Order of 8 April 1993 | INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE

INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE

REPORTS OF JUDGMENTS,
ADVISORY OPINIONS AND ORDERS

CASE CONCERNING APPLICATION OF

THE CONVENTION ON THE PREVENTION AND
PUNISHMENT OF THE CRIME OF GENOCIDE

(BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA
v.YUGOSLAVIA (SERBIA AND MONTENEGRO))

REQUEST FOR THE INDICATION OF PROVISIONAL
MEASURES

ORDER OF 8 APRIL 1993

COUR INTERNATIONALE DE JUSTICE

RECUEIL DES ARRÊTS,
AVIS CONSULTATIFS ET ORDONNANCES

AFFAIRE RELATIVE À L'APPLICATION

DE LA CONVENTION POUR LA PRÉVENTION
ET LA RÉPRESSION DU CRIME DE GÉNOCIDE

(BOSNIE-HERZÉGOVINE
c. YOUGOSLAVIE (SERBIE ET MONTÉNÉGRO))

DEMANDE EN INDICATION DE MESURES
CONSERVATOIRES

ORDONNANCE DU 8 AVRIL1993 Officia1citat:on
Application oftheConventiononthePreventionandPunishment
oftheCrimeof Genocide,ProvisionalMeasus,rderof8April1993,
Z.C.J.Reports199p.3

Modeofficieldecitati:n
Applicationdelaconventionpour lapréveet la répression
du crimede génocide, mesures conservatoires,ordcueanvril 1993,
C.I.J.Recueil 1993,p. 3

Sales number
ISSN 0074-4441 Nodevent: 631 1
ISBN 92-1-070689-7 INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE

1993 YEAR 1993
GeneraList
No.91 8 April 1993

CASECONCERNING APPLICATIONOF

THE CONVENTION ON THE PREVENTION AND
PUNISHMENT OF THE CRIME OF GENOCIDE

(BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA

v.WGOSLAVIA (SERBIA AND MONTENEGRO))

REQUEST FOR THE INDICATION
OF PROVISIONAL MEASURES

Present: PresidentSirRobert JEN;Vice-Presidet D;JudgesAGO,
SCHWEBEL B,EDJAOUIN, I, EVENSEN,ARASSOV G,UILLAUME,
SHAHABUDDE ENU, ILRAWDSLEW Y,EERAMANTR RY, JEVA,
AJIBOLA R;egistrarVALENCIA-OSPINA.

The International Court ofJustice,

Composed as above,
After deliberation,

Having regard to Articles35,36,41 and 48of the Statute of the Court,
and to Articles73,74 and 75ofthe Rules of Court,
Havingregardto the Application bythe RepublicofBosniaand Herze-
govina(hereinafter called "Bosnia-Herzegovina")filed in the Registryof
the Court on0 March 1993,instituting proceedings against the Federal
Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) (hereinafter called"Yugoslavia") in respect of a dispute concerning alleged violations by

Yugoslavia of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the
Crime of Genocide, adopted by the General Assembly of the United
Nations on 9 December 1948(hereinafter called "the Genocide Conven-
tion"), aswellasmatters which Bosnia-Herzegovinamaintains to be con-
nected therewith,

MakesthefollowingOrder:
1. Whereasin the above-mentioned Application Bosnia-Herzegovina,
basing the jurisdiction of the Court on Article IX of the Genocide Con-
vention, recounts a series of events in Bosnia-Herzegovina from April
1992up tothepresent daywhich,initscontention, amountto actsofgeno-
cidewithinthe definition givenin the Genocide Convention, specifically

(i) killing members of a group, namely Muslim inhabitants of Bosnia-
Herzegovina;
(ii) causingseriousbodilyormentalharmto membersofthat group ;

(iii) deliberately inflicting on that group conditions of life calculated to
bring about itsphysicaldestructioninwholeorinpart; and

(iv) imposingmeasuresintended topreventbirths withinthatgroup;
and whereasBosnia-Herzegovinaclaimsthatthe actscomplained ofhave
been committed by former members of the Yugoslav People's Army
(YPA)and bySerbmilitaryand paramilitary forcesunder the directionof,
at the behest of, and with assistance from Yugoslavia; and whereas
Bosnia-Herzegovinaclaimsthat Yugoslaviaistherefore fullyresponsible

under international lawfortheir activities;
2. Whereason the basis ofthe facts allegedin the Application Bosnia-
Herzegovinarequests the Court to adjudge and declare as follows:
"(a) that Yugoslavia(Serbiaand Montenegro) hasbreached, and is
continuing to breach, its legal obligations toward the People
and State of Bosnia and Herzegovina under Articles 1,II (a),

II (b),IIc)II (d),III (a),III (b),III (c),III (d),III (e),IVand Vof
the Genocide Convention;
(b) that Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) has violated and is
continuing to violate its legal obligations toward the People
and State of Bosnia and Herzegovina under the four Geneva
Conventions of 1949,their Additional ProtocolI of 1977,the
customary international laws of war including the Hague
Regulations on Land Warfare of 1907,and otherfundamental
principles ofinternationalhumanitarian law ;

(c) that Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) has violated and
continues to violateArticles 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9, 10,11,12,13,
15, 16,17,18, 19,20,21,22,23,25,26 and 28of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights with respect to the citizens of
Bosniaand Herzegovina;
(d) that Yugoslavia(Serbiaand Montenegro),inbreach ofitsobli-
gations under general and customary international law, has
killed, murdered, wounded, raped, robbed, tortured, kid-
napped, illegally detained, and exterminated the citizens of
Bosniaand Herzegovina,and iscontinuingtodo so ;
(e) thatin itstreatment ofthe citizensof Bosniaand Herzegovina,
Yugoslavia(Serbia and Montenegro) has violated, and is con-
tinuing to violate, its solemn obligations under Articles 1(3),

55and 56ofthe United Nations Charter;

03 that Yugoslavia(Serbiaand Montenegro) has used and is con-
tinuing to use force and the threat of force against Bosnia and
Henegovina in violation of Articles2 (l), 2 (2),2 (3),2 (4)and
33(l), ofthe United Nations Charter;

(g) that Yugoslavia(Serbiaand Montenegro),inbreach ofitsobli-
gations under general and customary international law, has
used and is using force and the threat of force against Bosnia
and Herzegovina;
(h) that Yugoslavia(Serbiaand Montenegro),in breach ofitsobli-
gations under general and customary international law, has
violated and is violatingthe sovereigntyof Bosniaand Herze-

govinaby :
- armed attacks against Bosnia and Herzegovina by air and
land ;
- aerialtrespassinto Bosnianairspace;
- efforts by direct and indirect means to coerce and intimi-
datethe GovernmentofBosniaand Herzegovina;

(i) that Yugoslavia(Serbiaand Montenegro),inbreach ofitsobli-
gations under general and customary international law, has
intervened and is intervening in the interna1affairs of Bosnia
and Herzegovina;

Q) ting, arming, equipping, financing, supplying andting,othenvise

encouraging, supporting, aiding, and directing military and
paramilitary actionsin and against Bosniaand Herzegovinaby
means ofitsagentsand surrogates,hasviolated and isviolating
its expresscharter and treaty obligationsto Bosniaand Herze-
govina and, in particular, its charter and treaty obligations
under Article2(4)ofthe United Nations Charter, aswellasits
obligations under generaland customaryinternational law;

(k) that under the circumstancesset forth above, Bosniaand Her- zegovinahas the sovereignright to defend Itselfand its People
under United Nations Charter Article 51and customaryinter-
national law, including by means of immediately obtaining
military weapons, equipment, supplies and troops from other
States;
(1) that under the circumstances setforth above,Bosnia and Her-
zegovinahasthe sovereignright under United Nations Charter
Article 51 and customary international law to request the
immediate assistance of any State to come to its defence,

including by military means (weapons, equipment, supplies,
troops, etc.)
(m) that Security Council resolution 713 (1991),imposing a wea-
pons embargoupon the former Yugoslavia,mustbe construed
in a manner that shallnot impair the inherent right of individ-
ual or collectiveself-defenceof Bosniaand Henegovina under
the terms ofUnited Nations Charter Article51andthe rulesof
customaryinternationallaw ;
(n) that al1subsequentSecurityCouncilresolutions that referto or
reaffirm resolution 713(1991)must be construed in a manner
that shall not impair the inherent right of individual or collec-

tiveself-defenceofBosniaand Henegovina under the termsof
United Nations Charter Article 51and the rules of customary
international law;

(O) that SecurityCouncilresolution 713 (1991)and al1subsequent
Security Council resolutions referring thereto or reaffirming
thereof must not be construed to impose an arms embargo
upon Bosnia and Herzegovina,as required by Articles 24 (1)
and 51ofthe United Nations Charter and in accordance with
the customarydoctrine of ultravire ;s

