Public hearings in the case concerning Whaling in the Antarctic (Australia v. Japan: New Zealand intervening) - Public admission and media accreditation - Live and on-demand webcasts

INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE
Peace Palace, Carnegieplein 2, 2517 KJ The Hague, Netherlands
Tel.: +31 (0)70 302 2323 Fax: +31 (0)70 364 9928
Website: www.icj-cij.org

Press Release
Unofficial

No. 2013/14
12 June 2013

Public hearings in the case concerning Whaling in the Antarctic
(Australia v. Japan: New Zealand intervening)

Public admission and media accreditation

Live and on-demand webcasts

THE HAGUE, 12 June 2013. As announced i n Press Release 2013/7 issued on
11 April 2013, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the principal judicial organ of the United
Nations, will hold public hearings in the case concerning Whaling in the Antarctic (Australiv.
Japan: New Zealand intervening) from Wednesday 26 June to Tuesday 16 July 2013, at the Peace
Palace in The Hague, the seat of the Court.

1. Access for members of the Diplomatic Corps

Owing to the limited number of seats available in the Great Hall of Justice, members of the

Diplomatic Corps wishing to attend the hearings are kindly asked to inform the Information
Department before midnight on Sunday 23 June 2013, by e-mail to confirmation@icj -cij.org.
Diplomatic missions are kindly requested to limit their delegations to two persons.

Should members of the Diplomatic C orps decide at any point not to attend a hearing for
which they have reserved a seat/s, they are kindly requested to inform the Information Department
so that their seat/s can be reallocated.

2. Access for media representatives

Media representatives are subject to an online accreditation procedure, details of which can
be found in the Media Advisory attached to this Press Release. The accreditation procedure will
close at midnight onSunday 23 June 2013.

3. Access for members of the public

Owing to the very limited number of seats available in the Great Hall of Justice, priority
access will be given to members of the delegations of States that are parties to the case, and
members of the Diplomatic Corps.

A small number of seats will be allocated daily to members of the public on a first come first

served basis. There will be no advance registration procedure, all previously sent requests to
attend these hearings will be ignored. - 2 -

4. Live and on-demand webcasts

We strongly advise members of the public to watch the hearings on the Court’s website,
where they will be broadcast live and in full ( www.icj-cij.org, under the heading “Multimedia”), or
on the online television channel “UN Web TV (http://webtv.un.org/)”.

The hearings will subsequently also be available as a recorded webcast (VOD) on the United
Nations Web TV website (http://webtv.un.org/meetings-events/).

5. Schedule for and information on the hearings

The schedule for the hearings is available on the Calendar on the Court’s website
(www.icj-cij.org). Verbatim records of the hearings will be published daily on the Court’s website
(with translations to follow as soon as practicable thereafter). On the final day of the hearings, a
Press Release will be issued presenting the submissions of the Parties (the Court’s press releases do
not constitute official documents).

6. History of the proceedings

The history of the p roceedings can be found in Press Release No. 2013/7 of 11 April 2013 ,
which is available on the Court’s website.

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The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations.
It was established by the United Nations Charter in June 1945 and began its activiti es in
April 1946. The seat of the Court is at the Peace Palace in The Hague (Netherlands). Of the six
principal organs of the United Nations, it is the only one not located in New York. The Court has a
twofold role: first, to settle, in accordance with international law, legal disputes submitted to it by
States (its judgments have binding force and are without appeal for the parties concerned); and,
second, to give advisory opinions on legal questions referred to it by duly authorized United

Nations organs and agencies of the system. The Court is composed of 15 judges elected for a
nine-year term by the General Assembly and the Security Council of the United Nations.
Independent of the United Nations Secretariat, it is assisted by a Registry, its own international
secretariat, whose activities are both judicial and diplomatic, as well as administrative. The official
languages of the Court are French and English. Also known as the “World Court”, it is the only
court of a universal character with general jurisdiction.

