047- South West Africa Cases (Liberia vs South Africa)
On November 4th, 1960, Ethiopia and Liberia, acting as former member states of the League of Nations (the League), each filed an application instituting proceedings before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) against South Africa in a case concerning the maintenance of the League’s mandate for South West Africa and the duties and conduct of South Africa as a mandatary Power.
Noting the connection between the two cases and satisfying the requirement of the proper administration of justice, the ICJ joined the two instances in an order dated May 20th, 1961.
South Africa raised preliminary objections to the Court’s jurisdiction, all of which were rejected by a judgment dated December 21st,1962.
In its judgment of July 18th, 1966, the ICJ decided, by a very narrow minority, that the applicants could not prove they had a legal interest in the case. The Court therefore rejected the requests of both States.
This summary is provided for informational purposes only, does not involve the responsibility of Dome and should in no way be used as a substitute for a careful reading of the judgment and order of the case.
