DEMANDE EN INDICATION
DE MESURESCONSERVATOIRES PRÉSENTÉE
PAR LE GOUVERNEMENT DU NICARAGUA
REQUEST FOR THE INDICATION OF
PROVISIONAL MEASURES
SUBMI'ITEDBY THE GOVERNMENT
OFNICARAGUA514 BORDER AND TRANSBORDER ARMED ACTIONS
present inclined to collahorate with the United States in ils policy of claiming
virtuc in publie forums whilst ignoring the norms of international conduci on
the eround. The indication bv thc Court of measures ao.. .riate to the cir-
L.uni\t:inx. iiciul.l :<iuntcr.id ihi\ p<>licy;inJ iihcccrc;iti,ioi ;imcini-
toriiig \\,sicni uliich wiiuld iiiipro\,e r,>iiditidii\ in thc hordcr rcrion :,nJ pu!
certayn a~le~ationsmade again& Nicaragua to the test of truth. -
7. The involvement of the United States in the present crisis affecting
Nicaragua's border region is obvious. At the rame time the Court's Order of
10 May 1984 is still in place and ii has been neither withdrawn nor modified
in accordance with Article 76 of the Rules ofCourt. Moreover. the Court rei-
terated certain key aspects of the Order of 10 May 1984in ils Sudgrnent of
27 June 1986in the case aeainst the United States. Whilst mv Government is
very conccrncd about the;cccnt actions of the United ~tatés,involving the
emplacement of 3,000 combat-rcady troops in thc vicinity of the border, in al1
the circumstances il bas decided that a further request for measures directed
to the Unitcd States would Iack point.
8. In accordance with Article 73. paragraph 2. of the Rules of Court the
Government of Nicaragua respectfully requests the Court to indicate the fol-
lowing measures of protection:
(a) The making of an enquiry either on the basis of the provisions of Article
50 of the Statute of the Court or on the basis of the provisions of Article
66 of the Rules of Court investigating in siru the recent incidents in the
Bocay region and the causes of such incidents.
(b) The rccommendation hy the Court of the creation of a group of observers
by the appropriate organ of the United Nations to monitor incidents in
the border region.
(c) The right of Nicaragua to territorial sovereignty should be fully respected
by Honduras.
(d) The duty of the Govcrnmcnt of Honduras to observe the principlc of
non-intervention in the affairs of Nicaragua and, as a consequence, the
duty of that Government to terminale ils policy of giving refuge and
other forms of assistance to the contra forccs operating from within ils
territory.
Y.In conclusionm^y Government has instructed me to convey to the Court
the sensc of urgency with which this request is necessarily attended.
The Hague. 21 March 1988.
(Signed) Carlos ARG~ELLOG.,
Agcnt of Nicaragua. A'iTACHMENTS TO THE REQUEST FOR THE INDICATION
OF PROVISIONAL MEASURES
Managua. March 18th 1988.
To the Right Honorable Carlos Lopez Contreras.
Minister of Foreign Relations of Honduras.
Dear Minister,
Dccply concerned, 1address myself to you in order to inform you of the
following events:
On March 17th 1988at 12.00 noon, 2 jets peneiraied Nicaraguan airspace
from Honduras and launchcd 5 rockets in thc rcgion of Amaka in the border
zone between both couniries. at the moment when Lieutenant ColonelJavier
Carrion. De~u.v .hief of the General Staff of the Szindinista Po~ular Armv.
u,ns offcrin- ;iprcrs ~onfcrcnîc fi~r il n:iiii~n.il:inJ forcign ~<~urn:aliS.u~h
ireachcro~\ a1t;ick. \\,idel! covercJ the )nurnaI~st<prc~cnt :(tthe 1aic;ition
of the action, was carried~out withoui any provocation.
That sanie day, at 16.40p.m. a jet, also coming from Honduran airspace,
attackcd the region of San Andrcs dc Bocay in Nicziraguan territory on thc
border with Hondurzis with 2 air-10-surface rockcts. Soon afterwards. the
airplane returned to Honduran ziirspace.
The Government of Nicürzigua presents ils most resolute and vigorous
protest about these attacks against Nicaraguan territory. which reflect the
fact that the Government of Honduras still refuses io conduct ils rclations
wiih Nicaragua within the framework of international law and the treaties in
force. The actions I have referred to are not only cxtrcmely grave iiithem-
selves but also vcry dzingcrous because they occurred at the precise moment
when the Government of thc Unitcd States was surcadine an intensive cam-
in order to trigger an intervcntionist adventure zigainstNicaragua.
