A/75/PV.24 General Assembly

The General Assembly will proceed to the election of five members of the International Court of Justice for a nine-year term of office commencing on 6 February 2021. The judges whose terms of office expire on 5 February 2021 are Judge Giorgio Gaja (Italy); Judge Yuji Iwasawa (Japan); Judge Julia Sebutinde (Uganda); Judge Peter Tomka (Slovakia); and Judge Xue Hanqin (China). I should like to draw members’ attention to the documents before the Assembly relating to this election: memorandum by the Secretary-General issued as document A/75/130, on the present composition of the Court and the procedure to be followed in the General Assembly and in the Security Council with regard to the election; note by the Secretary-General issued as document A/75/129, which contains the list of nominations by national groups; and note by the Secretary-General issued as document A/75/131, which contains the curricula vitae of the candidates nominated by national groups. In that connection, I have been notified by the Legal Counsel that after the established deadline for nominating candidates, an additional nomination with respect to a candidate whose name already appears in document A/75/129 was received. The additional nomination in question is from the national group of Luxembourg with regard to the candidacy of Mr. Georg Nolte (Germany). The names of the following eight candidates will appear on the ballot papers: Taoheed Olufemi Elias (Nigeria); Yuji Iwasawa (Japan); Georg Nolte (Germany); Julia Sebutinde (Uganda); Maja Seršić (Croatia); Peter Tomka (Slovakia); Emmanuel Ugirashebuja (Rwanda); and Xue Hanqin (China). I should like to confirm that at this time, the General Assembly and the Security Council will proceed, independently of one another, to elect five members of the Court to fill the vacancies in accordance with Article 8 of the Statute of the International Court of Justice. This election in the Assembly will be held in accordance with the Statute of the Court, in particular Articles 2 to 4 and 7 to 12, and rules 150 and 151 of the rules of procedure of the General Assembly. According to Article 2 of the Statute, members of the Court are to be elected regardless of their nationality from among persons of high moral character who possess the qualifications required in their respective countries for appointment to the highest judicial offices or are jurisconsults of recognized competence in international law. Article 9 requires electors to bear in mind not only that the person to be elected should individually possess the qualifications required, but also that in the body as a whole the representation of the main forms of civilization and of the principal legal systems of the world should be ensured. Those candidates who obtain an absolute majority of votes both in the General Assembly and in the Security Council will be considered as elected, pursuant to Article 10, paragraph 1, of the Statute. The consistent practice of the United Nations has been to interpret the words “absolute majority” as meaning a majority of all electors, whether or not they vote or are allowed to vote. The electors in the General Assembly will be all 193 Member States. Accordingly, 97 votes constitute an absolute majority in the Assembly for the purpose of the present elections. Only those candidates whose names appear on the ballot papers are eligible for election. The electors in the General Assembly will indicate the candidates for whom they wish to vote by placing crosses against their names on the ballot papers. Each elector may vote for not more than five candidates on the first ballot and, on subsequent ballots, if any, for five less the number of candidates who have already obtained absolute majorities. At the 915th plenary meeting of the General Assembly, on 16 November 1960, a procedural discussion was held as to whether rule 94, which was then rule 96, of the rules of procedure of the Assembly should be applied in elections to the International Court of Justice. That rule lays down a procedure for restricted ballots in the event that after the first ballot, the requisite number of candidates have not obtained the required majority. By 47 votes to 27, with 25 abstentions, the Assembly decided that the rule did not apply to elections to the Court and proceeded to elect the requisite number of candidates by a series of unrestricted ballots. That decision has been followed consistently. Accordingly, if in the first ballot in the General Assembly the number of candidates obtaining an absolute majority is fewer than five, a second ballot will be held on the remaining candidates, and balloting will continue at the same meeting until five candidates have obtained the required majority, pursuant to rule 151 of the rules of procedure of the Assembly. If, however, in the first or subsequent ballots, more than five candidates obtain an absolute majority, the General Assembly shall follow the established practice and proceed to a new vote on all the candidates. Balloting will continue in the same manner until only five of the candidates have obtained the required majority. Only when five candidates, not more or fewer, have obtained the required majority in the Assembly will the President of the Assembly notify the President of the Security Council of the names of the five candidates. If, upon comparison of the respective lists of candidates who have obtained an absolute majority in the General Assembly and in the Security Council, fewer than five candidates have been thus elected, the Assembly and the Council will proceed, again independently of one another, at a second meeting and, if necessary, a third meeting to elect candidates by further ballots for the seats remaining vacant, pursuant to Article 11 of the Statute, the results again being compared after the required number of candidates have obtained an absolute majority in each organ. If, however, after the third meeting, one or more seats still remain unfilled, the General Assembly and the Security Council may at any time, at the request of either organ, form a joint conference consisting of six members, three appointed by each organ. This joint conference may, by an absolute majority, agree upon one name for each seat still vacant and submit the name or names for the respective acceptance of the Assembly and the Council. If the joint conference is unanimously agreed, it may submit the name of a person not included in the list of nominations, provided that candidate fulfils the required conditions, pursuant to Article 12, paragraph 2, of the Statute. If the joint conference is satisfied that it will not be successful in procuring an election, those members of the Court who have already been elected shall, within a period to be fixed by the Security Council, proceed to fill the vacant seat or seats by selection from among those candidates who have obtained votes either in the General Assembly or in the Security Council. In the event of an equality of votes among the judges, the eldest shall have a casting vote, pursuant to Article 12, paragraphs 3 and 4, of the Statute. Finally, as stated in the joint letter dated 4 November 2020 from the Presidents of the General Assembly and the Security Council, in view of the coronavirus disease pandemic, the way in which the secret ballots will be held in the two organs will have to be adjusted in order to safeguard public health, and the note annexed to the letter outlines the adjusted modalities for the elections. In that regard, I would like to refer to paragraph 17 of the annex, which states that “[a]fter the members of the General Assembly and the members of the Security Council have cast their ballots, the President of the General Assembly will announce the suspension of the plenary meeting and the President of the Security Council will announce the suspension of the meeting simultaneously.” However, in view of the fact that the casting of ballots will be completed in the Security Council much earlier than in the General Assembly, the advice received from a medical point of view is that it would not be advisable to keep the members of the Security Council in the Security Council Chamber until the General Assembly has completed the casting of ballots. Therefore, I am informed that the Security Council will suspend its meeting as soon as the casting of ballots has been completed in order to allow the members of the Council to leave the Council Chamber. May I take it that the General Assembly agrees to these procedures at this election?

