INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE
Peace Palace, 2517 KJ The Hague. Tel: +31 (0)70 302 23 23. Cables: Intercourt,
The Hague. Fax: + 31 (0)70 364 99 28. Telex: 32323. E-mail address:
mail@icj-cij .org. Internet address: http://www.icj-cij .org.
Press Release
Unofficial
No. 2005/12
9 May 2005
Armed Activities on the Territory of the Congo (New Application: 2002)
(Democratie Republic of the Congo v. Rwanda)
The Court will hold public hearings from 4 to 8 July 2005
THE HAGUE, 9 May 2005. The International Court of Justice (ICJ), principal judicial
organ of the United Nations, is to hold public hearings in the case concerning Armed Activities on
the Territory of the Congo (New Application: 2002) (Democratie Republic of the Congo v.
Rwanda) from Monday 4 July to Friday 8 July 2005 at the Peace Palace in The Hague, seat of the
Court.
The precise schedule of the hearings will be announced in due course. It should be noted
that they will deal with issues concerning the Court's jurisdiction and the admissibility the
Application.
History of the proceedings
On 28 May 2002, the Democratie Republic of the Congo filed an Application instituting
proceedings against Rwanda in respect of a dispute over "massive, serions and flagrant violations
of human rights and of international humanitarian law" allegedly resulting "from acts of armed
aggression perpetrated by Rwanda on the territory of the Democratie Republic of the Congo in ...
violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity [of the latter], as guaranteed by the United
Nations and OAU Charters".
In its Application, the Congo, in order to found the jurisdiction of the Court, relied on a
certain number of compromissory clauses in treaties.
On the same day, 28 May 2002, the Congo submitted a request for the indication of
provisional measures. Public hearings on that request were held on 13 and 14 June 2002.
Following those hearings, the Court rendered an Order on the Congo's request on 10 July 2002,
whereby, on the one hand, it held that it "[did] not in the present case have the prima facie
jurisdiction necessary to indicate those provisional measures requested by the Congo" and, on the
other, "in the absence of a manifest lack of jurisdiction", it rejected Rwanda's request that the case
be removed from the List. The Court further held that its findings in no way prejudged the
question of its jurisdiction to deal with the merits of the case or any questions relating to the
admissibilityof the Application, or relating to the merits themselves. - 2 -
In an Order of 18 September 2002, the Court decided that the written pleadings in the case
should first be addressed to the questions of the jurisdiction of the Court and the admissibility of
the Application, and fixed the following time-limits for the filing of those pleadings:
20 January 2003 for the Memorial of the Rwandese Republic and 20 May 2003 for the
Counter-Memorial of the Democratie Republic of the Congo. The pleadings were du!y filed within
the time-limits thus fixed.
Information Department
Mr. Arthur Witteveen, First Secretary + 31 70 302 23 36)
Mrs. Laurence Blairon and Mr. Boris Heim, Information Officers (+ 31 70 302 23 37)
E-mail address: information @icj-cij.org
Armed activities on the territory of the Congo (New Application: 2002) (Democratic Republic of the Congo v. Rwanda) - The Court will hold public hearings from 4 to 8 July 2005