur l'emportant
sur la considération«dominante » définieau paragraphe 3 de l'ar-
ticle 101de la Charte» (par. 87).
Néanmoins, toutbien considéré »,laCour, aprèsavoirrépété qu'elle n'a
pas pour rôle de substituersonopinion surlefond àcelledu Tribunal, se

refuse en fin de compteà conclure qu'une erreur de droit concernantune
disposition de laCharte a été commise sur cepoint puisque leTribunal a 123 APPLICATION FOR REVIEW (DISS.OP.SCHWEBEL)

been "reasonable consideration" of Mr. Yakimetz'scase, "and by impli-
cation that the Secretary-General had not been under a misapprehension

as to the effect of secondment" and that: "The provision of Article 101,
paragraph 3, of the Charter must have been present to the mind of the
Tribunal when it considered the question" (para. 89). Without further
explanation, the Court then concludes: "In the view of the Court, these
findingscannot be disturbed on the ground of error on a question of law
relating to the provisions of the Charter." (Zbid.)
The Court thus takes care not to approve the Tribunal's Judgement in
so far as it holds that a change of nationality or attempted change raises
essential questions about the suitability of a staff member for continued
employment. Since the Tribunal's Judgement on this important issue so
obviously conflicts with the letter and spirit of the Charter, the Court
could hardly do otherwise.

What ispuzzling isthat the Court refrainsfromforthrightly denomina-
ting the Tribunal's evident error as an error of law relating to a Charter
provision because ofthe Court's conclusion that (a)the Tribunal found as
a fact that Mr. Yakimetz had been afforded reasonable consideration; (b)
the Tribunal found "by implication7'that the Secretary-General had no
misapprehension about the effect of secondment; and (c)the Tribunal
must have had the terms ofArticle 101,paragraph 3,"in mind". TheCourt
appears to believethat theTribunal's findings, or what the Court assumes
that theTribunal had in mind, cure, in some way,the Tribunal's manifest
misconstruction of Article 101,paragraph 3, of the Charter. To my mind,
however, this elusive reasoning of the Court illustrates again how far it
strainstoavoidexplicitrecognition ofthe Tribunal's errors oflawrelating

to provisions of the Charter.

The Court's attempts to explain away the Tribunal's error of law in
respect to Article 101,paragraph 3,of the Charter are particularly unper-
suasive when it is recalled that, in respect of factor (a), the Tribunal's
finding of "fact" is based on no facts whatever; it simply is an inference
- astheTribunal admits - and one which the Tribunal claims to derive
from the text of a letter, which text refutes the inference (as do the sur-
rounding circumstances of the case). As to factor (b),in which the Court
finds that the Tribunal "by implication" concluded that the Secretary-
Generalhad not been under amisapprehensionas to the effectof second-

ment, the weakness of the Tribunal's reasoning and of the Court's
reliance upon it is revealed by resort to "implication". "Implication" of
a fact cannot override demonstration of a contrary fact; and the com-
munications of the Secretary-General which Judge Jennings quotes
demonstrate that, at the operativetime, the Secretary-General obviously
was under the precise misapprehension as to the effect of secondment
which the Tribunal chooses to imply that he was not. As to factor (c)
- that the provision of Article 101,paragraph 3, of the Charter "mustétabli quele cas de M. Yakimetz avait bien été pris ((équitablementen
considération»et «par déductionque le Secrétairegénéral ne s'étaitpas
faituneidéefaussede l'effetdu détachement »puisque «le Tribunal a dû
avoir présent à l'esprit le contenu du paragraphe 3 de l'article 101de la
Charte lorsqu'il a examinéla question »(par. 89). La Cour conclut alors,
sans autre explication,que «de l'avisde la Cour, on ne saurait mettreen
cause ces constatations en invoquant une erreur de droit concernant les
dispositions de la Charte » (Ibid.).
La Cour prend donc soin de ne pas approuver lejugement du Tribunal
dans la mesure où ilestdit qu'un changement ou unetentative de change-
ment de nationalité amène àse demander, ce qui est déterminant, si un
fonctionnaire répond aux conditions requises pour continuer d'êtreem-

ployépar l'organisation. Comme le jugement du Tribunal sur ce point
important estsimanifestementencontradiction avecla lettre etl'esprit de
la Charte, la Cour pouvait difficilementagirautrement.
Cequi estintriguant, c'estque la Cour s'abstientde qualifiercarrément
d'erreur de droit concernant une disposition de la Charte l'erreur mani-
festement commise par le Tribunal car elle a conclu :a) que le Tribunal a
établiquele cas de M. Yakimetz avaitété pris équitablement en considé-
ration; b)que le Tribunal a établi«par déduction» que le Secrétairegé-
néralne s'étaitpas fait une idéefausse de l'effetdu détachement et c) que
le Tribunal doit avoir eu «présent à l'esprit»le contenu du paragraphe 3
de I'article 101de la Charte. LaCour sembleestimerque cesconstatations
du Tribunal ou ce que la Cour suppose qu'il avait àl'esprit com-

pensent,d'une certainemanière,l'interprétation nettementerronéequele
Tribunal a donnéedu paragraphe 3 de l'article 101de la Charte. Toute-
fois,à mon avis, en raisonnant de cette manière évasive laCour montre
une fois de plus combien elle s'efforce d'éviterde reconnaître explicite-
mentque leTribunal acommisdeserreursdedroitconcernant lesdisposi-
tions de la Charte.
Lesefforts que fait laCourpour expliquerl'erreur dedroit commisepar
le Tribunal au regard du paragraphe 3 de I'article 101de la Charte sont
particulièrement peu convaincants étant donné que: s'agissant du
point a),ceque leTribunal a«établi»ne sefonde suraucun faitquel qu'il
soit; ce n'est qu'une déduction - comme l'admet le Tribunal - que le
Tribunal prétend faire du texte d'une lettre, texte qui réfute cettedéduc-

tion (comme le font les circonstances de l'affaire). S'agissantdu point b)
- constatation par la Courque le Tribunal a établi«par déduction»que
le Secrétairegénéran le s'était pas fait une idée faussede l'effet du déta-
chement - la faiblesse du raisonnement du Tribunal, sur lequel la Cour
s'appuie, ressort de l'emploi de l'expression«par déduction».Ce qui est
établi«par déduction» ne peut l'emporter sur le contraire, lorsqu'il est
bien démontré,et les communications du Secrétaire général quecite
sirRobertJenningsmontrent àl'évidencequ'au momentcritique leSecré-
tairegénéralsefaisaitprécisémentde l'effetdu détachementl'idéefausse
que le Tribunal choisit de dire, par déduction, qu'il ne se faisait pas.
S'agissant du point c) - «le Tribunal a dû avoir présent à l'esprit» lahave been present to the mind of the Tribunal when it considered the
question" - that may well be so. But the question is not whether the
Tribunal thought about the terms of Article 101, paragraph 3, but
whether it thought about them correctly. If it did not, and if it expressed
its error in its judgement, it committed an error of law relating to a

provision of the Charter. Actually, that is exactly what it did, when it
incorporated into its judgement in Yakimetzits erroneous holding in
Fischmanwhich invests a Secretariat official's change of nationality
with an essentiality or paramountcy which conflicts with the terms of
Article 101,paragraph 3.