(pl that pursuant to the right of collectiveself-defencerecognized
by United Nations Charter Article51, al1other Statesparties to
the Charter havethe right to cometo the immediatedefence of
Bosniaand Henegovina - atitsrequest - includingbymeans
of immediatelyproviding It with weapons, militaryequipment
and supplies, and armed forces (soldiers, sailors, airpeople,
etc.);
(4) that Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) and its agents and
surrogatesare under an obligation to ceaseand desistimmedi-
atelyfromitsbreaches ofthe foregoinglegalobligations, and is
under aparticular dutyto ceaseand desistimmediately :

- from its systematicpractice of so-called 'ethnic cleansing'
ofthe citizensand sovereigntenitory of Bosniaand Hene-
govina; - from the murder, summary execution, torture, rape, kid-
napping, mayhem, wounding, physical and mental abuse,
and detention ofthe citizensofBosniaand Herzegovina;

- from the wanton-devastation of villages,towns, districts,
cities,and religiousinstitutionsin Bosniaand Herzegovina;

- from the bombardment of civilian population centres in
Bosnia and Herzegovina, and especially its capital, Sara-
jevo;
- fromcontinuingthe siegeofanycivilianpopulation centres
in Bosnia and Henegovina, and especially its capital,

Sarajevo ;
- fromthe starvation ofthe civilianpopulation in Bosniaand
Herzegovina ;
- fromtheinterruption of,interferencewith,orharassment of
humanitarian relief supplies to the citizens of Bosnia and
Herzegovinabytheinternational community ;

- from al1use of force - whether direct or indirect, overt or

covert - against Bosnia and Herzegovina, and from al1
threats offorceagainstBosniaand Herzegovina;

- from al1violations ofthe sovereignty,territorial integrityor
politicalindependence of Bosniaand Herzegovina, includ-
ing al1intervention, direct or indirect, inthe interna1affairs
ofBosniaandHenegovina;
- from al1support of any kind - including the provision of

training, arms, ammunition, finances, supplies, assistance,
direction or any other form of support - to any nation,
group, organization, movement or individual engaged or
planning to engagein militaryor paramilitary actions in or
againstBosniaand Herzegovina;

(r) that Yugoslavia(Serbiaand Montenegro) has an obligation to
pay Bosnia and Herzegovina, in its own right and as parens
patriae for its citizens,reparations for damagesto persons and
property as well asto the Bosnian economy and environment
causedbythe foregoingviolationsofinternational lawin asum
to be determined by the Court. Bosnia and Herzegovina
reservesthe right to introduce to the Court aprecise evaluation

of the damages caused by Yugoslavia (Serbia and Monte-
negro)" ;

3. Whereasbyarequestfiledinthe Registryon20March 1993immedi-
atelyafterthe filingofthe Application, Bosnia-Herzegovina,invokingAr-
ticle 41 of the Statute of the Court and Articles 73, 74,75 and 78 oftheRules of Court, and relying on the facts set forth in the Application,
urgentlyrequested that the Court indicatethe followingprovisional mea-
suresto be in effectwhilethe Court is seisedofthis case :

"1. That Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro),together with its
agents and surrogates in Bosnia and elsewhere, must immediately
cease and desist fromal1acts ofgenocide and genocidalacts against
the People and State of Bosnia and Herzegovina,includingbut not
limitedto murder; summaryexecutions; torture; rape ;mayhem; so-
called 'ethnic cleansing'; the wanton devastation of villages,towns,
districtsand cities;the siegeofvillages,towns,districtsand cities;the
starvationofthe civilianpopulation ;theinterruption of,interference

with, or harassment of humanitarian relief supplies to the civilian
population by the international community; the bombardment of
civilianpopulation centres; and the detention ofciviliansin concen-
tration campsor othenvise.

2. That Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) must immediately
cease and desist from providing, directly or indirectly,any type of
support - includingtraining,weapons, arms,ammunition,supplies,
assistance,finances,direction or anyotherform of support - to any
nation, group, organization, movement, militia or individual
engagedin orplanning to engageinmilitaryorparamilitary activities
in oragainstthe People,Stateand Government ofBosniaand Herze-
govina.

3. That Yugoslavia(Serbiaand Montenegro) itselfmust immedi-
ately cease and desistfromany and al1types of militaryor paramili-
tary activitiesby its own officiais, agents, surrogates,or forces in or
against the People, State and Government of Bosnia and Herzego-
vina, and from any other use or threat of force in its relations with
Bosniaand Herzegovina.
4. That under the current circumstances, the Government of
Bosnia and Herzegovina has the right to seek and receive support
from other Statesin order to defend Itself and its People, including
by means of immediately obtaining military weapons, equipment,
and supplies.
5. That under the current circumstances, the Government of
Bosnia and Herzegovina has the right to request the immediate

assistanceof any Stateto cometo itsdefence,including by means of
immediately providing weapons, military equipment and supplies,
and armedforces (soldiers,sailors,airpeople, etc.).

6. That under the current circumstances,anyStatehasthe right to
cometo the immediatedefence of Bosnia and Herzegovina - at its
request - including by means of immediately providing weapons,
militaryequipment and supplies,and armed forces(soldiers,sailors,
and airpeople, etc.)"; 4. Whereas on 20 March 1993,the day on which the Application and
the requestforthe indication ofprovisionalmeasures werereceivedinthe

Registry,the Registrarnotified the Government of Yugoslaviaofthe fil-
ingofthe Application and the request,and communicatedthetextthereof
to it, by telefax, and sent certified copies of the Application and the
request to it by expressregisteredpost on 22 March 1993,in accordance
with Article40,paragraph 2,of the Statute and Articles38,paragraph 4,
and 73,paragraph 2,ofthe Rules of Court;
5. Whereas,pending the notification under Article40,paragraph 3,of
the Statute and Article 42 of the Rules of Court, by transmittal of the
printed bilingual text of the Application to the Members of the United
Nations and other Statesentitled to appear beforethe Court,the Registrar
on 25 March 1993informed those States of the filing of the Application
and of its subject-matter, and of the request for the indication of provi-
sional measures ;
6. Whereas on 25 March 1993,the Registrar, in accordance with Ar-
ticle 43of the Rules of Court, addressed the notification provided for in
Article63,paragraph 1,ofthe Statuteto the States,other than the Parties
to the dispute, which on the basis of information supplied by the Secre-

tary-General of the United Nations as depositary (ST/LEG/SER.E/lO
and supplementsto date)appeared tobeparties to the GenocideConven-
tion, and in addition addressed to the Secretary-General of the United
Nations the notification provided for in Article 34, paragraph 3, of the
Statute ofthe Court;
7. Whereas on 25 March 1993the Registrarinformed the Parties that
the Court would hold public sittings on 1and 2 April 1993to hear the
observationsofthe Parties onthe request forthe indication ofprovisional
measures;whereas on29March 1993Yugoslaviarequestedthepostpone-
mentofthose sittingsto adateinearlyMay 1993,but theCourt decidedon
30 March 1993that, in viewof the urgency attaching under Article 74 of
the Rules of Court to a request for provisionalmeasures,it was unable to
accedeto that request;
8. Whereas on 31March 1993,the Agent of Bosnia-Henegovina filed
in the Registry of the Court a document dated 8June 1992which in the
contention of Bosnia-Herzegovinaconstitutedabasisfor thejurisdiction

ofthe Court additional to that specified inthe Application;
9. Whereas in written observations,submittedto the Courton 1April
1993,on the request forthe indication of provisionalmeasures, the Gov-
ernment of Yugoslavia
"recommends thattheCourt, pursuant to Article41ofitsStatuteand
Article 73 of its Rules of Procedure, order the application of provi-

sional measures,in particular :
- to instructthe authorities controlled by A.Izetbegovicto comply
strictlywith thelatest agreement on a cease-fireinthe 'Republic
of Bosnia and Henegovina' which went into force on 28 March
1993 ; - to direct the authorities under the control of A. Izetbegovic éo
respect the Geneva Conventions for the Protection of Victimsof
War of 1949and the 1977Additional Protocolsthereof, sincethe
genocide of Serbslivinginthe 'Republic ofBosniaand Herzego-
vina' isbeing carried out by the commissionof veryserious war

crimes which are in violation of the obligation not to infringe
upon the essentialhuman rights;

- toinstructthe authoritiesloyalto A.Izetbegovicto closeimmedi-
atelyand disband al1prisons and detention campsin the 'Repub-
lic of Bosnia and Herzegovina' in which the Serbs are being
detained because of their ethnic origin and subjected to acts of
torture,thus presentingarealdanger forfheirlifeandhealth;

- to direct the authorities controlled by A. Izetbegovicto allow,
without delay, the Serb residents to leave safely Tuzla, Zenica,
Sarajevoand other places inthe 'Republic ofBosniaand Herze-

govina',wheretheyhavebeensubjecttoharassment and physical
and mental abuse, and having in mind that they may suffer the
samefate asthe Serbsin eastern Bosnia,whichwasthe siteofthe
killingand massacresofafewthousand Serbcivilians;