The facts 1have referrcd 10.whcn added to the maintenance of tolerancc
and support by the Government of Honduras for ihe military and pziramili-
iary activities carried oui by mercenary groups at the service of the North
American Government from Honduran soil. arc more ihan sufficient and
irrr.ftitable proiil no1 onlv th:it H.,ndur;ii h3r no! fulfillcd thc F>quipul:i5
,\&recmcnt\ h! 5upporting irrcgulnr gruulh dd no! pre\cntiiig the use of ils
lcrrilclr?:i:I hx%c <>l,#g&r?sion:ig,;iin\tiïiczir;i<ua.but ihat on thc ,.oiitr;iry.
Iiiinilurii> rhouiII~,ign. of ;in\ Jr.i:rmin.ition fulfil ihcm in thc iuturc.
On~c:i?:iin. thr, <ii~icriiiii~~fSi::ir:i:u:iii\it~rthe C~oicriiiliciut I-I<iil-
duras to heed the legitimatc intcrests of the Hondurcin people and to accept
the oresence of the UN0 Tcchriical Mission in order to carrv out an in siril
inv&iigation as the basis for the procedure necessary for t6e disarmament
and relocation of mercenary groups presently locatcd ai the border between
Honduras and Nicaragua. . . IiOKDliR AND TRANSBORDER AKMED ACTIONS
516
1take this opportunity to assure Your Excellency of my highesi considera-
tion.
Miguel D'ESCOTOBROCKMANN,
Minister of Foreign Allairs.
Managua. Nicaragua. March 19th 1988.
To the Right Honorable Carlos Lope2 Contreras.
Minister of Foreign Affairs,
Tegucigalpa. Honduras.
Dear Minister,
1 address myself to Your Excellency to give an account of the following
acts:
011 \I;irch IXtIiI)etwcen I'Jiitiaiid ?I 01p ni. n yr~iupiif;ipprosiiii:itcl~ 30
mcrcenarici. procccding from Il<indur;in territory. pcncir.itcJ Sic:ir:igu:in u~il
in thc >r,ci<,<ifihc \':illc de 'l'urrc~.5 kiiii ni)rtli,ilSi,iiii~tiIm.iip co.ur.
dinates 4508. This group had a confrontation with a Sandinista ~opulir Army
Unit, leading to ihe consequent death of a member of Our army, Josi. Dimas
Rodriguez Rios, and the wounding of soldiers Anastasio Sanchez Zamora,
Javier Velasquez Povcda, Leonidas Adan Rivera Ramos and Osman Sanchez
Corrales. On the side of this terrorist group. two mercenaries died. Considcr-
able military equipment of different kinds was seizcd. Thc rest of the group flcd
towards Hondurün territory. through the El Coyol route, at map co-ordinales
4708. This infiltration was openly backed hy the Honduran army by way of
harassment witli gunfire against the Sandinista Popular Army Post located at
Palo Grande Viejo. half a km wesi of Somotillo. at map CO-ordinales35-98-4.
-~ ~ ~ ~~-~~nform Your Excellencv. that on March 15th of this vear. air-
planes proceeding from Honduras commitied three violations of Nicaraguan
airs~ace, and after their incursion, returned towards Honduran ierritory.
~imilar violations of our national airsoace iook dace in similar conditions
on March 16th. 17th and 18th. with 4.'10, and 19'air incursions respeciively.
All this, amounts Io ;itotal of 26 violations of Nicaraguan sovereignty. 1must
cmphasize that on v:irious occasions these incursions were accompanicd by
attacks on Our tcrritory.
In face of these repeated. unjustified and treacherous acts of aggression
against the Republic of Nicaragua, 1convey to you Our resolute and vigorous
protest. Simultaneously. 1 wish to inform you that Our Agent at the Interna-
tional Court of Jusiicc has been instructed to rcquest immediately that ihis
institution of justice indicate the interim protective measures to be taken in the
case concemine Border [in[/ Trunsbor~lerArr>ierlActiorrs initiated bv the Re-
public of ~icakgua.
Such decision constitutes yet another proof that the Government of Nica-
ragua, faithful toils obligation to seek for peaceful solutions to thosc situa-
tions which threaten international peace, opts for means of settlemcnt of
differences to which it is obliged to resort under the agreements contained in
the United Nations Charterand the Bogota Pact. Similar motivations are de-
rived from my couniry's deep concern for the establishment of a jus1 and ATTACHMENTS TO THE REOUI?ST 517
long-lasting peace in the rcgion; a pçace that your Covernment insists on cn-
dangcring in an unjustified and irresponsible manncr.
1take this opportunityto assure Your Excellency of my highest considera-
lion.