For these reasons, 1regret to Saythatthe Court's conclusion that "these
findings cannotbe disturbed on theground of error on a question of law
relating tothe provisions oftheCharter" iswhat is truly disturbing. In my
view,the Court, taking coverbehind thejurisdictional barrier which ithas
found it politic to postulate, hasturned ablind eyetowards the Adminis-
trative Tribunal's errors of law relating to Charter provisions. The loser is
the United Nations andthe independent Secretariat which its Charter is
designed to protect.

The Court rejectsthe Applicant's contention thatthe Tribunal commit-
ted an error of law relating to Article 100,paragraph 1,of the Charter,
which provides :

"In the performance of their duties the Secretary-General and the
staff shall not seek or receive instructions from any government or
from any other authority external to the Organization. They shall
refrain from any action which might reflect on their position as
international officiaisresponsible onlytothe Organization."

The Court holds :

"His [Mr. Yakimetz's]argument rests on the following premises :
thatthe Secretary-Generai believed that he could not givethe Appli-
cant any further employment whatever without the consent of his
former national Government;that the Tribunal found that this was
the Secretary-General's belief; thatthat belief was wrong as a matter
of law; and that theTribunal failed to find that it was wrong in law.
The Court however does not consider eitherthat theTribunal found
the existence ofthe belief attributedto the Secretary-General, or that
theTribunal found that such abeliefwasorwould havebeen correct. DEMANDE DE RÉFORMATION (OP.DISS.SCHWEBEL) 124

disposition du paragraphe 3de l'article 101de la Charte ((lorsqu'ila exa-
miné la question » - il se peut bien qu'il en soit ainsi. Néanmoinsil ne
s'agitpas de savoir si le Tribunal a songéauxtermes du paragraphe 3 de
l'article 101mais s'ily a songé correctement.S'ilne l'a pas fait et qu'il a
exprimé son erreur dans le jugement, il a commis une erreur de droit
concernant une disposition de la Charte. En réalité,c'est exactement ce
qu'ilafaiten intégrantdans lejugement qu'ilarendu enl'affaireYakimetz

la conclusion erronée àlaquelle il était parvenu enl'affaire Fischmanet
selon laquelle lechangement de nationalitéd'un fontionnaire du Secréta-
riat revêtun caractèredéterminantou dominant, ce qui est incompatible
avec lestermes du paragraphe 3 de l'article 101.
Pour cesraisons,je regrette de devoir dire que, cequi megênevraiment,
c'estque la Cour conclue qu'«on nesaurait mettre en cause ces constata-
tions en invoquant une erreur de droit concernant les dispositions de la
Charte». A mon avis, en s'abritant derrière l'obstacle juridictionnel
qu'elle ajugébon de poser en postulat, la Cour a ferméles yeux sur les

erreursde droit concernant les dispositions de laCharte commises par le
Tribunal administratif. Les perdants en l'affaire sont l'organisation des
Nations Unies ainsi que son Secrétariatindépendant que la Charte est
destinée àprotéger.

L'INTERPRÉTAT IONNNÉE PAR LA COUR DE L'ARTICLE 100 DE LA CHARTE
ET L'ERREUR DE DROIT COMMISEPAR LE TRIBUNAL

CONCERNANT L'ARTICLE 100

La Cour rejette la thèse du requérantselon laquelle le Tribunal aurait
commis une erreur de droitconcernant le paragraphe 1de l'article 100de
la Charte, aux termes duquel:

«Dans l'accomplissement de leursdevoirs, le Secrétairegénéraelt
le personnel ne solliciteront ni n'accepteront d'instructions d'aucun
gouvernement ni d'aucune autoritéextérieure à l'organisation. Ils
s'abstiendront de tout acteincompatible avecleursituation de fonc-
tionnairesinternationaux etnesont responsables qu'envers l'organi-
sation.)

La Cour dit:

((L'argumentation du requérant repose sur les prémisses sui-
vantes:le Secrétairegénéral pensainte pas pouvoir donnerun quel-
conque nouvel engagement au requérant sans le consentement de

son ancien gouvernement d'origine; le Tribunal a conclu que c'était
bien là ceque pensait leSecrétairegénéral;cetteidée étaiterronéeen
droit, ce que le Tribunal a omis de dire. Or la Cour ne considèrepas
que le Tribunal a conclu soit que telle était bien ldu Secrétaire
général soitque cette idée était ouaurait pu êtrejuste. Compte tenu
de lanature de ladécisionque leTribunal a effectivementprise au vu In view ofthe nature of the decision actually taken by the Tribunal
on the facts of the case,it does not appear necessary to consider the
matter further." (Para. 77.)

In myview,the Court's terse interpretation ofArticle 100,paragraph 1,
asitapplies tothecurrent case,isunduly confining. It failsto take account
of the import for this case of the second sentence of Article 100,para-
graph 1.And itisdifficult to reconcile withthe construction ofArticle 100
whichthe Court rightlyadopted initsAdvisoryOpinionon Reparationfor
InjuriesSufferedinthe Serviceofthe UnitedNations.

It may be recalled that, in that landmark decision, the Court held that
the United Nations has the capacity to bring an international claim in

respect of the damage caused to the victim, its agent. In the course of
the proceedings, Mr. G. G. Fitzmaurice of the United Kingdom argued
for a liberal construction of Article 100of the Charter in the following
terms :
"In its written statement the United Kingdom Government has
suggested that the requisite basis may be found in Article 100of the
Charter which creates a special relationship of internationalalle-

giancebetween the Organization and its servants. This, it is sug-
gested, does forge between the Organization and its servants a link
going beyond the ordinary relationship of master and servant, and
which may provide the necessarybasis for claimsmade by the Orga-
nization on behalf of the servants themselves in respect of the
damage done to them.
If wefollowthe argument out, 1think we shall seehowthis comes
about. The special allegiance partially displaces the normal alle-
gianceowed by individuals to their national State, and, inal1matters
affecting the United Nations, replaces it by an allegiance due exclu-
sivelyto the Organization. Thus, where the servantconcerned suffers
injury in the course of doingthe work ofthe Organization,in respect
of which his allegiance isowed solely to the Organization, and even,
if necessary, as against his own national State, it seems not only an
appropriate, but even a necessaryconsequence of this position, that

the Organization should be regarded ashavingthe capacity to make a
claim in respect of the loss ordamage caused to him or his depen-
dents.

Indeed, one might go further and Saythat the effect of Article 100
of the Charter is that the Members of the United Nations can be
regarded as having implicitly recognized that such capacity must
exist if the Organization is to be in a position adequately to carry
out its functions. The point may be illustrated by considering the
case of a United Nations servantwho isrequired in the course of his
work to do something which his own national State disapproves of DEMANDE DE RÉFORMATION (OP.DISS.SCHWEBEL) 125

des faits de la cause, iln'apparaît pas nécessaired'examiner la ques-
tion plus avant.(Par. 77.)