- to instructthe authoritiesloyalto A.Izetbegovicto ceaseimmedi-
atelyanyfurther destruction ofOrthodox churchesand places of
worship and of other Serb cultural heritage, and to release and
stopfurther mistreatmentof al1Orthodox priestsbeinginprison ;

- to directthe authorities under the control ofA.Izetbegovicto put
an end to al1acts of discrimination based on nationality or reli-

gionand thepractice of'ethniccleansing',includingthe discrimi-
nation related to the delivery of humanitarian aid, against the
Serbpopulationinthe 'RepublicofBosniaand Herzegovina' ";

10. Having heard the oral observations on the request for provisional
measurespresented at public hearings held on 1and 2 April 1993by the
followingrepresentatives :

onbehalfofBosnia-Herzegovina:

H.E. Mr. Muhamed Sacirbeyand
Mr. Francis A. Boyle,Agents;

onbehalfof Yugoslavia:

Mr. Ljubinko Zivkovicand
Mr. Shabtai Rosenne, ActingAgents ;and havingreceivedthe repliesofthe Partiesto a questionput by a Mem-
ber ofthe Court at the hearings;
11. Having regard to the "Supplementary Submission" on the facts
alleged in support of the Application and the request transmitted to the
Courton 1ApriI 1993by facsimilebythe Agent of Bosnia-Herzegovina;

12. Whereas in the written observations referred to in paragraph 9
above, Yugoslavia made what it termed "a preliminary objection with

regardto the legitimacyofthe Applicant", claimingthat neitherthe Presi-
dent ofthe Republic ofBosniaand Herzegovina,Mr.A.Izetbegovic,who
appointed the Agents of that State and authorized the institution of the
present proceedings, nor the Government of the Republic of Bosnia and
Herzegovina,arelegallyelected;whereas Yugoslaviaclaimsthatthe legit-
imacyand mandate ofthe Government and the President ofthe Republic
ofBosniaand Herzegovinaaredisputed not only byrepresentativesofthe
Serbpeople but also by representatives ofthe Croat people, and further-
more thatthe mandate of Mr. Izetbegovicexpired on 20December 1992,
and was challenged on this ground by the Prime Minister of Bosnia-
Herzegovinain a letterto the Chairman oftheEuropean AffairsSubcom-
mittee of the United States Senate Foreign Relations Committee dated
24 February 1993,circulated, at the request of the Prime Minister of
Bosnia-Herzegovina,bythe Secretary-Generalofthe United Nations asa
document ofthe General Assemblyand ofthe SecurityCouncil;

13. Whereas the Agent of Bosnia-Herzegovina stated that Presi-

dent Izetbegovic is recognized by the United Nations as the legitimate
Head of State of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina; whereas the
Court has been seised of the case on the authority of a Head of State,
treated as such in the United Nations; whereas the power of a Head of
Stateto act on behalf of the State in its international relations isver-
sallyrecognized,and reflected in, for example,Article7,paragraph 2 (a),
of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties; whereas accordingly
the Court may, for the purposes of the present proceedings on a request
for provisionalmeasures,accept the seisinas the act ofthat State;

14. Whereason a requestforprovisionalmeasures theCourt neednot,
before decidingwhether ornottoindicatethem,finally satisfyitselfthat it
hasjurisdiction on the merits ofthe case,yetit ought not to indicateuch

measuresunless the provisionsinvoked by the Applicant or found in theStatute appear, prima facie,to afford a basis on whichthejurisdiction of
the Court might be established; whereas this consideration embraces
jurisdiction both rationepersonae and ratione materiae, even though,
inasmuch asalmost al1Statesaretodayparties to the Statuteofthe Court,
it isin general onlythe latter which requires tobe considered;

15. Whereas Article 35,paragraph 1,of the Statute of the Court pro-
vides that "The Court shall be open to the States parties to the present
Statute", and Article93,paragraph 1,ofthe United Nations Charter that
"Al1Membersofthe United Nations are ipsofactoparties to the Statuteof
the International Court of Justice"; and whereas it is maintained in the
Application that "As Members of the United Nations Organization, the
Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Yugoslavia(Serbia and Mon-
tenegro) are parties to the Statute"; whereas however in the Application
Bosnia-Herzegovina indicates that the "continuity" of Yugoslavia with
the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, a Member of the
United Nations, "has been vigorously contested by the entire interna-
tional community, and [sic] including by the United Nations Security
Council ...as well as by the General Assembly", and reference is there
made to (interalia)Security Council resolution 777(1992)and General
Assemblyresolution 47/1;
16. Whereas Security Council resolution 777 (1992)of 19September
1992reads, so far aspertinent:

"TheSecurityCouncil,
.............................

Consideringthatthe Stateformerlyknown asthe SocialistFederal
Republic of Yugoslavia has ceasedto exist,
Recallingin particular resolution 757(1992)which notes that 'the
claim by the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Monte-
negro) to continue automatically the membership of the former
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in the United Nations
has not been generallyaccepte&,

1. Considersthat the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia(Serbia and
Montenegro) cannot continue automatically the membership ofthe
former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in the United

Nations; and therefore recommendsto the General Assemblythat it
decide that the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Mon-
tenegro) should apply for membership in the United Nations and
that it shall not participate in the work of the General Assembly";

and whereason22September 1992theGeneral Assemblyadopted resolu-
tion 47/ 1,which reads, so far as pertinent: "The GeneralAssembly,
Having receivedthe recommendation of the Security Council of
19September 1992that the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia(Serbia
and Montenegro) should apply for membership in the United
Nations and that it shallnot participate in the work of the General
Assembly ...,

1. Considersthat the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia(Serbia and
Montenegro) cannot continue automatically the membership of the
former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in the United
Nations; and therefore decides that the Federal Republic of Yugo-
slavia(Serbia and Montenegro) shouldapplyfor membership in the
United Nations and that it shall not participate in the work of the
General Assembly" ;

17. Whereas the Under-Secretary-General and Legal Counsel of the
United Nations addressed a letter on 29September 1992tothe Permanent
Representatives to the United Nations of Bosnia-Herzegovina and Cro-
atia, in which he stated that the "considered view of the United Nations
Secretariat regarding the practical consequences of the adoption by the
General Assemblyof resolution 47/ 1"was as follows :

"While the General Assembly has stated unequivocally that the
Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) cannot
automatically continue the membership of the former Socialist Fed-
eral Republic of Yugoslaviain the United Nations andthat the Fed-
eral Republic of Yugoslavia(Serbia and Montenegro) should apply
for membership in the United Nations, the only practical conse-
quence that the resolution draws is that the Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia(Serbia and Montenegro)shall notparticipateinthe work
oftheGeneral Assembly.It isclear,therefore, that representatives of

the Federal Republic ofYugoslavia(Serbia and Montenegro) canno
longerparticipateinthe work ofthe General Assembly,itssubsidiary
organs, nor conferences and meetingsconvened by it.

On the otherhand,the resolution neither terminates nor suspends
Yugoslavia's membershipinthe Organization.Consequently,the seat
and nameplate remain asbefore, but in Assemblybodies representa-
tivesofthe Federal Republic ofYugoslavia(Serbia and Montenegro)
cannot sitbehindthe sign'Yugoslavia'.Yugoslavmissions at United
Nations Headquarters and officesmaycontinue tofunction and may
receive and circulate documents. At Headquarters, the Secretariat
willcontinueto flythe flagoftheold Yugoslaviaasit isthe lastflagof
Yugoslavia used by the Secretariat. The resolution does not take
away the right of Yugoslavia to participate in the work of organs 14 APPLICATION OF GENOCIDE CONVENTION (ORDER 8 IV93)

other than Assemblybodies.Theadmission to the United Nations of
a new Yugoslavia under Article 4 of the Charter will terminate the
situation created by resolution 47/1"(doc.A/47/485);

18. Whereas,whilethe solutionadopted isnotfreefromlegal difficult-
ies, the question whether or not Yugoslavia is a Member of the United
Nations and as such a party to the Statute of the Court is one which the
Court does not need to determine definitivelyat the present stage of the
proceedings ;
19. Whereas Article 35 of the Statute, after providing that the Court
shallbe open to the parties to theStatute,continues:

"2. The conditions under which the Court shallbe open to other
Statesshall,subject to the specialprovisionscontained in treaties in
force,be laid down bythe SecurityCouncil, but in no caseshall such
conditions place the parties in a position of inequality before the
Court";

whereas the Court therefore considers that proceedings may validly be
institutedbya StateagainstaState whichisaparty to suchaspecialprovi-
sionin atreaty in force,but isnot party to thetatute,and independently
of the conditions laid down by the SecurityCouncil in its resolution 9 of
1946(cf. S.S. 'Wimbledon",1923,P.C.I.J., SeriesA, No.1,p. 6);whereasa
compromissoryclause in a multilateral convention, such as Article IX of
the GenocideConvention reliedonby Bosnia-Herzegovinainthe present
case,could, in the viewofthe Court, be regarded prima facieas a special
provision contained in a treaty in force; whereas accordingly ifBosnia-
Herzegovina and Yugoslavia are both parties to the Genocide Conven-
tion, disputes to which Article IX applies are in any event prima facie
withinthejurisdiction rationepersonae ofthe Court;