Miguel D'ESCOTOBROCKMANN.
Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Managua, Nicaragua, March 19th 1988.
To the Right Honorable Carlos Ldpez Contreras.
Ministcr of Foreign Affairs.
Tegucigalpa, Honduras.
Dear Ministcr,
Once agaiii I am obliged 10üddress myself to Your Excellency, in order to
report ihe following attacks:
Today, March 19th, between 08.00 and 08.30 am.. two F5 airplanes origi-
nating in Honduran territory flew overthe regions of Mukuwas. San Andres de
Bocay, Waniwas and Wayawa. located approximately 12 kms inside Nicara-
guan ierritory. and they procceded to bomb and machine-gun these locations.
Latcr. between 14.35 and 14.45p.m.. two F5 airplanes again flew over the
region of Amara and Bocav located 8 kms inside Nicaraeuan territorv. Thev
drEppcd 4 bombs on ~andiiisia Popular Army positionsyn these zoncs. ~ub-
sequently, the planes returned to their sanctuary inside Honduran territory.
The Government of Nicaragua vigorously and formally protests in vicw
of this series of aggressions zigainsi Nicaraguan territory, to which should bc
added the illicitbombings. attacks and air raids which 1have already denounced
in the notes addressed to you yesicrday and this morning.
Thesc facts clarify the meaning of the announcement made yesterday by
Presideni Azcona,when in a press conference he stated "The nearest available
resourcc we have is the Air Force, and we will use itagnin in the future, should
it be detcrmined that the Sandinistas have not lcft Our territory . . ."In fact,
what Prcsidcnt Azcona was snnouncinr beforehand. was the bombine uf Niczi-
raguan tcrritory, since there is no indrcation of an) Sandinista "invasion" of
Honduran soil.Therefore, in order to fulfilhis words, he could only have meant
-as indeed happened - thai the target would be oiir national territory.
Thcse new attacks coniirm the iustice of the~act~on of the Renublic of
N\'ic:ir;iguain rciluc%tinpkir ihc c##iiiiiionhcncl<ifI>oihilur pc~il)lr's.lh:ii the
Interiialion:il CtiuriiiJiisiirc iniposL.:in inicriiii ~r<,tccliic 0rilr.r in ihc c;isc.
introduccd bv Nicaragua. The ~overnment of ond dura msust be convinced
thai only respect for International Law can providc an effectiveframework
for relations between neighbi>uring countries.
1take ihis opportunity to assure Your Exccllency of my highest and most
distinguished consideration.
Miguel D'l3SCOTOBROCKMANN.
Ministcr of Foreign Affairs.518 BORDER AND TRANSBORDER ARMED ACTIONS
PRESIDENTDANIELORTEGA'SMESSAGE 1'0THENICAKAGUAN PEOPLB
Managua. 19 March 1988.
Yesterday. Nicaragua presented our denunciation to the United Nations
Security Council. In recent days. we have learned of actions throughout the
world rejecting and condemning the aggressive and terrorist policy of the US
Government. We have particularly noted. and are hearing more about, the
North Americaii peoples' rcpudiation of this policy. l'hcy arc demanding thç
withdrawal of US trooos disnatched to Honduras that arc thr~a~~~i~ ~-~ ~ ~D -~~~
country. our sovereignty, our lives zindsecurity.
The attitude maintained by the Nicaraauan Government towards Central
American Governments and: in particulaÏ. towards the Honduran Govern-
ment is well known.
Nicaragua has a claim against Honduras before the World Court of Justice
ai The Hague for allowinr! militarv. oaramilitarv. and terrorist activities of
CS C;otcri;nicnt iiicrccn;i;\ ioric~~tu'bc launchcil iroin 1lonJur:iii tcrriiairy
:igainsi the Nic;ir;iquaii p~.<ipl.lliis h:i, hccn piing Linfor mtirc th:in w\cn
r . 'fhc 1-IitiiJur:in Gincriimcni h'is lhcen c<iiiiiiliciin tlicsc <rimi~i:,I
activities that hzivebrought about morc than 50,000 v~ctimsin the Nicaraguan
population.
When the Esquipulas accords were signed on 7 August 1987,the President
of Honduras. Don José Azcona. asked me to request a postponement of the
public presentation of our case before the World Court. He requested this
postponement until the second summit meeting of Presidents. set to take
place 150days afterthe date the accords were signed.