A mon avis l'interprétation lapidaire que la Cour donne du para-
graphe 1 de l'article 100dans son application en l'espèce est indûment
limitative. Elle ne tient pas compte de l'importance que présenteen l'es-
pècela seconde phrase du paragraphe 1 de l'article 100.Elle est par ail-
leursdifficilementconciliableavecl'interprétation valable de l'article 100
quela Cour adonnéedanssonavisconsultatif enl'affairede la Réparation

des dommagessubisauservicedes Nations Unies.
On se souviendra que, dans cette décisionmarquante, la Cour a dé-
claréque l'Organisation des Nations Unies est habilitée présenter une
réclamation internationaleà raison du dommage causé à la victime, son
agent. Au cours de la procédure orale,M. G.G. Fitzmaurice a plaidé au
nom du Royaume-Uni en faveur d'une interprétation libérale de I'ar-
ticle 100de la Charte, dans lestermes suivan:s

«Dans ses observations écrites, le Gouvernement du Royaume-
Uni a émis l'opinionque la base convenable peut être trouvéedans
l'article 100de la Charte, qui, effectivement, créeune relation parti-
culièred'allégeance internationaledes fonctionnaires vis-à-vis de
l'organisation et qui, selon nous, créerait entre l'organisation et ses
fonctionnaires un lien allant bien au-delà de la relation ordinaire de
maître à serviteuretquipeut fournirla basenécessairà desréclama-
tions présentéespar l'organisation au nom des fonctionnaires eux-
mêmes, à raison du dommage qui leur a été causé.

Si nous suivons cet argument jusqu'au bout, nous verrons, je
pense,où cecinous amène.Cette allégeanceparticulière sesubstitue
partiellement à l'allégeance normaledue par le particulierà1'Etat
dont ilestressortissant et, dans toutes lesmatièresintéressantlesNa-
tions Unies,elle la remplace par une allégeancedue exclusivementà
l'organisation. Ainsi, dans les cas où le fonctionnaire dont il s'agit
subit un préjudice dans l'accomplissement du travail de I'Organi-
sation, tâche dans laquelle son allégeance est due uniquement à
l'organisation et cela, au besoin, mêmecontre 1'Etatdont il est res-
sortissant, il semble que ce soit une conséquence non seulement
convenable mais mêmenécessaire d'une telle position que de

regarder l'organisation comme ayant la capacitéde présenter une
réclamation à raison du préjudice ou du dommage causé à ce fonc-
tionnaire ou àses ayants droit.
Avrai dire, on pourrait aller plus loin et soutenir que l'article 100
de laCharte apour effetlareconnaissanceimplicite par lesMembres
des Nations Unies de l'existencenécessaired'une tellecapacitépour
quel'organisation puisse êtreà même d'exercersesfonctions d'une
façon convenable. Pour éclairercettemanière de voir considérons le
cas d'un fonctionnaire des Nations Unies quiest appelé,dans l'exer-
cicede sesfonctions,à agird'unefaçon que 1'Etatdont ilestressortis- or considers to be contrary to its own interests. If he suffers injury in
the course ofdoing this, itisthen verypossible that his national State
will refuse to make any claim on his behalf, or will, at any rate, not
feel called upon to do so. Consequently, unless the Organization
itself be regarded as having the capacity to make claims on behalf
of these persons, and in respect of the loss or damage caused to
them,there willexist a lack of adequate protection, a position which
may be prejudicial to the good functioning of the Organization,
because if United Nations servants feel that they cannot look to

the Organization for protection if they suffer injury in carrying out
their duties, and that they must look, if at all, to their own national
State for protection, their allegiance is liable, to that extent, to be
divided, and the work of the Organization to suffer in consequence.
This is precisely the situation which it was the intention of Arti-
cle 100 of the Charter to guard against, and the Members of the
United Nations must be considered as having recognized this fact.
To put the matter in another way, the capacity of the Organization
to make a direct claim on behalf of its servants in respect of injuries
suffered by them in the course of performing their duties, is really
the necessary complement to or, as it were, the opposite facet of
the exclusive allegiance owed by them to the Organization; for you
cannot ask a man to be faithful solely to an international organiza-
tion in doing his work and even as against his own national State,
and yet expect him to remain solelydependent on that State forpro-
tection in case he suffers injury in the course of doing this same
work - especially when ... he may be placed in especial danger
by the very nature of this work. Such a position would be obviously
contrary to the principle enshrined in the Charter, and clearly

inherent inthe veryconception ofthe United Nations, thatthe Organ-
ization and its servants should function independently of al1consid-
erations of nationality: because, if they oughtto do so, then they
must also be enabledto do so,that is to Saythe Organization must
have such capacities as are necessary to bring this about, or, if you
prefer it, must not lack capacities in the absence of which this
independence maybeprejudiced." (I.C.J.Pleadings,OralArguments,
Documents, Reparation for Injuries Suffered in the Service of the
UnitedNations, 1949,pp. 123-124.)

TheCourt responsively construed Article 100ofthe Charter inthe follow-
ing way :
"Having regard to its purposes and functions already referred to,

the Organization mayfind itnecessary,and has infactfound itneces- sant désapprouveou estime contraire àsespropres intérêtsS. i,en ce

faisant, il subit un préjudice,tatdont il est ressortissant, trèspro-
bablement, serefusera àprésenterune réclamationensonnom ou, en
tout cas, ne se sentira pas tenu de le faire. Par conséquent,oins
que l'organisation elle-même ne soitregardée comme possédantla
capacitéde présenterla réclamationau nom de cespersonnes, et ce à
raison du préjudiceoudu dommage qui leur estcausé,ilvaexisterun
manque de protection convenable et une situation quipeut être pré-
judiciable au bon fonctionnement de l'organisation, car si les fonc-
tionnaires des Nations Unies ont l'impression qu'ils ne peuvent
compter surl'organisation pour lesprotéger,au cas où ilssubiraient
un dommage dans l'accomplissement de leur devoir, et s'ilsdoivent
à supposer qu'ilspuissent compter sur quelqu'un, sur 1'Etat
compter,
dont ils sont ressortissants, pour lesprotéger, leur allégeanceest ap-
pelée,dans lamesure de cetétatde choses, àêtrepartagéeetletravail
de l'Organisationà en souffrir en conséquence.C'est précisémenlta
situation contre laquelle on avait eu l'intention de se prémunirpar
l'article 100de laCharte, etl'ondoitconsidérerque lesMembresdes
Nations Uniesavaientreconnu cefait: pour présenterla chose autre-
ment, la capacitéde l'organisation de présenterune réclamation di-
rectement au nom de ses fonctionnaires, à raison des préjudices
qu'ilsont subis dans l'exercicedeleursfonctions, estvéritablementle
complément nécessaireou, si l'on veut, la contre-partie de l'allé-
geance exclusivequ'ilsdoivent à l'organisation car onne saurait de-

mander à un homme d'êtrefidèle àla seuleOrganisation internatio-
nale dans l'exercicedesesfonctions etcelamêmecontre 1'Etatdont il
est ressortissant et cependant s'attendrece qu'il continueà ne dé-
pendre que de cet Etat pour sa protection au cas ou il subirait un
préjudicedans l'accomplissement desdites fonctions- toutparticu-
lièrementsi ..il peut être placédans une situation particulièrement
dangereuse par la nature mêmede ces fonctions. Une telle situation
serait manifestement contraire au principe insérédans la Charte et
de toute évidenceinhérentau concept mêmedes Nations Unies, à
savoir que l'Organisation et ses fonctionnaires doiventexercerleurs
fonctionssans aucun égard à des considérationsdenationalité :carsi
tel estleur devoir,encore faut-il qu'ilsen aient les moyens,c'est-à-dire

quel'organisation doitposséderlescapacitésquiluisontnécessaires
pour atteindre cet objectif, ou si vous préférez, ne doit pas être
dépourvuedes capacitésen l'absencedesquelles cette indépendance
pourrait se trouver atteinte. (C.I.J. Mémoires, plaidoiries et docu-
ments, Réparation des dommagessubisau servicedes Nations Unies,
p. 123-124.)