20. Whereas the Court must therefore now consider its jurisdiction
rationemateriae; whereas Article IX of the Genocide Convention, upon
whichBosnia-HerzegovinainitsApplication claimsto foundthe jurisdic-
tion ofthe Court, provides that

"Disputesbetween the ContractingPartiesrelating tothe interpre-
tation,application orfulfilmentofthepresentConvention,including
those relatingtothe responsibilityofaStateforgenocideorforanyof
the other acts enumerated in article III, shall be submitted to the
International Court of Justice atthe request of any of the parties to
the dispute"; 21. Whereas the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
signedthe GenocideConvention on 11December 1948,and deposited an
instrument of ratification, without resemation, on 29 August 1950;
whereas both Parties tothe present case correspond to parts of the terri-
tory ofthe former SocialistFederal Republic of Yugoslavia;
22. Whereasatthetimeofthe proclamation ofthe Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia(that is to saythe Respondent inthe present proceedings) on
27April 1992,a forma1declaration wasadopted on itsbehalf to the effect
that

"The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia,continuing the State,inter-
nationallegaland politicalpersonalityofthe SocialistFederal Repub-
licofYugoslavia,shallstrictlyabide by al1the commitmentsthatthe
SocialistFederal Republic of Yugoslaviaassumedintemationally" ;

and whereasthisintention ofYugoslaviato honourthe international trea-
ties ofthe former Yugoslaviawas confirmed in an officia1Note from the

PermanentMission ofYugoslaviatothe UnitedNations, addressed to the
Secretary-General,dated 27April 1992;
23. Whereas Bosnia-Herzegovinaon 29December 1992transmitted to
the Secretary-Generalofthe United Nations, the depositary ofthe Geno-
cide Convention, a Notice of Successionin the followingterms :

"the Govemment ofthe RepublicofBosniaand Herzegovina,having
consideredthe Convention onthe Preventionand Punishment ofthe

Crime ofGenocide,ofDecember9,1948,to whichthe former Social-
ist Federal Republic ofYugoslaviawas a party, wishesto succeedto
the same and undertakes faithfully to perform and cany out al1the
stipulations therein contained with effect from March 6, 1992,the
dateonwhichthe RepublicofBosniaand Herzegovinabecame inde-
pendent" ;
and whereasthe Secretary-General on 18March 1993communicated the
followingDepositaryNotification to the parties tothe GenocideConven-

tion:
"On 29December 1992,the notification ofsuccessionbythe Gov-
ernment of Bosnia and Herzegovinato the above-mentioned Con-
vention was deposited with the Secretary-General,with effectfrom
6 March 1992,the date on which Bosnia and Herzegovinaassumed
responsibilityfor itsinternational relations";

24. Whereas Yugoslavia has disputed the validity and effect of the
Notice of 29 December 1992,contending that no rule of generalinterna-
tional law gives Bosnia-Herzegovina the right to proclaim unilaterally
that itsnow a party to the Genocide Convention merelybecause the for-
mer SocialistFederal Republic ofYugoslavia wasaparty to the Conven-
tion andthe Convention was thus applicable to what is now the territoryof Bosnia-Herzegovina,that the "declaration of succession" procedure
providedforinthe Vienna Convention on Successionof Statesin respect
of Treaties (which Convention is not in force) was evolved for, and is
applicable only in, cases of decolonization, and is therefore not open to
Bosnia-Herzegovina; and that the Notice of 29 December 1992,if con-
strued as an instrument of accession under Article XI of the Genocide
Convention, can only "become effective on the ninetieth day following
the deposit oftheinstrument"inaccordance withArticle XIII oftheCon-

vention; whereas Yugoslavia concludes that the Court has jurisdiction
under the Genocide Convention, if at all, only in respect of facts subse-
quent to the expiration of 90days fromthe Notice of 29December 1992;

25. Whereasthe Court observesthat the Secretary-Generalhastreated
Bosnia-Herzegovina,not asacceding, but as succeedingto the Genocide
Convention, and ifthisbesothequestion oftheapplication ofArticlesXI
and XIII ofthe Convention would not arise; whereashoweverthe Court
notes that even if Bosnia-Herzegovina were to be treated as having
acceded to the GenocideConvention, withthe resultthat the Application
mightbe said to bepremature when filed, "this circumstancewould now
be covered" by the fact that the 90-dayperiod elapsed between the filing

of the Application and the oralproceedings on the request (cf.Mavrom-
matisPalestineConcessions J,udgmentNo.2,1924,P.C.I.J.,SeriesA, No.2,
p. 34); whereas the Court, in deciding whether to indicate provisional
measures is concerned,not so much withthe past as withthe present and
with the future; whereas, accordingly evenif itsjurisdiction suffersfrom
the temporal limitationasserted by Yugoslavia - which it does not now
haveto decide - this is not necessarily abarto the exerciseofitspowers
under Article41ofthe Statute;

26. Whereas Article IX of the Genocide Convention, to which both
Bosnia-Herzegovina and Yugoslavia are parties, thus appears to the
Court to afford a basis on which the jurisdiction of the Court might be

founded to the extentthat the subject-matter ofthe dispute relatesto "the
interpretation, application or fulfilment" of the Convention, including
disputes "relatingto the responsibilityofa Stateforgenocide orforany of
the other actsenumeratedin article III" ofthe Convention;

27. Whereas on 31March 1993the Agent of Bosnia-Herzegovinasub-
mitted, as constituting an additional basis ofjurisdiction of the Court in
this case, aletter, dated 8 June 1992,addressed to the President of the
Arbitration Commission of the International Conference for Peace inYugoslaviaby Mr. Momir Bulatovic,President of the Republic of Mon-
tenegro, and Mr. Slobodan Milosevic, President of the Republic of
Serbia; whereas the Court considers that the fact that thisletter was not
invokedinthe Application asabasis ofjurisdiction doesnot in itselfcon-
stitute a bar to reliance being placed upon it in the further course of the
proceedings (cf. Militaly andParamilitaly Activitiesinandagainst Nicara-
gua (Nicaragua v. United States of America), I.C.J. Reports 1984,
pp. 426-427,para. 80);
28. Whereasthe letterof8June 1992referredto aletterwhichthe Presi-
dent of the Arbitration Commissionhad on 3June 1992addressedtothe
Presidentsofthe RepublicsofBosniaand Herzegovina,Croatia, Macedo-
nia, Montenegro, Serbia and Sloveniaandto the Presidency of the Fed-
eral Republic of Yugoslavia, requesting a statement of the position of
theirrespectivecountriesonthree questionsraisedbythe Chairman ofthe
Conference for Peace in Yugoslavia; whereas the first question was

whether the Federal Republic of Yugoslaviawas a new State calling for
recognition by the Member Statesof the European Community, the sec-
ond question waswhether the dissolution of the former SocialistFederal
RepublicofYugoslaviacouldberegarded ascomplete,andthethird was :

"If this is the case, on what basis and by what means should the
problems of the succession of States arising between the different
States emerging from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
be settled?"

29. Whereasinthejoint letterof8June 1992,the PresidentofMontene-
groandthe PresidentofSerbiachallengedthe Commission's competence
to givean opinion on the three questions submitted to it, and went on to
say,in the English translation supplied by Bosnia-Herzegovinafrom the
original Serbo-Croat :

"2. It is the principled position of FR Yugoslavia that al1ques-
tions involvedinthe overallsettlementofthe Yugoslav crisisshould
be resolvedin an agreementbetween FR Yugoslaviaand al1the for-
mer Yugoslavrepublics.
3. FR Yugoslaviaholdsthe viewthat al1legaldisputeswhich can-
not be settled by agreementbetween FR Yugoslaviaand the former
Yugoslavrepublicsshouldbe takentotheInternational Court ofJus-

tice, asthe principal judicial organ ofthe United Nations.