In exchange. President Azcona insiste* on his word, his readiness to remove
the mercenaries from Honduras. He committed himsclf to take the corre-
sponding steps in those 150days to dismantle the camps, radios, communica-
tion centrcs, and logistical bases that the Reagan administration's mercenary
forces have in Honduras. In viewof the commitment from the Honduran Presi-
dent in that Esquipulasmeeting in Guatemala. 1accepted the postponement of
Ourcase before the World Court. That is to say. 1accepted the postponement of
the public prescntation of the case. In a letter signed by both myself and Presi-
dent Aïcona. we communicated this to the World Court. This letter was made
public when we informed the world of the Esquipulas II Accords.
This commitment expired Iwo months ago. and still the Honduran Govern-
ment has not laken a single stcp in order to comply with the agrçemçnt
made then. Thc Honduran Government has no1taken a sinele steo to remove
the countcrrevolutionarics occupying Honduran territory ;n ordér to attack
Nicaragua. President Azcona has not fulfilled his commitment.
On the contrary. the Honduran Government has refused to receive the
Technical Commission of the UN and OAS that was sent by the ClVS in
November 1987.They have systematically refused to comply with the com-
mitment made in August 1987and rcaffirmed in January of 1988to allow on-
site ins~ection. Thev have said it in words. al the end of 1987the Honduran
Government said they were ready for on-site inspection but when the neces-
sary steps are taken to procecd with inspection, Honduras has not allowed the
process to be carried out.
The Honduran Government has refused to demand of the United States
Government. who is mainly responsible for al1these problcms, that they with- AITACHMENTS TO THE REQUEST 519
draw their mercenaries from Honduran territory. The Honduran Government
has not even dared to denounce that this presence constitutes a violation of the
sovereign will of the Honduran people. and the very sovereignty of Hiinduras.
It is an act of intervention by the United States in Honduras. In view ofthesc
facts. and taking into account that Honduras is already rejecting the proposal
for the commission sent by the UN Secrctary-General to go to Honduran terri-
tory, Nicaragua has no alternative hut to reactivatc Ourcase before the World
law. Th~r~ is no orher ~lt~rnati;~ for the ~icaraeuan Government exceot to
reactivate the legal process against the ~onduran~~overnment. This is a 'legal
proccss, as 1explained. that we had agrced to momentarily detain for a pcriud
of 150davs from the date on which thc Esouinulas Accords were siened.
In lighi of the complicity and active p&tiLipation of the ~ondiran Army
in bombings and acts of aggression promoted by the United States Govern-
ment (who have transferred troops Io Honduran territory) and without under-
cstimating the threats of President Don José Azcona to carry out new bom-
bings and ask for more US "support", 1am giving the necessary instructions
to Our rcpresentative beforc the World Court to immcdiately request intcrim
protectivemeasures lrom the Court. Our aim will be to request that the Court
ordcr a cessation of any military activity that could make relations between
Honduras and Nicaragua evcn morï tcnsc and put international peace in
jcopardy.
In taking this step within the framcwork of international laws, Nicaragua is
once again defcnding international lcgiil order. We know that the peoplc of
Honduras. uur brolhers, are not in iigrcïmcnt with this policy that is already
affccting the sovereignty of Honduras, that has provoked destabilization in
towns dong the Honduran border with Nicaragua. where the mercenary
camps have been establishcd. And WC are sure that the people of Honduras
will understand and comprehcnd this stcp by our Government of appealing to
thc World Court. WCdoso to ensure that the conflict is not aggravated. to
ensure that Honduran and Nicaraguan blood will not be shed as a product of
those confrontational rnancuvres that the United States is now promoting to
intcrvene against the Nicaraguan people.
1also want to cal1on the Honduran President, Don JoséAzcona Hoyo. and
the armed forces of Honduras no1 Io lcnd themselves to these actions that put
the security of Honduras and Nicaragua al risk, that put the security and peace
of Central America and the world al risk. There is still lime to rcconsidcr,
reilect, and rectify. 1 invite President Azcona to receive the commission that
thc UN Secrctary-General, in co-ordination with the OAS Secretary General,
is sending to inspect on site Nicaraguan territory that borders Honduras, as
wcll as Honduran territory that hordcrs Nicaragua.
Let the Honduran Presidcnt and thc ürmed forces of Honduras takc the
c<irrcrpdn.lin,: htcps10 d~,.irni .inJi;iiitinilth; iiicrscii:ir! c:imp\:iiihiire>
in IloiiJur:i\ Hy di~ingtlii;. the!aillhc conirihuting to pc!.icr.:indthe! willhc
rcsoectinr iiitcrn.iliuii:~lIcc:tl ordcr. Cndcr tIir5c c<indititnnr.therc ivt~uldbc
noaeed 6 continue our cGe in the World Court against the criminal acts of
the Honduran Government.
