According to reports from the Philippines Star and Reuters, the general election of the judges of the International Court of Justice is imminent.
On November 8th, Philippines Foreign Minister Lochin publicly asked the Philippines representative to the United Nations to vote for Chinese judges.
On the same day, Lochin tweeted the Twitter account of @Philippines Foreign Ministry and the Philippines representative to the United Nations, saying, “
In the International Court of Justice, you have to vote for the Chinese candidate in the Philippines. This is the only clear instruction to you. “
On November 11, the International Court of Justice will hold a general election at the United Nations Headquarters to fill the five judge seats that will be vacant in 2021.
According to Reuters, among the eight candidates competing for the five vacant seats, four are current judges, and their nine-year term will expire on February 5 next year.
Candidates include the current vice president of the International Court of Justice and Chinese judge Xue Hanqin.
Xue Hanqin is 65 years old. He is an academician of the Brussels Institute of International Law and president of the Asian Society of International Law.
He has many years of experience in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and international organizations.
In May 2010, she was elected as the chairperson of the United Nations International Law Commission, the first Asian female chairperson in the history of the Commission; in June of the same year, she was elected the first Chinese female judge of the International Court of Justice; in February 2018, she was elected as the vice president of the International Court of Justice.
In addition, competitors include judges from Nigeria, Slovakia, Japan, Germany, Croatia, Uganda and Rwanda.
According to the report, the Philippines Ministry of Foreign Affairs also stated that in the November 11 election, the Philippines can support more than one candidate because there will be five vacant seats.
The International Court of Justice is one of the main organs of the United Nations. It is the only universal international judicial institution with general jurisdiction.
It is located in The Hague, Netherlands. Issue advisory opinions on legal issues.
The International Court of Justice is composed of 15 judges of different nationalities. The term of office is 9 years.
They can be re-elected. 1/3 of them are re-elected every three years. Candidates must obtain an absolute majority of votes in the United Nations General Assembly and Security Council before they can be elected.
According to a report by the Philippines media “ABS-CBN” on November 9, the Philippines Presidential Palace responded to Foreign Minister Lochin’s statement that day.
Presidential spokesman Harry Rock told reporters that the Philippines supports the Chinese candidate Xue Hanqin because she is one of the founders of the Asian Society of International Law.
Locke also said:
” The support for the Chinese candidate is the first, because Judge Xue is already an incumbent judge of the International Court of Justice and she has a good record. This also further demonstrates the very close relationship between the Philippines and China. . “