Accordingly,and inviewofthe factthat al1theissuesraisedinyour
letter are of a legalnature, FR Yugoslaviaproposes that in the event
that agreement is not reached amongthe participants in the Confer-
ence, these questions should be adjudicated by the International
Court ofJustice, in accordance withits Statute";18 APPLICATION OF GENOCIDE CONVENTION (ORDER 8IV93)

30. Whereas Bosnia-Herzegovinainterpretsthistextas an offerbythe
Federal Republic of Yugoslaviato submit al1outstanding legal disputes
between itself and Bosnia-Henegovina to the Court, and in reliance on
this offer the Agent of Bosnia-Herzegovina at the hearings stated that
Bosnia-Herzegovina

"hereby submitsto the Court al1ofthe legaldisputes between it and
... Yugoslavia that have been set forth in Our Application [and]
Request forprovisional measures",

and submitted
"that thisorma1expressionofintention to submittothejurisdiction
of this Court by the appropriate authorities ... provides an addi-
tional jurisdiction for the Court to decide al1the outstanding legal
disputes between us";

and requested the Court "to consider this additional jurisdictional
basis ...in support of [the]request for an indication of provisional mea-
sures" ;
31. Whereas however at the present stage of the proceedings,and on
thebasis oftheinformationbefore theCourt, itisbyno meansclearto the
Court whetherthe letter of 8 June 1992was intended as an "immediate
commitment" by the two Presidents, binding on Yugoslavia, to accept
unconditionally the unilateralsubmission to the Court of a widerange of
legaldisputes (cf.AegeanSea ContinentalShelJ;Z.C.J.Reports1978,p. 44,
para. 108);or whether it was intended as a commitment solely to sub-
missiontothe Court ofthe three questions raised bythe Chairman ofthe
Cornmittee; or as no more than the enunciation of a general policy of
favouringjudicial settlement,which did not embodyan offer or commit-
ment ;

32. Whereasthe Court isthus unable to regardthe letterof 8June 1992
as constitutinga prima facie basis ofjurisdiction in the present case and
must proceed therefore on the basis only that it has prima facie jurisdic-
tion, both rationepersonae and ratione materiae, under Article IX of the
GenocideConvention;

33. Whereas Yugoslaviahas drawn attention to the numerous resolu-
tions adopted by the United Nations Security Council concerning the
situationin the former Yugoslavia,andto the fact that in that respectthe
SecurityCouncilhas taken decisionsonthebasisofArticle25oftheChar-
ter, and has indicated expresslythat it is acting under Chapter VI1of the

Charter; whereas Yugoslavia contends that solongasthe Security Coun-
cil is acting in accordance with Article 25 and under that Chapter,
"it wouldbepremature and inappropriate for theCourtto indicate provi-
sional measures, and certainly provisional measures of the type whichhave been requested"; whereas the Court understands this objection as
beingprimarily addressed to those measuresrequested by Bosnia-Herze-
govina which gobeyond matters within the scope of the Genocide Con-
vention, and which for that reason the Court cannot consider; whereas
howeverin anyevent,as the Court has observed in a previous case,while
there isinthe Charter

"a provision for a clear demarcation of functions between the Gen-
eral Assembly andthe SecurityCouncil,in respect of any dispute or
situation,thatthe formershould notmakeanyrecommendation with
regard to that dispute or situation unless the Security Council so
requires, there is no similarprovision anywhere in the Charter with
respectto the SecurityCouncil and the Court. TheCouncilhas func-
tions of apolitical nature assigned to it,whereasthe Court exercises
purely judicial functions. Both organs can therefore perform their

separate but complementary functions with respect to the same
events"(Militaryand ParamilitaryActivities inandagainst Nicaragua
(Nicaragua v. UnitedStates ofAmerica), JurisdictionandAdmissibil-
ity,Judgment,I.C.J.Reports1984,pp. 434-435,para. 95);

34. Whereas the power of the Courtto indicate provisional measures
under Article41 ofthe StatuteoftheCourt hasasitsobjecttopreservethe
respectiverights ofthe parties pending thedecisionoftheCourt,and pre-
supposesthat irreparableprejudiceshall notbecausedto rightswhichare
the subject ofdispute injudicial proceedings; and whereasit followsthat
the Court must be concerned to preserve by such measures the rights
which maysubsequentlybe adjudged bythe Court tobelongeitherto the
Applicant ortothe Respondent ;
35. Whereas the Court, having established the existence of a basis on
which itsjurisdiction might be founded, ought not to indicate measures
for the protection of any disputed rights other than those which might
ultimately form the basis of a judgment in the exercise of that jurisdic-
tion; whereas accordingly the Court will confine its examination of the
measures requested, and of the grounds asserted for the request for
such measures, to those which fa11within the scope of the Genocide
Convention;

36. Whereasthe legalrightssought to be protected bythe indication of
provisional measures are enumerated in the request of Bosnia-Herzego-

vina forthe indication of such measures asfollows : "(a) the right of the citizensof Bosnia and Herzegovinaphysically
to surviveasaPeopleand asaState;
(b) the rights of the People of Bosnia and Herzegovina to life,
liberty, and security, as well as the other basichuman rights
specifiedinthe 1948UniversalDeclaration ofHuman Rights;

(c) the right ofthe People and State of Bosniaand Herzegovinato
be free at al1times from acts of genocide and other genocidal
actsperpetrated upon Them by Yugoslavia (Serbia and Mon-
tenegro), acting together with its agents and surrogates in
Bosniaand elsewhere;
(d) the right ofthe People and Stateof Bosniaand Herzegovinato
al1timesfromthe use orthreat of forceagainst Them
be freeat
by aforeignStateacting in conjunction withitsagentsand sur-
rogatesonTheirsovereignterritory and elsewhere;
(e) the right of Bosniaand Herzegovinato conduct its affairs and
to determine matters within its domestic jurisdiction without
interference orinterventionby anyforeign Stateactingdirectly
orbymeansofagentsand surrogates,orboth;

03 the right of self-determination of the People of Bosnia and
Herzegovina;
(g) thebasicright ofsovereignexistenceforthe Peopleand Stateof
Bosniaand Henegovina" ;

37. WhereasYugoslaviasimilarlyseekstheprotection ofcertain rights
by the provisional measures recommended by it, set out in paragraph 9
above ;
38. Whereas however,with respect to the measuresrequestedboth by
Bosnia-Herzegovinaand by Yugoslavia,the Court is,as observed above,
confined tothe consideration ofsuch rightsunder the GenocideConven-
tion as might form the subject-matter of ajudgment of the Court in the
exerciseof itsjurisdictionunder Article IX ofthat Convention;

39. Whereas the definition of genocidein Article II of the Genocide
Convention reads, so far as relevant:
"In the present Convention,genocide means any of the following

acts committedwith intent to destroy,inwhole orin part, a national,
ethnical,racial or religiousgroup, asuch :

(a) Killingmembersofthe group;
(b) Causingseriousbodilyormentalharm tomembersofthegroup;

(c) Deliberatelyinflictingonthe groupconditions oflifecalculated
tobringabout itsphysicaldestructionin wholeorinpart;
(d) Imposingmeasuresintendedtopreventbirthswithinthegroup" ; 40. Whereas the Applicant has brought beforethe Court, in the State-
ment of Factsin itsApplication, and inthe subsequentdocumententitled
"Supplementary Submission", accounts of military and paramilitary
activities,includingthe bombing and shelling of towns and villages,the
destruction ofhouses and forcedmigration of civilians,and ofactsofvio-
lence, including execution, murder, torture, and rape which, in the cir-
cumstances in which they have occurred, show, in the view of the
Applicant,that acts of genocidehave been committed, and will continue
to be committed against,in particular,the Muslim inhabitants of Bosnia-
Herzegovina ;
41. Whereas Bosnia-Herzegovina claims in the Application that the
actsthere complained ofhavebeen committed by former members ofthe
Yugoslav People'sArmy (YPA) and by Serb military and paramilitary
forces under the direction of, at the behest of, and with assistance from

Yugoslavia,andthat Yugoslaviaistherefore fullyresponsible under inter-
national law fortheir activities; and whereas in its request forthe indica-
tion ofprovisional measures Bosnia-Herzegovinasimilarlycontends that
thefactsstated inthe Applicationshowthat Yugoslaviaiscommittingacts
ofgenocide,both directlyand by means of itsagents and surrogates, and
that there is no reason to believe that Yugoslavia will voluntarily desist
from this course of conduct while the case is pending before the Court;

42. Whereas Yugoslavia observes that the situation is not one of
aggressionby oneStateagainstanother,but a civilwar,and assertsthat it
hasno soldiersintheterritory ofBosnia-Herzegovina,that itdoesnot mil-
itarilysupport anysideinthe conflict,andthat itdoes not support orabet
in any waythe commissionof crimescitedinthe Application; that Yugo-
slavia and its subordinate bodies, including the military, have not com-
mitted and are not committing any of the acts to which Article III of the
GenocideConventionrefers; andthat the claimspresented in the Appli-
cation are without foundation; and whereas Yugoslaviahas also argued
that what Bosnia-Herzegovina is seeking is an interim judgment on the

meritsofthe case,whichisnot coveredbyArticle41ofthe Statute(cf.Fac-
toly at Chorzbw (Zndemnities),Order of 21 November 1927, P.C.Z.J.,
SeriesA, No.12,p. 10);

