Arbitral Award of 31 July 1989 (Guinea-Bissau v. Senegal) - Discontinuance

INTERNATIONALCOURTOF JUSTICE

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Communiqué
unofficial -
for inmediatereleame

No. 95/36
14November 1995

Case concern ing the Maritime Delimitation
beîween Guioea-Bissau and Sen@

The following informatioriis communicated to the Press by the Registry of the Intemational Court
of Justice:

Proceedings in theabove case, which was brought before the Court on 12March 1991.have come
to an end. At the time of the fil:ingof the Application proceedingswere still in progress in another case
instituted by Guinea-Bissaugainst Senegal in 1989, which concemed the existence and validity of the
Award which anarbitral tribunal had given on1 July 1989inthe maritime delimitation disputebetween
the two States (mal Award of 31 July 1989 (Guinea-Bissau v.-).

As indicatedinPressCommuniquéNo. 92/24of9 October1992.the Applicationinstitutingthenew

case stated that "whenthose firsl:proceedings are concluded. andwhatever the outcome, the delimitation
of al1the maritime territories will still not have been effected"; in that Application, Guinea-Bissau
founded thejurisdiction of the C.ourton the declarations of acceptance of the compulsory jurisdiction of
the Court made by the two States pursuant to Article 36, paragraph 2,of the Statute, white recognizing
that if, when the above-mentioned proceedings were concluded, the Court were to find the Award of 31
July 1989to be inexistent or nuIl and void, the dispute now submitted to it "would. in every respect. be
the one that was the subject of [the] Arbitration Agree[of] 12March 1985" and that"[iln that case,
because of the reservations made by Senegal. its deciarationof acceptance of thejurisdiction of the Court
would notapply" and that the Application wouldthen be submitted to the Court on the basis of Article
38, paragraph 5, of theules. At the end of its Application Guinea-Bissau asked the Court to adjudge
and declare:

"What should be, orithe basis of the international lawof the sea and of al1the relevant
elements of the case, including the futureision of the Court in the case concerning the
arbitral 'award'of 31July 1989.the line (to be drawn on a map) delimiting al1the maritime
territories appertaining respectively to Guinea-Bissau and Senegal."

The two Parties each appointed an Agent, Guinea-Bissauby a letter dated 12March 1991 fromits
Ambassador to the Netherlands, with whichthe Application wasenclosed, and Senegalby a letter dated
29 March 1991 from itsAmbassador to the Netherlands. in which a communication from the Senegalese
Minister for Foreign Affairs was transcribed; and in that communication it was indicated,ali,hat
the fact, for Senegal,of its having appointed an Agent "[did] not imply acceptance on its part of the new
proceedings set in motion byGu.inea-Bissau",Senegal espressing "here and nowevery reservation as to
the admissibility of this fresh claim, and possibly as to the Court's jurisdiction". At a meeting held by the President of the Court with the representativesof the Parties on 5 April
1991, the latter agreed that no measure should be taken in the case until the Court had delivered its
decision in the case concerning the Arbitral Awardof 31July 1989; the Court delivered its Judgment in
that case on 12November 1991 and among other things, it indicated in paragraph 68 of that Judgment
that it considered it "highly desirable that the elements of the dispute that were not settledby the Arbitral

Award of 31 July 1989 be resolved as soon as possible, as both Parties desire"; and at a meeting held
by the President with the representatives of the Parties on 28ebruary 1992,the latter requestedthat no
time-limit be fixed for the initial pleadings in the case, pending the outcome of negotiations on the
question of maritime delimitation, which were to continue for six months in the first instance.

Followingameeting held bythe Presidentwith the representativesofthe Partieson 6 October 1992,
the latter stated that some progress had been made towards an agreement and that the two Parties jointly
requested that a further period of three months, with a possible further extension of three months, be
allowed for continuance of the negotiations.

After several exchanges of letters regarding extended time-limits the President received the

representatives of the Parties on 10 March 1994. On that occasion the representatives handed the
President the text of an agreement entitled "Accord de gestion et de coopérationentre le Gouvernement
de la République deGuinée-Bissauet le Gouvernement de la Républiquedu Sénégal", done at Dakar on 1
14 October 1993and signed bythe two Heads of State. This agreement provided, inter alia, forthejoint
exploitation, by the two Parties, of a "maritimezone situated between the268" and 220" azimuths drawn
from Cape Roxo" (Art. l), and the establishment of an "International Agencyfor the exploitation of the
zone" (Art. 4), and statedthat it would enter into force "upon conclusion ofthe agreement concerningthe
establishment and functioning of the International Agency and with the exchange of the instruments of
ratification of both agreements by both States" (Art. 7). In letters dated 16 March 1994,addressedto the
Presidents of both States,the President of the Court expressed his satisfaction and informed themthat the
case would be removed fromthe list, in accordance with the terms of the Rules of Court, as soon as the

Parties had notified him of theirdecision to discontinue the proceedings.

At a meeting held by the President with the representativesof the Parties on 1November 1995,the
latter furnished him with an additionalcopy of the above-mentioned agreement as well as the text of a
"Protocole d'accord ayant trait à l'organisation et au fonctionnement de l'Agence de gestion et de
coopérationentre la Républiquedu Sénégae lt la Républiquede Guinée-Bissau instituée palr'accord du
14 octobre 1993", done at Bissau on 12 June 1995 and signed by the two Heads of State; the
representatives at the same time notified him of the decisions of their Governments to discontinue the
proceedings. The President asked themto confirm those decisions in writing to the Court in whatever
manner they deemed most appropriate.

By a letter of 2 November 1995,the Agent of Guinea-Bissau, referringto Article 89 of the Rules
of Court, confirmed that his Government, by virtue of the agreement reached by the two Parties on the
disputed zone, had decided to discontinue the proceedings institutedby its Application dated 12 March
1991. And by a letter dated 6 November 1995, the Agent of Senegal confirmed that his Government
"agreed to the discontinuance of proceedings".

On 8 November 1995,the Court made an Order recording the discontinuance of the proceedings
and directing the removal of the case from the Court's list.