LaCour, sensible à cesarguments,ainterprétél'article 100de la Charte
comme suit :
«Eu égard àsesbuts et fonctionsprécédemment indiquésl,'Orga-
nisation peut constater la nécessité et a en fait constatéla néces-127 APPLICATION FOR REVIEW (DISS. OP. SCHWEBEL)

sary,to entiust itsagents with important missions to be performed in
disturbedparts of the world. Many missions, from their verynature,
involvethe agents in unusual dangers to which ordinary persons are

not exposed. Forthe same reason, the injuries suffered by its agents
inthese circumstances willsometimeshave occurred in such a man-
ner that their national Statewould not bejustified inbringing a claim
forreparation on theground of diplomatic protection, or,at any rate,
would not feel disposed to do so. Both to ensure the efficient and
independent performance of these missions and to afford effective
supportto its agents, the Organization must provide them with ade-
quate protection

For this purpose, the Members of the Organization have entered
into certain undertakings, some of which are in the Charter and
others in complementary agreements. Thecontent of these undertak-
ings need not be described here; but the Court must stress the im-
portance of the duty to render to the Organization 'everyassistance'
which is accepted by the Members in Article 2, paragraph 5, of the
Charter. It must be noted that the effectiveworking of the Organiza-
tion - the accomplishment of its task, and the independence and
effectiveness ofthe work of itsagents - require that these undertak-
ingsshould be strictlyobserved. Forthat purpose, itisnecessarythat,
when an infringement occurs, the Organization should be ableto cal1

upon the responsible Stateto remedy itsdefault, and, in particular, to
obtain from the Statereparation forthe damage thatthe default may
have caused to its agent.
In order that thcagent may perform his duties satisfactorily, he
must feel that this protection is assured to him by the Organization,
and that he may count on it.Toensure theindependence ofthe agent,
and, consequently, theindependent action ofthe Organization itself,
itisessential that inperforming his dutieshe need not have to relyon
anyother protection than that ofthe Organization (saveofcoursefor
the more direct and immediate protection due from the State in
whose territory he may be). In particular, he should not have to rely
on the protection of his own State. Ifhe hadto rely on thatState, his

independence mightwell be compromised, contrary to the principle
appliedby Article 100of the Charter.And lastly, it is essential that
- whether the agent belongs to a powerful or to a weak State;to
one more affected or less affected by the complications of interna-
tional life; to one in sympathy or not in sympathy with the mission
of the agent - heshould know that in the performance of his duties
he is under the protection of the Organization. This assurance is
evenmore necessarywhenthe agent isstateless." (Z.C.J.Reports1949,
pp. 183-184;emphasis added.)

It was observed years ago of this holding of the Court that : sité- de confierà ses agents des missions importantes qui doivent
être effectuéesdans des régions troubléesdu monde. De telles mis-
sions, par leur nature, exposent souvent les agentsesdangers ex-

ceptionnelsauxquels lespersonnes ne sont pas exposéesd'ordinaire.
Pour cette mêmeraison, les dommagessubis par ces agents dans ces
conditions se produiront parfois de telle manière que leur Etat na-
tional neseraitpas fondéà introduireunedemande enréparationsur
la base de la protection diplomatique ou, tout au moins, ne seraitpas
disposé àle faire. Tant afin d'assurer l'exerciceefficace et indépen-
dantde sesfonctions que pour procurer àsesagents unappui effectif,
l'organisation doit leur fournirune protection appropriée.
.............................

A cet effet, les Membres de l'organisation ont contracté certains
engagements, dont les uns figurent dans la Charte et d'autres dans
des accords complémentaires. Il n'est pas besoin de décrireici le
contenu de cesaccords,mais laCour doit insistersur l'importance du
devoir de donner à l'organisation ((pleine assistance », acceptépar
ses Membres dans l'article 2, paragraphe 5, de la Charte. Il faut se
souvenir que le fonctionnement efficace de l'organisation, l'accom-
plissement de sesdevoirs,l'indépendance etl'efficacitde l'Œuvrede
ses agents exigentle strict respect de ces engagements. A cettefin, il
estnécessaireque,lorsqu'un manquement seproduit, l'organisation
soit en mesure d'inviter'Etatresponsable à remédier à ce manque-
ment et,notamment, d'obtenir de cet Etat réparation des dommages
que ce manquement peut avoir causés àl'agent de l'Organisation.

Pour que l'agent puisse s'acquitter de ses devoirs de façon satis-
faisante, il faut qu'il sente que cette protection lui est assurée par
l'organisation et qu'il peut compter sur elle. Afin de garantir l'in-
dépendancede l'agent et, en conséquence, l'actionindépendante de
l'Organisation elle-mêmei,l est essentiel que l'agent, dans l'exercice
de ses fonctions, n'ait pas besoin de compter sur une autre protec-
tion que celle de l'organisation (sauf, bien entendu, la protection
plus directe et plus immédiate due par1'Etatsur le territoire duquel
il peut setrouver). En particulier, il ne doit pas avoirnremettre
à la protection de son propre Etat. Si tel étaitle cas, son indépen-
dancepourrait,contrairementauprincipe qu'applique l'article00de
la Charte,se trouvercompromise. Enfin, il est essentiel que l'agent
- qu'il appartienneà un Etat puissant ou faibleà un Etat plus ou

moinstouchépar lescomplications de lavieinternationale, àun Etat
ensympathie ou non avec samission - sacheque, dans l'exercicede
sesfonctions,il estplacé sousla protection de l'Organisation. (Cette
assurance est encore plus nécessaire si l'agent est un apatride.)))
(C.Z. RJe.ueil1949,p. 183-184;les italiques sont de moi.)

En cequi concerne cetteconclusion dela Cour,ona faitobserver, ilya
longtemps déjà,que : 128 APPLICATION FOR REVIEW (DISS.OP. SCHWEBEL)

"The breadth of the Court's construction of Article 100is instruc-
tive.TheCourt wasprepared to hold, as in fact itdid, that in the rela-
tively unlikely eventof an agent of the Organization being injured in
the course of his duties in circumstances involvingthe responsibility
ofa State,or,rather, inthe contingency ofthe agent'santicipatingthe
possibility of the occurrence of such an event, his independence
might be compromised unless he were able to rely upon the very li-
mited protection afforded by the presentation of a monetary claim
postfacto, not by his State, but rather by the Organization. This atti-
tude of the Court is of importance for its possible approachto a less
indirect encroachment upon Article 100."(S.M. Schwebel,"The In-

ternational Character of the Secretariat of the United Nations",
XXX TheBritish YearBookof International Law (1953),p. 82.)