43. Whereas Yugoslaviain its written observationson the request for
theindication ofprovisionalmeasures "requeststhe Courtto establishthe
responsibilityofthe authorities" of Bosnia-Herzegovinaforacts of geno-
cide against the Serb people in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and indicates its
intention to submit evidence to that effect; and whereas Yugoslavia
claimedatthehearings that genocideand genocidal actsarebeingcarried
out against Serbs livingin Bosnia-Herzegovina; whereas Bosnia-Herze-
govinaforits part contends howeverthat there isno basisin fact orin law
for the indication of provisional measures against it, there being no
credible evidence that its Government has committed acts of genocide
against anyone; 44. Whereas the Court, in the context of the present proceedingson a
requestforprovisional measures,has inaccordance withArticle41ofthe

Statute to consider the circumstancesdrawn to its attention as requiring
the indication of provisional measures, but cannot make definitive find-
ings of fact or of imputability, and the right of each Party to dispute the
facts alleged against it, to challenge the attribution to it of responsibility
for those facts, and to submit arguments in respect of the merits, must
remainunaffected by the Court's decision;
45. WhereasArticle 1ofthe GenocideConvention provides that :

"The ContractingPartiesconfirm that genocide,whether commit-

ted in time of peace or in time of war, is a crime under international
lawwhich theyundertake to prevent andto punish";
whereas al1parties to the Convention have thus undertaken "to prevent
andto punish the crimeofgenocide; whereasinthe viewofthe Court, in
the circumstancesbrought to its attention and outlined above in which
there is a graverisk of acts ofgenocidebeing committed, Yugoslaviaand
Bosnia-Herzegovina, whether or not any such acts in the past may be
under a clear obligationto do al1in their
legallyimputable to them, are
power to preventthe commissionof any such actsinthe future;

46. Whereas the Court is not called upon, for the purpose of its deci-
sion on the present request for the indication of provisional measures,
nowto establishthe existenceofbreaches ofthe GenocideConvention by
eitherParty,but to determinewhetherthe circumstancesrequirethe indi-
cationofprovisionalmeasurestobe taken bythe Partiesfortheprotection
ofrights under the GenocideConvention; and whereasthe Court issatis-
fied, takinginto accountthe obligationimposed byArticle1ofthe Geno-
cide Convention, that the indication of measures is required for the
protection of such rights; and whereas Article 75, paragraph 2, of the
RulesofCourt recognizesthe power ofthe Court, when arequestfor pro-
visional measures has been made, to indicate measures that are in whole
orinpart other than those requested,orthat oughtto betaken orcomplied
with bythe party which has itselfmade the request;

47. WhereasBosnia-HerzegovinaalsoinvokesArticleVI11ofthe Gen-
ocide Convention, which provides that

"AnyContractingParty maycal1uponthecompetentorgans ofthe
United Nations to take such action under the Charter of the United
Nationsas they considerappropriate fortheprevention and suppres-
sion of acts of genocide or any of the other acts enumerated in
articleIII",and Bosnia-Henegovina calls upon the Court to "act immediately and

effectivelytodo whateverit canto prevent and suppress"theacts of geno-
cide complained of or threatened; whereas the Court considers Ar-
ticle VIII, even assumingit to be applicable to the Court as one of the
"competent organsofthe United Nations", appearsnot to conferon itany
functions or competenceadditional to those provided for in its Statute;
whereas accordingly the Court at this stage of the proceedings is not
required to do more than consider what provisional measures may be
called forunder Article41ofthe Statute;

48. Whereas in its request for the indication of provisional measures
Bosnia-Henegovina has also maintained that the Court should exercise
its power to indicateprovisionalmeasures with a viewto preventing the
aggravationorextensionofthedispute wheneveritconsidersthat circum-
stancessorequire ;whereasfromthe information availableto the Court it
issatisfiedthat thereis agraveriskofactionbeingtaken whichmayaggra-
vate or extend the existingdispute over the prevention or punishment of
the crime of genocide,or render it more difficult of solution;

49. Whereasthe crimeofgenocide"shocksthe conscienceofmankind,
results in greatlossesto humanity ... and is contrary to moral law andto
the spirit and aims of the United Nations", in the words of General
Assemblyresolution 96(1)of 11December 1946on "the Crime of Geno-
cide",whichthe Court recalledinitsAdvisoryOpinion on Reservationson
theConventiononGenocide(Z.C.J.Reports 1951,p. 23);

50. Whereasinthe lightofthe severalconsiderations setout above,the
Court finds that the circumstancesrequire it to indicateprovisional mea-
sures,asprovided by Article41ofthe Statute ofthe Court;
51. Whereas the decision given in the present proceedings in no way
prejudges the question of the jurisdiction of the Court to deal with the
merits of the case, or any questions relating to the admissibility of the
Application, or relating to the merits themselves, and leaves unaffected
the right of the Governments of Bosnia-Henegovina and Yugoslavia to
submitarguments in respect of those questions ; 52. For these reasons,

Indicutes,pending its final decision in the proceedings instituted on
20 March 1993bythe Republic of Bosnia and Henegovina against the
Federal Republic of Yugoslavia(Serbia and Montenegro),the following
provisional measures :

A. (1) Unanimously,

TheGovernment ofthe Federal RepublicofYugoslavia(Serbiaand
Montenegro) should immediately, in pursuance of its undertaking in
the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of
Genocide of 9 December 1948,take al1measures within its power to
preventcommissionofthe crimeofgenocide;

TheGovernment ofthe Federal Republicof Yugoslavia(Serbiaand
Montenegro) should in particular ensure that any military,paramili-
tary orirregulararmed unitswhichmaybe directed orsupported byit,
as well as any organizations and persons which may be subject to its
control, direction orinfluence,do not commitany actsofgenocide,of
conspiracy to commit genocide, of direct and public incitement to
commit genocide, or of complicity in genocide, whether directed

against the Muslimpopulation of Bosniaand Henegovina or against
anyother national, ethnical,racialorreligiousgroup ;

IN FAVOUR : PTeSident Sir Robert Jennings ; Vice-President Oda;
Judges Ago,Schwebel,Bedjaoui, Ni, Evensen,Guillaume,Shahabud-
deen,AguilarMawdsley,Weeramant~yR ,anjeva,Ajibola;
AGAINST :JudgeTarassov;

B. Unanimously,

TheGovernment ofthe Federal RepublicofYugoslavia(Serbiaand
Montenegro)and the Government ofthe RepublicofBosniaand Her-
zegovinashouldnot take any action and should ensure that no action
istaken which may aggravate or extend the existingdispute overthe
prevention or punishment ofthe crime of genocide, orrender it more
difficultofsolution.

Done in Englishandin French, the Englishtext being authoritative, at
the Peace Palace,The Hague,this eighth day ofApril, onethousand nine
hundred and ninety-three, in four copies, one of which willbe placed in
the archives of the Court and the others transmitted respectivelyto the
Government ofthe RepublicofBosniaand Herzegovina,the Governmentof the FederalRepublicof Yugoslavia(Serbiaand Montenegro),andto
the Secretary-GeneraolftheUnitedNationsfortransmissiontotheecu-
rityCouncil.

(Signed) R.Y. JENNINGS,
President.

(Signed) EduardoVALENCIA-OSPINA,
Registrar.

Judge TARASSO aVpendsadeclarationto theOrderoftheCourt.

(Initialled)R.Y.J.
(Znitialled)E.V.O.

Bilingual Content

INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE

REPORTS OF JUDGMENTS,
ADVISORY OPINIONS AND ORDERS

CASE CONCERNING APPLICATION OF

THE CONVENTION ON THE PREVENTION AND
PUNISHMENT OF THE CRIME OF GENOCIDE

(BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA
v.YUGOSLAVIA (SERBIA AND MONTENEGRO))

REQUEST FOR THE INDICATION OF PROVISIONAL
MEASURES

ORDER OF 8 APRIL 1993

COUR INTERNATIONALE DE JUSTICE

RECUEIL DES ARRÊTS,
AVIS CONSULTATIFS ET ORDONNANCES

AFFAIRE RELATIVE À L'APPLICATION

DE LA CONVENTION POUR LA PRÉVENTION
ET LA RÉPRESSION DU CRIME DE GÉNOCIDE

(BOSNIE-HERZÉGOVINE
c. YOUGOSLAVIE (SERBIE ET MONTÉNÉGRO))

DEMANDE EN INDICATION DE MESURES
CONSERVATOIRES

ORDONNANCE DU 8 AVRIL1993 Officia1citat:on
Application oftheConventiononthePreventionandPunishment
oftheCrimeof Genocide,ProvisionalMeasus,rderof8April1993,
Z.C.J.Reports199p.3

Modeofficieldecitati:n
Applicationdelaconventionpour lapréveet la répression
du crimede génocide, mesures conservatoires,ordcueanvril 1993,
C.I.J.Recueil 1993,p. 3

Sales number
ISSN 0074-4441 Nodevent: 631 1
ISBN 92-1-070689-7 INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE

1993 YEAR 1993
GeneraList
No.91 8 April 1993

CASECONCERNING APPLICATIONOF

THE CONVENTION ON THE PREVENTION AND
PUNISHMENT OF THE CRIME OF GENOCIDE

(BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA

v.WGOSLAVIA (SERBIA AND MONTENEGRO))

REQUEST FOR THE INDICATION
OF PROVISIONAL MEASURES

Present: PresidentSirRobert JEN;Vice-Presidet D;JudgesAGO,
SCHWEBEL B,EDJAOUIN, I, EVENSEN,ARASSOV G,UILLAUME,
SHAHABUDDE ENU, ILRAWDSLEW Y,EERAMANTR RY, JEVA,
AJIBOLA R;egistrarVALENCIA-OSPINA.