The Central Amcrican and international communities reconnize that the
principal and only responsible party for al1 these acts is the finited States
Government. That Government has alrcady been condemned by the World520 BORDER AND TRANSBORDER ARMED ACTIONS
Court. The World Court has already said that the United States Governmcnt
mus1cease ils ierrorist acts, its aggressions against the Nicaraguan people. And
the United Siaies President. if he reallv wanted to be resoectful of international
lcgal order. President Konald Keaga;, if hc really wanied to be respectful of
the accords signed by the Central American Presidents on 7 Augusi in Guate-
mala should order the immediate withdrawal of US trooos from Honduran ter-
riiury. Dut. ;ihinr. ;III.Iir \Ii<iulJcc:i\c his ;lAgrc\\i\c :in<l'icrrorl:ig;i~n>i<y
111~S.i~.:lrilgudnp;tiplc .inil Ir.;iv10uioiitinuc dr.ir.l,,piiig i~L.,ICLprt~ccb~
IIICciitrnl ,\nicric.i In Sir.ir.8ru:l :lrc cc>niiiiuIninilh ihr. n3tion:il JI:~IOI~UL.
WCwill go forward with the Geetings planned fo;~onday in Sap04 with-the
mercenary groups io discuss in detail the theme of cease-fire. The United
States should also be willing to dialogue, to discuss with Nicaragua. In those
discussions we could reach an agreement on security issues.
ln thesc moments brothers. when Our people. our nation is once again
threatened by the arrogant and aggressive policy of the US Government, we
mus1 mainiain the alert. the combat mobilizaiion until t~ ~ ~~~~--~~~~~~sur-
passed. We ihank Our brothers and sisters around the world for the demon-
strations of solidarity that we have been rcceivine.from al1uarts of ihc globe.
In particular, we thank the people of the United- tat t esho today arcbcing
repressed in the streets, are being clubbed hy the US police simply hecziusc
they demand that the United States, that thc Keagan Administration stop
trying Io turn Central America into another Vietnam. The people of the
United States want ti, prevent the massive bloodshcd of Central American
and North American people.
We extend Ourreci,gnition and salute to thosc people. in the United States
in particular. who have joined us in the battle we wagc today forpeace and for
a future of friendly relations between Our two nations.LETTER FROM THE AGENT OF NICARAGUA TO THE REGISTRAR
OF THE INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE NOTiFYlNG THE
WlTHDRAWAL BY THE GOVERNMENT OF NICARAGUA OF ITS
REQUEST FOR THE INDICATION OF PROVISIONAL MEASURES
31 March 1988.
Dear Sir.
1have the honour to rcfer to the case concernine Hortler und Trirrrshorder
. .
nication to the Court.
The Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Nicaragua. Dr. JoséLeon Tala-
vera,was expressly charged with delivering to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
of Honduras. of the letter dated March 28, 1988 that President Ortega ad-
dressed to Presidcnt Azcona. and of which the Court was furnished with a
'=OP?.
On occasion or that meeting. Dcputy Minister Talavera was givcn assu-
rances by the Honduran authoritics that the troops 01'the Government of the
United States that had recentlv been sent to thal country were being with-
Jr.iivn. Ilr. wns :iliiiliih:ii duc iu ihc 1:;aricrcclchr;iii<?PrcsiJzni ti~c<,n;i
wnï nwsy from hi*ordinar! r<?un~olf Juiic, .ind fi)r ih;ii rc;i*un ihcy rcqucsid
;IpruJcnti;il ~icrioclof iimcti~rc>p<ind 10 Prcsidcni Oricga's Icttrr.
li)r ihc rc.i*on, b131cJ:ihor.c. ;ind p.iriiculiirly in ricu <,fihr formal ;ir\u-
r:tn;c\ giscn hy Ilic Ciuvcrnmcnl 01'tlonJur;i, - th.31hittcI~C~Utu III)c piil
iiitcciicct - ,IInr~~cecJiiietu th2 uiihcIr,iu,il(11'ilic irodps of lhc Unilcd
Statesthat were the princip;?lreason for the urgent request-made by Nicara-
gua to the Couri, my Governmcnt has given me instructions to withdraw the
request of intcrim measures of proiection that had been requested [rom the
Court on March 21 of this year.
With respect 10 the other considerations in President Ortega's lctter. my
Government considers it convenient - in view of the explanations given hy
the Honduran aulhorities - to ;iwait the reply of Prcsident Azcona al his re-
turn.
Accept. Sir. the assurances of my highest consideration.
(SignedJ Carlos ARG~ELLOG..
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Request for the Indication of Provisional Measures submitted by the Government of Nicaragua and letter notifying the withdrawal of the request