1sthere nota moredirect encroachment upon Article LOO inthe Admin-
istrative Tribunal's disposition of the Yakimetz case? If the Secretary-
General believed, as the evidenceuniformly indicates that he did believe,
that Mr.Yakimetzcould not be considered for acareer appointment inthe
absence ofthe consent ofthe USSR Government, and if,as it did,the Ad-
ministrative Tribunal failed soto find despite the evidence requiring that
finding, those errors may, in myview,be seen as errors "relating to" Arti-
cle 100,paragraph 1,ofthe Charter. Errordidnot consist ofthe Secretary-
General's seeking or receiving instructions from the Government of the
USSR in violation of the first sentence of that paragraph; consequently,
there isno error oftheTribunal infailing soto hold. Butif, under amisap-
prehension about the weightto attach to the lack of consent of the Soviet
Union to a career appointment for Mr. Yakimetz,the Secretary-General
gave that Sovietposition determinative weight, then the Secretary-Gene-

ral didnot merelycommit an error of law.He failed to fulfil his obligation
under the second sentence of Article 100,paragraph 1,to "refrain from
anyaction which might reflect"on hisposition as an international official
"responsible only to the Organization", because, in effect, he ceded
responsibility in this respect to a "government or .. .other authority
external to the Organization". Therein liesthe error relating to a Charter
provision. In my view,this conclusion is consistent both with the facts, in
so far as the factshavebeen placed before the Court,and withthe law, in
the construction of it earlier made by the Court in the Reparation for
Injuries Suffered in the Service of the United Nations case. It is equally
consonant with Judgement No. 431 of the Administrative Tribunal of
the International Labour Organisation, In re Rosescu. The failure of
the Administrative Tribunal to assignthis error constitutes an error of law
relating to a provision of the Charter. ((L'étenduedel'interprétationque la Courdonne de l'article 100
est instructive. La Cour était prête à conclure, c'est d'ailleurs ce
qu'elleafait,que,dans lecasrelativement improbable oùun agent de
l'organisation subit dans l'exercice de ses fonctions un dommage
dans des circonstances de nature à engager la responsabilité d'un
Etat, ou plutôt dans le cas oùun agent prévoitla possibilitéqu'un tel
événementse produise, l'indépendance de cet agent risque d'être

compromise s'ilnepeut compter sur la protection très limitéeofferte
par la présentation d'une demande de réparation monétaire
postfactopar l'organisation et non par son Etat. Cette prise de posi-
tion de la Cour estimportante au regard de l'attitude qu'ellepourrait
adopter enprésenced'uneinfraction moins indirecte àl'article 100))
(S. M. Schwebel, «The International Character of the Secretariat of
the United Nations)), île British Year Bookof InternationalLaw,
vol. XXX, 1953,p. 82.)

La décisionrendue par le Tribunal administratif en l'affaireYakimetz
ne constitue-t-ellepas une infraction plus directà l'article 100?Sile Se-
crétaire général pensait,et toutes les preuves indiquent qu'il le pensait,
que le cas de M. Yakimetz ne pouvait pas être prisen considérationaux

fins d'une nomination de carrièreen l'absence du consentement du Gou-
vernement de l'Union soviétique, etcomme le Tribunal administratif
avait omis de le constater malgréles preuves qui l'exigeaient, ces erreurs
pouvaient àmon avis être considéréescomme des erreur( s(concernant »
le paragraphe 1de l'article 100de la Charte. Il n'yavait pas erreur parce
que le Secrétairegénéralaurait sollicitéou reçu des instructions du Gou-
vernement de l'Union soviétique en violationde la premièrephrase de ce
paragraphe; en omettant de faire cette constatation le Tribunal n'avait
donc pas commis d'erreur. En revanche, si leSecrétaire générae l,n semé-
prenant sur le poids àattacher au fait que l'Union soviétique n'avaitpas
donnéson consentement àla nomination de M. Yakimetz àun poste de
carrièreavait ainsi donnéuneimportance déterminante à l'attitude sovié-
tique, le Secrétaire général n'avaitas simplement commis une erreur de
droit. Il ne s'étaitpas acquittéde l'obligation que lui impose la seconde

phrase du paragraphe 1de l'article 10:s'abstenir detout acteincompa-
tible avec [sa]situation de fonctionnaire internationalui n'est respon-
sable ((qu'envers l'organisation »; en fait, il a laisséassumer la responsa-
bilitéenla matière àun ((gouvernement ou ..[àune]autoritéextérieure à
l'organisation ».C'estlà que résidel'erreur commise concernant une dis-
position de laCharte. Amon sens,cetteconclusion estconformeaux faits,
dans la mesure où ils ont étérapportés à la Cour, et au droit, tel que la
Cour l'ainterprétédans l'affaire de laRéparationdesdommagessubisau
servicedes Nations Unies. Elle va égalementdans le sens du jugement
no 431rendu par le Tribunal administratif de l'organisation internatio-
nale du Travail enl'affaireosescu.Lefait que leTribunal administratifa
omis de relever cette erreur constitue une erreur de droit concernant une
disposition dela Charte. THEQUESTIO ONFWHETHE RSTATE MAYLAWFULLR YEQUIR EHAT ALL
OF ITSNATIONAL ENGAGE DYTHE UNITED NATIONS BESECONDED

The Court's opinion does not do more than to allude tothe rights and
duties of a State in respect of itsnationals who are secondedfor servicein

the United Nations Secretariat, though this is a question which was
argued in the course of the proceedings. In this regard, two observa-
tions may be made. The first isthat, as theGovernment of Canada rightly
submitted in its written statement
"the only interpretation of secondment that is consistent with the

terms of the Charter is that in such an arrangement an individual
makes his services available to the U.N. Secretariat, while the
member Stateconcerned grantsthe individual a right to return to his
previous employment. Any interpretation that seeks toprovide
member states with a veto power over any staffing decision of the
Secretary-General is contrary to the Charter.

The Secretary General undoubtedly has a legitimatenterest in
consulting with memberstates on staff appointments in the interests
of securing the highest standard of efficiency, competence and
integrity, or to seek out staff to improve the geographical distribu-
tion of employees in the Secretariat. Indeed, the relationship of an

employee with his or her country of nationality may be a factor in
determining the extent to which an individual fulfills the require-
ments of Article 101.The views of the member state, in this regard,
may be a relevant factor but cannot be the sole criterion ini-
sions of the Secretary General with respect to secondments.

If the appointment or re-appointment of an employee were re-
fused solelyfor want ofthe consent of the country of the employee's
nationality, or indeed of any other member state,such decision
would be contrary to Articles 100and 101of the U.N. Charter."

The second observation isthat it isficult to reconcile with theChar-
ter the policy pursued by certain States of Eastern Europe in requiring
that 100per cent of their nationals appointed to the Secretariat of the
United Nations have fixed-term contracts (theeport of the Secretary-

Generalon theCompositionof theSecretariat,/41/627 of 27 September
1986,pp. 31-35,shows that, whereas 100per cent of the nationals of the
Soviet Union are on fixed-termcontracts,percent of China's, 18.5per
cent of France's, 14per cent of the United Kingdom's and 16.4per cent
of the United States's nationals in the Secretariat serve on fixed-term
contracts).oes a United Nations Member which, by the terms of Arti- La Cour,dansson avis,seborne àfaireallusion auxdroits etdevoirs de
1'Etatà l'égardde ses ressortissants détachés auprèsdu Secrétariatde
l'organisation desNations Unies, bien que cette question aitétéévoquée
au cours de l'instance. Deux observations peuvent êtrefaitesce propos.