The International Court ofJustice,

Composed as above,
After deliberation,

Having regard to Articles35,36,41 and 48of the Statute of the Court,
and to Articles73,74 and 75ofthe Rules of Court,
Havingregardto the Application bythe RepublicofBosniaand Herze-
govina(hereinafter called "Bosnia-Herzegovina")filed in the Registryof
the Court on0 March 1993,instituting proceedings against the Federal
Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) (hereinafter called COUR INTERNATIONALE DE JUSTICE

1993
8 avril
Rôno91néral
8 avril 1993

AFFAIRE RELATIVE À L'APPLICATION

DE LA CONVENTION POUR LA PRÉVENTION
ET LA RÉPRESSION DU CRIME DE GÉNOCIDE

(BOSNIE-HERZÉGOVINE
c. YOUGOSLAVIE (SERBIE ET MONTÉNÉGRO))

DEMANDE EN INDICATION DE MESURES
CONSERVATOIRES

ORDONNANCE

Présents:Sir Robert JENNINGS,Prést M. ODA, Vice-présidtn
MM. AGO, SCHWEBEL B,EDJAOUN,I, EVENSEN,ARASSOV,
GUILLAUME S, AHABUDDEE NG,UILAMAWDSLEY W, EERA-
MANTRYR , ANJEVA, JIBOLAj,uges; M. VALENCIA-OSPINA,
Greffier.

La Cour internationale de Justice,

Ainsi composée,
Après déliben chambre du conseil,

Vules articles36,41 et 48 du Statut de la Cour et les articles 73,74
et 75de son Règlement,
Vu la requêtedéposéepar la Républiquede Bosnie-Herzégovine(ci-
aprèsdénommée«Bosnie-Herzégovine»)au Greffe delaCour le20mars
1993,par laquelle elle aintroduitune instance contre la République fédé-
rative de Yougoslavie (Serbie et Monténégro) (ci-après dénommée"Yugoslavia") in respect of a dispute concerning alleged violations by

Yugoslavia of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the
Crime of Genocide, adopted by the General Assembly of the United
Nations on 9 December 1948(hereinafter called "the Genocide Conven-
tion"), aswellasmatters which Bosnia-Herzegovinamaintains to be con-
nected therewith,

MakesthefollowingOrder:
1. Whereasin the above-mentioned Application Bosnia-Herzegovina,
basing the jurisdiction of the Court on Article IX of the Genocide Con-
vention, recounts a series of events in Bosnia-Herzegovina from April
1992up tothepresent daywhich,initscontention, amountto actsofgeno-
cidewithinthe definition givenin the Genocide Convention, specifically

(i) killing members of a group, namely Muslim inhabitants of Bosnia-
Herzegovina;
(ii) causingseriousbodilyormentalharmto membersofthat group ;

(iii) deliberately inflicting on that group conditions of life calculated to
bring about itsphysicaldestructioninwholeorinpart; and

(iv) imposingmeasuresintended topreventbirths withinthatgroup;
and whereasBosnia-Herzegovinaclaimsthatthe actscomplained ofhave
been committed by former members of the Yugoslav People's Army
(YPA)and bySerbmilitaryand paramilitary forcesunder the directionof,
at the behest of, and with assistance from Yugoslavia; and whereas
Bosnia-Herzegovinaclaimsthat Yugoslaviaistherefore fullyresponsible

under international lawfortheir activities;
2. Whereason the basis ofthe facts allegedin the Application Bosnia-
Herzegovinarequests the Court to adjudge and declare as follows:
"(a) that Yugoslavia(Serbiaand Montenegro) hasbreached, and is
continuing to breach, its legal obligations toward the People
and State of Bosnia and Herzegovina under Articles 1,II (a),

II (b),IIc)II (d),III (a),III (b),III (c),III (d),III (e),IVand Vof
the Genocide Convention;
(b) that Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) has violated and is
continuing to violate its legal obligations toward the People
and State of Bosnia and Herzegovina under the four Geneva
Conventions of 1949,their Additional ProtocolI of 1977,the
customary international laws of war including the Hague
Regulations on Land Warfare of 1907,and otherfundamental
principles ofinternationalhumanitarian law ;

(c) that Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) has violated and
continues to violateArticles 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9, 10,11,12,13,
15, 16,17,18, 19,20,21,22,23,25,26 and 28of the Universal«Yougoslavie »)au sujet d'un différend concernanttant lesviolations de

la convention pour la préventionet la répressiondu crime de génocide,
adoptéepar l'Assemblée générale des Nation Usnies le9 décembre1948
(ci-après dénommée«la convention sur le génocide»), qu'aurait
commiseslaYougoslaviequedesquestionsqui,selon la Bosnie-Herzégo-
vine,seraient liéeà cesviolations,

Rendl'ordonnancesuivante:
1. Considérantque dans sarequêtesusmentionnéelaBosnie-Herzégo-
vine,qui fonde la compétencede la Cour surl'articleIXde la convention
surlegénocide,relateune séried'événementssurvenusen Bosnie-Herzé-
govined'avril1992 àcejour qui,selon elle,sontassimilableà desactesde

génocideau sens de la définition qu'endonne la convention sur le géno-
cide,en particulier,
i) meurtre de membres d'un groupe, àsavoir les habitants musulmans
deBosnie-Herzégovine;
ii) atteinte gravà l'intégritphysique ou mentale de membres de ce

groupe ;
iii) soumissionintentionnelle de ce groupe àdes conditions d'existence
devantentraînersadestructionphysiquetotale oupartielle et
iv) mesuresvisant à entraverlesnaissancesauseindecegroupe;
et considérantque la Bosnie-Herzégovinesoutientque les actes qu'elle

dénonce auraient été commispar des anciensmembres de l'arméepopu-
laire yougoslave etpar des forces militaireset paramilitaires serbes agis-
sant sousla direction, sur l'ordre et avecl'aide de la Yougoslavie;que la
Bosnie-Herzégovineconclut que la Yougoslavie est donc entièrement
responsable en droit international de leurs activités;
2. Considérant que,sur la base des faits allégués dansla requête, la
Bosnie-Herzégovineprie la Cour de dire etjuger:

«a) que la Yougoslavie(Serbieet Monténégro)a violé, et continue
de violer, ses obligationsjuridiques l'égarddu peuple et de
1'Etatde Bosnie-Herzégovineen vertu des articles premier,
II a),II b),II c),II da),III b),III c),III d),III e),IVet Vdela
conventionsurlegénocide;
b) que la Yougoslavie(Serbie et Monténégro) a violé etcontinue
de violer ses obligationsjuridiques à l'égarddu peuple et de
1'Etatde Bosnie-Herzégovineen vertu desquatre conventions
de Genèvede 1949,de leurprotocole additionnel 1de 1977,du
droit international coutumier de la guerre, et notamment du
RèglementdeLa Hayede 1907concernant laguerre surterre, et
d'autres principes fondamentaux du droit international huma-

nitaire;
c) que la Yougoslavie(Serbieet Monténégro)a violéet continue
devioler lesdispositionsdesarticles 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,
12,13, 15,16,17,18, 19,20,21,22,23,25,26 et28dela Déclara- Declaration of Human Rights with respect to the citizens of
Bosniaand Herzegovina;
(d) that Yugoslavia(Serbiaand Montenegro),inbreach ofitsobli-
gations under general and customary international law, has
killed, murdered, wounded, raped, robbed, tortured, kid-
napped, illegally detained, and exterminated the citizens of
Bosniaand Herzegovina,and iscontinuingtodo so ;
(e) thatin itstreatment ofthe citizensof Bosniaand Herzegovina,
Yugoslavia(Serbia and Montenegro) has violated, and is con-
tinuing to violate, its solemn obligations under Articles 1(3),

55and 56ofthe United Nations Charter;

03 that Yugoslavia(Serbiaand Montenegro) has used and is con-
tinuing to use force and the threat of force against Bosnia and
Henegovina in violation of Articles2 (l), 2 (2),2 (3),2 (4)and
33(l), ofthe United Nations Charter;