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations.
It was established by the United Nations Charter in June 1945 and began its activities in
April 1946. The seat of the Court is at the Peace Palace in The Hague (Netherlands). Of the six
principal organs of the United Nations, it is the only one not located in New York. The Court has a
twofold role: first, to settle, in accordance with inte rnational law, legal disputes submitted to it by
States (its judgments have binding force and are without appeal for the parties concerned); and,
second, to give advisory opinions on legal questions referred to it by duly authorized United
Nations organs and agencies of the system. The Court is composed of 15 judges elected for a

nine-year term by the General Assembly and the Security Council of the United Nations.
Independent of the United Nations Secretariat, it is assisted by a Registry, its own inter national
secretariat, whose activities are both judicial and diplomatic, as well as administrative. The official
languages of the Court are French and English. Also known as the “World Court”, it is the only
court of a universal character with general jurisdiction. - 3 -

The ICJ, a court open only to States for contentious proceedings, and to certain organs and
institutions of the United Nations system for advisory proceedings, should not be confused with the

other  mostly criminal  judicial institutions based in The Hague and adjacent areas, such as the
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY, an ad hoc court created by the
Security Council), the International Criminal Court (ICC, the first permanent international criminal
court, established by treaty, which does not belong to the United Nations system), the Special
Tribunal for Lebanon (STL, an independent judicial body composed of Lebanese and international
judges, which is not a United Nations tribunal and does not form part of the Lebanese judicial

system), or the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA, an independent institution which assists in
the establishment of arbitral tribunals and facilitates their work, in accordance with the Hague
Convention of 1899).

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Information Department:

Mr. Andrey Poskakukhin, First Secretary of the Court, Head of Department (+31 (0)70 302 2336)
Mr. Boris Heim, Information Officer (+31 (0)70 302 2337)
Ms Joanne Moore, Associate Information Officer (+31 (0)70 302 2394)
Ms Genoveva Madurga, Administrative Assistant (+31 (0)70 302 2396) Annex to Press Release No. 2013/14

Media advisory

Whaling in the Antarctic (Australiav. Japan: New Zealand intervening)

Media accreditation procedure for the public hearings,
26 June  16 July 2013

Media representatives are requested to fill out the online accreditation form, available on the
Court’s website (www.icj-cij.org) under “Calendar”. Applications for accreditation must reach
the Court by midnight on Sunday 23 June 2013. Only online application forms will be
accepted.

Entry to the Peace Palace

Media representatives must bring with them their personal ID and press card. They are
asked to arrive at the Peace Palace gates between 8.30 and 9.30 a.m. for the hearings starting at
10 a.m., between 1.30 and 2.30 p.m. for the hearings starting at 3p.m. and between 3 and 4 p.m. for
the hearings starting at 4.30 p.m. Only duly accredited individuals with valid identification will be
permitted to enter the Peace Palace grounds. The Press Room will be open every day one hour and
a half prior to the start of the hearings. Media representatives must leave the Peace Palace grounds
each day, no later than one hour after the end of the last hearing.

Parking at the Peace Palace

No parking is al lowed in the Peace Palace grounds apart from satellite vehicles. Media
wishing to park satellite vehicles are requested to fill in the appropriate fields in the online
accreditation form. NB: Television media wishing to broadcast the hearings should con tact the
Information Department in advance.

Access to the Courtroom

Photographers and camera crews will only be permitted to enter the room for a few minutes
at the start of each hearing. They will be accompanied by Registry staff members and must keep to
the right side of the room. Media representatives will be able to follow the hearings from a press
room (see below).

Press rooms

Proceedings will be transmitted live in English and French on a large screen in the usual
Press Room. In the event of a large media presence, an additional temporary press room will be
opened. These rooms will be equipped with Wi-Fi Internet access. Live video and audio feeds will
also be available via the Press Room breakout box ( PAL + NTSC video output). It is recalled that
the Press Rooms will be open, every day, one hour and a half prior to the start of the hearings, and
that media representatives must leave the Peace Palace grounds each day no later than one hour
after the end of the last hearing.

Media services

For further practical information regarding the upcoming hearings, please visit the Court’s
website (www.icj-cij.org). Click on “Press Room”, and then on “Media Services”.

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