En premier lieu, comme le déclare à juste titre le Gouvernement du Ca-
nada dans son exposé écrit :
«pour êtreconforme aux dispositions de la Charte, le détachement
doit être interprétcomme un arrangement aux termes duquel une
personne met ses services à la disposition du Secrétariat des Na-

tions Unies et'EtatMembre concernédonne de son côté à cetteper-
sonne le droit de reprendre son travail antérieur. Toute interpréta-
tion qui viseàdonner aux Etats Membres un droit de veto sur une
décision de dotation du Secrétaire générav l aà l'encontre de la
Charte.
Le Secrétaire général a manifestementun intérêtlégitime à
consulter lesEtats Membres au sujet desnominations, de façon à as-
surerà l'organisation les services de personnes possédant les plus
hautes qualitésde travail, de compétence et d'intégrité, ou encore
pour chercher à recruter du personnel de manière àaméliorer laré-
partition géographiquedes employésdu Secrétariat.En fait, la rela-
tion d'un employé avecle paysdont il a la nationalitéest un facteur

qui peut êtrepris en considérationlorsqu'il s'agitde déterminerdans
quelle mesure cette personne satisfait aux prescriptions de l'ar-
ticle 101.Lesvues de 1'EtatMembre à cet égardpeuvent êtreun fac-
teur pertinent; ellesnepeuvent toutefois êtreleseulcritèresur lequel
s'appuient les décisionsdu Secrétairegénéral ence qui concerne les
détachements.
S'ilétait décidéde ne pas nommer ou réengagerun employéuni-
quement du fait du non-consentement du pays dont l'employéa la
nationalité,voire du non-consentement de tout autre Etat Membre,
cettedécision seraitcontraireaux articles 100et 101de laCharte des
Nations Unies. ))

En second lieu,lapolitique suiviepar certains Etats d'Europe orientale
qui demandent que tous leurs ressortissants engagésau Secrétariatde
l'organisation des Nations Unies le soient au titre de contrats de durée
déterminéeest difficilement conciliable avec la Charte. (Le rapport du
Secrétaire généralrelatif à la composition du Secrétariat (A/41/627,

p. 36-39,du 27 septembre 1986)indique quela proportion des ressortis-
santsde l'Union soviétiquetitulairesde contrats de duréedéterminéeest
de 100pour cent, qu'elle estde 32 pour cent pour ceux de la Chine, de
18,5pour cent pour ceux de la France, de 14 pour cent pour ceux du
Royaume-Uni etde 16,4pour centpour ceuxdes Etats-Unisd'Amérique.)cle 100,paragraph 2, of the Charter, "undertakes to respect the exclu-
sively international character of the responsibilities of the Secretary-
General and the staff and not to seek to influence them in the discharge
of their responsibilities" fulfil those obligations when it requires that al1
of its nationals serving in the Secretariat be seconded from its Govern-
ment service? Can it be supposed that such nationals are well-placed to
fulfiltheir obligationnot to "seek orreceiveinstructions from any govern-
ment or any authority externai to the Organization" and to "refrain

from any action which might reflect on their position as international
officials responsible onlyto the Organization"?

In view of these considerations, the recommendation containedin the
report of the "Group of 18" that "no more than 50 per cent of the
nationals of any one Member State employed by the United Nations
should be appointed on a fixed-term basis" isto be welcomed. (Report of
theGroup of High-LevelInter-Governmental Experts to Reviewthe Effi-
ciency of the Administrative and Financial Functioning of the United
Nations, GAOR,Forty-JirstSession,SupplementNo. 49, A/41/49, p. 22.)
Also to be welcomed, if for distinguishable reasons, is the judgment on

8April 1986ofthe United StatesDistrict Court for the Eastern District of
Pennsylvania in Hintonv. Devine(Civ. No. 84-1130),declaring unconsti-
tutional the International Organizations Employees Loyalty Program
instituted pursuant to US Executive Order No. 10422of 9 January 1953.
It is reported that the United States Government has decided not to
appeal that judgment and that it has suspended the investigative pro-
gramme of Executive Order No. 10422.(SeeMark A. Roy, "US. Loyalty
ProgramforCertain UN EmployeesDeclared Unconstitutional", 80Amer-
icanJournalofInternationalLaw(1986),p. 984.)

1 believe that the observations of the late Secretary-General of the
United Nations, Dag Hammarskjold, on the question of secondment
remain as valid today - in their legal as well as political conclusion-
as they were when he setthem outin a famous Lecture delivered to Con-
gregation at Oxford University on 30 May 1961 :

"A risk of national pressure onthe international officia1may also
be introduced, in a somewhat more subtle way, by the terms and
duration of his appointment. A national official, seconded by his
government for a year or two with an international organization, is

evidently in a different position psychologically - and one might
Say, politically- from the permanent international civil servant
who does not contemplate a subsequent career with his national Un Etat Membre de l'organisation des Nations Unies respecte-t-il ses
obligations en vertu du paragraphe 2 de l'article 100de la Charte, aux
termes duquel il ((s'engageàrespecterlecaractère exclusivementinterna-
tional des fonctions du Secrétairegénéraeltdu personnel et à nepas cher-

cher à lesinfluencer dans l'exécutionde leurstâches »,quand il demande
que tous ses ressortissants engagésau Secrétariatsoient détachés dela
fonction publique? Peut-on supposer que ceux-ci, àmêmede s'acquitter
de leurs obligations, ne «solliciteront ni n'accepteront d'instructions
d'aucun gouvernement ni d'aucune autoritéextérieure àl'organisation »
et qu'ils ((s'abstiendrontdetout acte incompatible avec leursituation de
fonctionnaires internationaux [qui]ne sont responsables qu'envers l'Or-
ganisation »?
Au vu de ces considérations, il faut se féliciterque le rapport du
((groupe des Dix-huit » contienne une recommandation selon laquelle
«la proportion des nationaux titulaires de contrats de durée déterminée

ne devrait dépasserpour aucun Etat Membre 50 pour cent du nombre
total des nationaux du même Etat employés par l'organisation)) (Na-
tions Unies, Documents ofJiciels de IYssemblée générale,quarante et
unièmesession,supplément no49,A/41/49, rapport du groupe d'experts
intergouvernementaux de haut niveau chargés d'examiner l'efficacité
du fonctionnement administratif et financier de l'organisation des Na-
tions Unies, p. 22).Il faut également seféliciter,mais pour d'autres rai-
sons, que le 8 avril 1986 la District Court for the Eastern District
of Pennsylvania, aux Etats-Unis, ait déclaréinconstitutionnel, dans
l'affaireHinton c. Devine (Civ. no 84-1130),1'«International Organiza-
tions Employees Loyalty Program» créé enapplication du décret-loi
no 10422du 9 janvier 1953. Il semble que le Gouvernement des Etats-