(g) that Yugoslavia(Serbiaand Montenegro),inbreach ofitsobli-
gations under general and customary international law, has
used and is using force and the threat of force against Bosnia
and Herzegovina;
(h) that Yugoslavia(Serbiaand Montenegro),in breach ofitsobli-
gations under general and customary international law, has
violated and is violatingthe sovereigntyof Bosniaand Herze-

govinaby :
- armed attacks against Bosnia and Herzegovina by air and
land ;
- aerialtrespassinto Bosnianairspace;
- efforts by direct and indirect means to coerce and intimi-
datethe GovernmentofBosniaand Herzegovina;

(i) that Yugoslavia(Serbiaand Montenegro),inbreach ofitsobli-
gations under general and customary international law, has
intervened and is intervening in the interna1affairs of Bosnia
and Herzegovina;

Q) ting, arming, equipping, financing, supplying andting,othenvise

encouraging, supporting, aiding, and directing military and
paramilitary actionsin and against Bosniaand Herzegovinaby
means ofitsagentsand surrogates,hasviolated and isviolating
its expresscharter and treaty obligationsto Bosniaand Herze-
govina and, in particular, its charter and treaty obligations
under Article2(4)ofthe United Nations Charter, aswellasits
obligations under generaland customaryinternational law;

(k) that under the circumstancesset forth above, Bosniaand Her- tion universelledes droits de l'hommevis-à-visdes citoyensde

laBosnie-Herzégovine ;
d) que la Yougoslavie(Serbieet Monténégro),en violationde ses
obligationsenvertu dudroit international générae ltcoutumier,
atué,assassinéb,lessé,violév,olé,torturé,enlevé,détenuilléga-
lement et exterminé des citoyensde la Bosnie-Herzégovine, et
continue delefaire ;
e) qu'en traitant ainsi les citoyens de la Bosnie-Herzégovine,la
Yougoslavie (Serbie et Monténégro) aviolé etcontinue de
violer les obligations qu'elle a solennellement assuméesen
vertu du paragraphe 3 de l'article 1et des articles 55et 56de la
Charte desNationsUnies ;
JI que la Yougoslavie(Serbieet Monténégro)a employé et conti-
nue d'employerla force et de recourir àla menace de la force
contrela Bosnie-Herzégovineenviolationdesparagraphes 1,2,

3et4del'article2etdu paragraphe 1del'article33dela Charte
desNations Unies ;
g) que la Yougoslavie(Serbieet Monténégro)e ,n violation de ses
obligationsenvertu du droitinternational générae ltcoutumier,
a utiliséet utilise la force et la menace de la force contre la
Bosnie-Herzégovine;
h) que la Yougoslavie(Serbieet Monténégro),enviolationde ses
obligationsenvertu dudroit international générae ltcoutumier,
avioléetviolelasouverainetédelaBosnie-Herzégovinedufait :

- d'attaques armées contrela Bosnie-Herzégovinepar air et
parterre ;
- delaviolationde l'espaceaériendelaBosnie-Herzégovine;
- d'actes directs et indirects de coercition et d'intimidatioà
l'encontredu Gouvernement delaBosnie-Herzégovine ;

i)que la Yougoslavie (Serbie et Monténégro), en violation des
obligations que lui impose le droit international généralet
coutumier, est intervenue et intervient dans les affaires inté-
rieures delaBosnie-Herzégovine;
j) que la Yougoslavie (Serbie et Monténégro),en recrutant,
formant, armant, équipant, finançant, approvisionnant et en
encourageant, appuyant, assistant et dirigeant de toute autre
manière des actions militairesetparamilitaires en Bosnie-Her-
zégovineou contre celle-cipar le truchement de ses agents et
auxiliaires,a violé etviole sesobligationsexpressesenvertu de
la Charte et des traités envers la Bosnie-Herzégovineet, en
particulier, ses obligations conventionnelles en vertu du para-
graphe 4del'article2delaCharte desNations Unies, demême

que ses obligations en vertu du droit international généralet
coutumier;
k) que, vu les circonstances exposéesci-dessus,la Bosnie-Herzé- zegovinahas the sovereignright to defend Itselfand its People
under United Nations Charter Article 51and customaryinter-
national law, including by means of immediately obtaining
military weapons, equipment, supplies and troops from other
States;
(1) that under the circumstances setforth above,Bosnia and Her-
zegovinahasthe sovereignright under United Nations Charter
Article 51 and customary international law to request the
immediate assistance of any State to come to its defence,

including by military means (weapons, equipment, supplies,
troops, etc.)
(m) that Security Council resolution 713 (1991),imposing a wea-
pons embargoupon the former Yugoslavia,mustbe construed
in a manner that shallnot impair the inherent right of individ-
ual or collectiveself-defenceof Bosniaand Henegovina under
the terms ofUnited Nations Charter Article51andthe rulesof
customaryinternationallaw ;
(n) that al1subsequentSecurityCouncilresolutions that referto or
reaffirm resolution 713(1991)must be construed in a manner
that shall not impair the inherent right of individual or collec-

tiveself-defenceofBosniaand Henegovina under the termsof
United Nations Charter Article 51and the rules of customary
international law;

(O) that SecurityCouncilresolution 713 (1991)and al1subsequent
Security Council resolutions referring thereto or reaffirming
thereof must not be construed to impose an arms embargo
upon Bosnia and Herzegovina,as required by Articles 24 (1)
and 51ofthe United Nations Charter and in accordance with
the customarydoctrine of ultravire ;s

(pl that pursuant to the right of collectiveself-defencerecognized
by United Nations Charter Article51, al1other Statesparties to
the Charter havethe right to cometo the immediatedefence of
Bosniaand Henegovina - atitsrequest - includingbymeans
of immediatelyproviding It with weapons, militaryequipment
and supplies, and armed forces (soldiers, sailors, airpeople,
etc.);
(4) that Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro) and its agents and
surrogatesare under an obligation to ceaseand desistimmedi-
atelyfromitsbreaches ofthe foregoinglegalobligations, and is
under aparticular dutyto ceaseand desistimmediately :

- from its systematicpractice of so-called 'ethnic cleansing'
ofthe citizensand sovereigntenitory of Bosniaand Hene-
govina; govinepossèdeledroit souverain de sedéfendreetde défendre
son peuple en vertu de l'article 51 de la Charte des Nations
Unies et du droit international coutumier, y compris en se
procurant immédiatementauprèsd'autres Etatsdesarmes,des
matérielsetfournituresmilitairesainsi quedestroupes ;
1)que, vu les circonstances exposéesci-dessus,la Bosnie-Herzé-
govine possède ledroit souverain en vertu de l'article51de la
Charte des Nations Unies et du droit international coutumier
de demander à tout Etat de l'assister immédiatement en se
portant à son secours, y compris par des moyens militaires

(armes,matérielsetfournituresmilitaires,troupes, etc.)
m) quelarésolution713 (1991)du Conseilde sécuritéimposantun
embargo sur leslivraisonsd'armes à l'ex-Yougoslaviedoit être
interprétée d'une manière tellqeu'ellene porte pas atteinte au
droit naturel de légitimedéfense,individuelleou collective,de
la Bosnie-Herzégovineen vertu de l'article51de laCharte des
Nations Unies ecdesrèglesdu droitinternational coutumier;
n) quetoutes lesrésolutionsultérieuresdu Conseilde sécuritéqui
se réfèrent la résolution713(1991)ou la réaffirment doivent
être interprétées d'une manière telq leu'elles neportent pas
atteinte au droit naturel de légitimedéfense, individuelle ou

collective,de la Bosnie-Herzégovineen vertu des dispositions
de l'article51 de la Charte des Nations Unies et des règlesdu
droitinternational coutumier;
O)que la résolution713(1991)du Conseil de sécuritéet toutesles
résolutionsultérieuresdu Conseildesécuritéqus i'yréfèrentou
laréaffirmentne doiventpas êtreinterprétéescommeimposant
un embargo surleslivraisonsd'armes à la Bosnie-Herzégovine,
commel'exigentlesdispositions du paragraphe 1de l'article 24
et de l'article 51 de la Charte des Nations Unies et conformé-
ment auprincipe coutumier d'ultravire;
p) qu'envertu du droit de légitimedéfensecollectivereconnu par
l'article51de la Charte des Nations Uniestous les autres Etats

parties àla Charte ont le droit de seporter immédiatementau
secoursdela Bosnie-Herzégovine - à sademande - ycompris
enluiprocurant immédiatementdesarmes,desmatérielsetdes
fournitures militaires, et en mettant sa disposition des forces
armées(soldats,marins,aviateurs,etc.);
q) quela Yougoslavie(SerbieetMonténégroe )tsesagentsetauxi-
liaires sont tenus de mettre fin et de renoncer immédiatement
aux violationssusmentionnéesde leurs obligationsjuridiques,
et ont le devoir exprèsde mettre fin et de renoncer immédiate-
ment :

- àleur pratique systématiquede la ((purification ethnique »
descitoyensetduterritoiresouverain delaBosnie-Herzégo-
vine; - from the murder, summary execution, torture, rape, kid-
napping, mayhem, wounding, physical and mental abuse,
and detention ofthe citizensofBosniaand Herzegovina;