Expert: African countries need to produce more ‘ICJ standard judges’
Professor of international law at UJ, Hennie Strydom, says the statute of the International Court of Justice requires the appointment of an African judge.
Strydom has been reacting to the announcement of Ugandan judge Julia Sebutinde as the new ICJ vice-president for a term of three years.
On Wednesday, South African Judge Dire Tladi was sworn in as a judge of the World Court after being elected by the United Nations General Assembly and Security Council.
Strydom said African countries need to prioritise producing more judges who are qualified enough to fill vacancies at the ICJ.
“That is the consequence of the statute of the court because there must be regional representation. There must be people from Africa. That always depends on which countries will be represented, on whether they have the right people to send to the ICJ, people that will comply with the requirements of very high-standing and recognised scholars of international law. Not all countries have that kind of legally trained people, and that’s something that African countries will have to take seriously.”
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