Unis ait décidéde ne pas recourir contre cette décision etqu'il ait inter-
rompu le programme d'enquêtevisédans le décret-loino 10422(voir
Mark A.Roy, «U.S. LoyaltyProgramfor Certain UN Employees Declared
Unconstitutional », American Journal of International Law,vol. 80, 1986,
p. 984).
J'estime que les observations que M. Dag Hammarskjold, le regretté
Secrétairegénéradlel'organisation desNations Unies, aformuléessur la
question du détachement sont tout aussi valables aujourd'hui - sous
l'angle des conclusions qu'il en tire du point de vue juridique et poli-
tique - qu'elles l'étaient lorsqu'il leasexposéesau cours de la célèbre
conférence qu'il adonnée devant l'Assembléegénéralede l'université

d'Oxford le 30mai 1961 :

«Un risque de pression des autorités nationales sur le fonction-
naire international peut également résulter,de manièreun peu plus
subtile, des termes et de la duréede son engagement. Un fonction-
naire national détachépar son gouvernement pour un an ou deux
auprès d'une organisation internationale est à l'évidencedans une
position qui estpsychologiquement - et,pourrait-on dire,politique-
ment - différentede celledu fonctionnaireinternationalpermanentgovernrnent. This was recognized by the Preparatory Commission
in London in 1945when it concluded that members of the Secre-
tariat staff could not be expected 'fully to subordinate the special
interests of their countries to the international interest if they are
merely detached temporarily from national administrations and
dependentupon them fortheirfuture'. Recently,however, assertions
have been made that it is necessary to switch from the present
system, which makes permanent appointments and career service
the rule, to a predominant system of fixed-term appointments to be
granted mainly to officials seconded by their governments. This

line is prompted by governments which show little enthusiasm for
making officials available on a long-term basis, and, moreover,
seem to regard - as a matter of principle or, at least, of 'realistic'
psychology - the international civil servant primarily as a
national officia1representing his country and its ideology. On this
view, the international civil service should be recognized and de-
veloped as being an 'intergovernmental' secretariat composed prin-
cipally of national officials assigned by their governments, rather
than as an 'international' secretariat as conceived from the days
of the League of Nations and until now. In the light of what 1have
already said regarding the provisions of the Charter, 1 need not
demonstrate that this conception runs squarely against the prin-
ciples of Articles 100and 101.

This isnot to Saythat there isnot room for a reasonable number of
'seconded' officials in the Secretariat. It has in fact been accepted
that itishighly desirable to have anumber of officials available from
governrnents for short periods, especiallyto perforrn particular tasks
calling for diplomatic or technical backgrounds. Experience has
shown that such seconded officials, true to their obligations under
the Charter, perform valuable servicebut asamatter ofgood policyit
should, of course, be avoided as much as possible to put them on
assignments in which their status and nationality might be embar-
rassing to themselves orthe parties concerned. However,this isquite
different from having a large portion of the Secretariat - Say,in

excess of one-third - composed of short-term officials. To have so
large a proportion of the Secretariat staff in the seconded category
would be likelyto impose serious strains on itsabilityto function asa
body dedicated exclusively to international responsibilities. Espe-
ciallyifthere wereany doubts astothe principles ruling their workin
the minds of the governments on which their future might depend,
this might result in a radical departure from the basicconcepts ofthe
Charterandthe destruction ofthe international civilserviceas ithas
been developed inthe League and up to now in the United Nations."qui n'envisage pas de poursuivre sa carrière au sein de sa fonction
publique nationale. C'est ceque la commission préparatoire a re-
connu àLondres en 1945puisqu'elle a conclu qu'«on ne peut pas
compter ..que les membres du personnel subordonneront entière-
ment lesintérêtsparticuliersde leur paysà l'intérêitnternational s'ils
nesont que détachés provisoirement d'administrations nationales et
s'ilscontinuent à dépendred'ellespour leur avenir».Oron a fait va-
loir récemmentqu'il fallait changer le systèmeactuel, dans lequel
prévalentles nominations permanentes et les postes de carrière, en
un systèmeoù prédomineraientlesnominations de duréedéterminée
qui seraient accordéesprincipalement àdesfonctionnairesdétachés

par leur gouvernement. Ce sont les gouvernements qui se montrent
peu enclins à mettredes fonctionnaires àladisposition du Secrétariat
pour de longues périodes qui défendentcette idéeet qui semblent
d'autre part considérer - pour des raisons de principe ou du moins
de psychologie ((réaliste»- le fonctionnaire international comme
étant en premier lieu un fonctionnaire national représentant son
pays et l'idéologiede celui-ci. Selon ce point de vue, il faudrait voir
dans la fonction publique internationale un secrétariat «intergou-
vernemental)) composé principalement de fonctionnaires natio-
naux fournis par leur gouvernement etnonun secrétariat «internatio-
nal », comme on l'a imaginédu temps de la Sociétédes Nations et

comme on continue à l'imaginer, etc'estdans ce sens qu'il faudrait
la développer. A la lumièrede ce que j'ai déjàdit au sujet des dis-
positions de la Charte, ilestinutile queje démontrequecette concep-
tion va toutà faitàl'encontre des principes énoncésaux articles 100
et 101.
Cela ne revient pas à dire qu'il n'y a pas de place au Secrétariat
pour un nombre raisonnable de fonctionnaires ((détachés ». Il a
d'ailleurs été reconnuqu'il étaithautement souhaitable de disposer
d'un certain nombre de fonctionnaires mis en disponibilitépour de
brèvespériodespar leur gouvernement etspécialementaffectés à des
tâches déterminéesdemandantune formationdiplomatique outech-
nique. L'expérience amontréque ces fonctionnaires détachés,res-

pectueux des obligations que leurimpose la Charte, rendent de pré-
cieux services mais il va de soi qu'il estde bonne politique d'éviter
autantque possible deleurattribuer destâches qui lesmettraient,eux
ou lesparties concernées,dansune situation embarrassante enraison
de leurstatut etdeleur nationalité. Toutefois,cela n'arien voiravec
un secrétariatdont une large partie- disons plus d'untiers - serait
composéede fonctionnaires engagéspour de courtespériodes. Sile
Secrétariatcomptaitune sigrande proportion de fonctionnaires dé-
tachés parmison personnel, cela risquerait d'affecter gravement sa
capacitédejouer lerôled'organe exclusivement soucieux de sesres-
ponsabilités internationales. En particulier, s'il existait des doutes

quant aux principes régissant l'emploide ces fonctionnaires, dans
l'esprit des gouvernements dont leur avenir pourrait dépendre, les132 APPLICATION FOR REVIEW (DISS.OP.SCHWEBEL)

(Re International Civilservant inLawand inFact,Oxford atthe Clar-
endon Press, 1961,pp. 17-19.)

As the Court's Opinion records, hearings in this case were not held, a
decision which was the more understandable because neither the Secre-
tary-General nor Mr. Yakimetz requested oral argument. Had hearings
taken place, however, it may be that certain significant factual uncertain-
ties might have been resolved. At al1eventstheCourt could have decided
to hold hearings in this case and isat liberty to do soinfutureuch cases.
A matter which has been the subject of some misunderstanding has,

1 believe, been usefully clarified by the following statement of the
Secretary-General :

"One ofthe objectionsagainst the present systemof reviewby ICJ
advisory opinions is the truncated Court procedure foreseen. Be-
cause no way was seen for individual applicants to appear through
counsel in oral proceedings in the Court, the General Assembly, in
the resolution by which it adopted article 11of the UNAT statute
(957(X),para. 2),recommendedthat neitherStates northe Secretary-
General seek to present oral statements in such an ICJ proceeding.
The Secretary-General and al1interested States have sofar complied
with this request, but unease has been expressed that this does vio-
lenceto thejudicial procedures ofthe Court, that insomecasesa hear-
ing may be necessary forthe proper presentation of a case and that
the entire procedure isthus at the mercyofany State that might insist
on its right to make an oral statement under article 66(2)of the ICJ
Statute (which would result inthe type of inequality of arms vis-à-vis

the applicantthat would almost surely cause the Court to abortthe
proceeding).

