World Court Digest

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III.	The International Court of Justice
3.	THE PROCEDURE OF THE INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE
3.10.	Provisional Measures
3.10.1.	General Questions

¤ Application of the Convention
on the Prevention and Punishment
of the Crime of Genocide,
Provisional Measures,
Order of 8 April 1993,
I.C.J. Reports 1993, p. 3

[pp. 22-23] 47. Whereas Bosnia-Herzegovina also invokes Article VIII of the Genocide Convention, which provides that

"Any Contracting Party may call upon the competent organs of the United Nations to take such action under the Charter of the United Nations as they consider appropriate for the prevention and suppression of acts of genocide or any of the other acts enumerated in article III",

and Bosnia-Herzegovina calls upon the Court to "act immediately and effectively to do whatever it can to prevent and suppress" the acts of genocide complained of or threatened; whereas the Court considers Article VIII, even assuming it to be applicable to the Court as one of the "competent organs of the United Nations", appears not to confer on it any functions or competence additional 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 for under Article 41 of the Statute;

48. Whereas in its request for the indication of provisional measures Bosnia-Herzegovina has also maintained that the Court should exercise its power to indicate provisional measures with a view to preventing the aggravation or extension of the dispute whenever it considers that circumstances so require; whereas from the information available to the Court it is satisfied that there is a grave risk of action being taken which may aggravate or extend the existing dispute over the prevention or punishment of the crime of genocide, or render it more difficult of solution;

49. Whereas the crime of genocide "shocks the conscience of mankind, results in great losses to humanity ... and is contrary to moral law and to the spirit and aims of the United Nations", in the words of General Assembly resolution 96(I) of 11 December 1946 on "the Crime of Genocide", which the Court recalled in its Advisory Opinion on Reservations on the Convention on Genocide (I.C.J. Reports 1951, p. 23);

50. Whereas in the light of the several considerations set out above, the Court finds that the circumstances require it to indicate provisional measures, as provided by Article 41 of the Statute of the Court;

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