However, this entire procedural limitation appearsto be unneces-
sary.Under article 11(2)ofthe UNAT statute, the Secretary-General
is obliged to transmit to the Court the views ofthe applicant in the
Tribunal proceeding asto which theCourt's opinion was requested.
Inthe 'appeals'sofar brought to the Court under UNAT statute arti-
cle 11 and the one brought under ILOAT statute article XII, the
applicant's views were presented to the Court by having the exe- notions qui sontà la base de la Charte risqueraient de s'entrouver
gravement compromises et la fonction publique internationale, telle
qu'elle a évoluéà la Sociétédes Nations puis à l'organisation des
Nations Uniesjusqu'à présent,risquerait d'être détruite.e Inter-

national CivilServant inaw and in Fact,Clarendon Press, Oxford,
1961,p. 17-19.)

POSSIBILI T ETENIR DES AUDIENCES DANS LES AFFAIRESDE CE GENRE

Comme il est indiquédans l'avisde la Cour, il a été décidéde ne pas
tenir d'audiences en l'espèce,ce qui se comprend d'autant plus que ni le
Secrétairegénéranli M.Yakimetz n'enavaient faitlademande. Toutefois,

sidesaudiences avaienteulieu, certains points de faitimportantsauraient
peut-êtrepu êtreéclaircis.Quoi qu'ilen soit,la Cour auraitpu décider de
tenir desaudiences en l'espèceet ellesera libre de prendre une telle déci-
siondans d'autres affairesde cetordre.lestun pointqui afaitl'objetd'un
certain malentendu mais sur lequel le Secrétairegénéral me semble avoir
utilement fait la lumièrelorsqu'il a déclaré

L'une desobjections àl'encontre de l'actuelsystèmede réforma-
tion par lebiais d'avisconsultatifs de la CIJ tient aufait quela procé-
dure de la Cour risque d'être((tronquée.Comme on n'apastrouvé
de moyen qui permettrait aux requérants de se présenterdevant la
Cour, par l'intermédiaire d'unconseil, au cours d'une procédure
orale, l'Assembléegénérale,dans la résolution par laquelle elle a

adopté l'article 11 du statut du Tribunal administratif des Na-
tions Unies (957 (X),par. 2),a recommandéque les Etats et le Secré-
taire général s'abstiennentde présenterdes exposésoraux à la CIJ
dans le cadre d'une telle procédure. Jusqu'à présent le Secrétaire
général ettous les Etats intéressés sesont conformés cette recom-
mandation, mais l'on s'estinquiétédu fait que cet étatde choses ne
permettait pas à la Cour de suivre sa procédure normale, et l'on
a fait valoir que dans certains cas une procédure orale pourrait être
nécessairepour exposer convenablement l'affaire, et que toute la
procédure était ainsi à la merci de tout Etat qui pourrait insister
pour exercer son droit de faire un exposéoral conformément au

paragraphe 2 de l'article 66 du Statut de la CIJ (ce qui placerait le
requérantdans une position d'inférioritételle que la Cour mettrait
presquecertainement fin à la procédure).
Toutefois, il semblerait que ces problèmes de procédurepuissent
êtresurmontés. Enapplication du paragraphe 2 de l'article 11du
statut du Tribunal administratif des Nations Unies, le Secrétairegé-
néralesttenu detransmettre à laCour l'opinion exposéepar lerequé-
rant dans la procédure devant le Tribunal au sujet de laquelle l'avis
de la Cour est demandé.A l'occasion des «recours »formésjusqu'à
présentauprès de la Cour conformément à l'article 11du statut ducutive head concerned (respectively the United Nations Secretary-
General andthe UNESCO Director-General)forward directly, with-
out any editing or censorship, al1written communications received
from the applicant or his counsel. Precisely in thesame way, if oral
proceedings were held, counsel selected by the applicant (and
acceptable to the Court) could be introduced as the Secretary-
General's special representative to express the applicant's views.
With respect to this proposa1 the President of the Court has indi-
cated 'that the Court, which has stressed on several occasions the
maintenance of the principle of equality among the parties, will
continue to bear it in mind in determining its own procedure in
each particular case'.

Whether or not UNAT statute article 11ismaintained unchanged,
or isrestricted to purely State-initiatedproceedings..or a newtype
of reference to the Court is introduced ... the General Assembly
might consider changing the recommendation in its resolution
957 (X)in the sense indicated ... This recommendation should be
formulated broadly enough so as also to apply to reviews sought
under article XII of the ILOAT statute." (Report of the Secretary-
General on the feasibility of establishing a single administrative
tribunal,A/C.5/397, paras. 88-90.)

(Signed)Stephen M. SCHWEBEL.Tribunal administratif des Nations Unies et de l'unique recours
formé conformément à l'article XII du statut du Tribunal adminis-

tratif deI'OIT, l'opinion du requérant a étéprksentée àla Cour par
l'intermédiairedu chef de secrétariat intéress(le Secrétairegénéral
de l'organisation des Nations Unies et le Directeur général
de l'Unesco respectivement), qui a transmis directement à la Cour
toutes les communications écrites reçues du requérant ou de son
conseil, sansy apporter la moindre modification et sans lescensurer.
De la mêmefaçon, s'ildevait y avoir une procédure orale, le conseil
choisi par le requérant(et rencontrant l'agrémentde la Cour) pour-
rait se présenter devant la Cour, en tant que représentant spécialdu
Secrétaire généralp,our exposer I'opinion du requérant. En ce qui
concerne cette proposition, le Présidentde la Cour a indiquéque la
Cour, qui a insistéàplusieurs occasions sur le maintien du principe
de l'égalitentre lesparties, continuera d'en tenircompte pour déter-
miner sa propre procédure dans chaque espèce.

Que l'article 11 du statut du Tribunal administratif des Na-
tions Unies soit ou non maintenu tel quel, ouque sonapplication soit
limitéeaux procédures engagéespar les Etats ..ou encore qu'un
nouveau type de renvoi àlaCour soit prévu ..l'Assembléegénérale
pourrait envisager de modifier la recommandation figurant dans sa
résolution 957 (X) dans le sens indiqué ...Cette recommandation
devrait être formuléeen termes suffisamment vagues pour qu'elle
puisse également s'appliquer aux réformationsdemandéesen vertu
de l'article XII du statut du Tribunal administratif de I'O>)(Rap-
port du Secrétairegénérarlelatif àla possibilitéde créer untribunal
administratif unique, A/C.5/397, par. 88-90.)

(SignS étephen M. SCHWEBEL.

Document file FR
Document Long Title

Dissenting Opinion of Judge Schwebel

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