I should like to remind representatives that pursuant to rule 88 of the rules of procedure, “After the President has announced the beginning of voting, no representative shall interrupt the voting except on a point of order in connection with the actual conduct of the voting”. Any announcements, including those concerning withdrawals of candidatures, should therefore be made prior to the commencement of the voting process, that is to say, before the announcement of the beginning of the voting process. As indicated in the joint letter dated 4 November 2020, all representatives were requested to pick up their ballot papers from the East Documents Counter, located towards the back of the General Assembly Hall, before being seated. I request representatives to use only those ballot papers. Only those candidates whose names appear on the ballot papers are eligible. Representatives will indicate the five — I repeat, five — candidates for whom they wish to vote by placing crosses at the left of their names on the ballot papers. Ballot papers on which more than five names are checked will be considered invalid. Votes may be cast only for those whose names appear on the ballot papers. If a ballot paper contains any notation other than votes in favour of specific candidates, those notations will be disregarded. If a mistake is made in filling out the ballot paper, delegations should request a new ballot paper from the Secretariat at the East Documents Counter. Representatives of the following States have kindly agreed to serve as tellers: Andorra, the Bahamas, Georgia, Saudi Arabia and Senegal. One ballot box has been placed at the front of the General Assembly Hall, where tellers will be able to observe it and the casting of ballots. For the casting of ballots, the Secretary will call the name of each delegation following the General Assembly protocol seating arrangement, starting from the delegation of Iceland, and ask the representative concerned to proceed to cast their ballot. Representatives are requested to practice distancing of no less than 2 metres and to proceed to cast their ballot only when the previous representative has completed casting their ballot. This will continue until the last representative has cast their ballot. In order to minimize the risks posed by prolonged exposure and crowding, representatives are requested to leave the General Assembly Hall upon the casting of the ballot through the exit on the west side. Once all ballots are cast, the meeting will be suspended and the tellers, accompanied by the Secretariat staff, will proceed to the Trusteeship Council Chamber for the counting of the ballots. Upon receipt of the results certified by the tellers, I will resume the plenary meeting to announce the results. The proceedings of the resumed plenary meeting for the announcement of the results will be webcast. If there shall be additional balloting, the next round of balloting will take place at the plenary meeting to be held tomorrow morning at 11 a.m. in this Hall. Representatives should start arriving in the Hall 30 minutes before the start time of the meeting to collect the ballot papers and to take their seats so that the meeting can begin on time. May I take it that the General Assembly agrees to these procedures?

We shall now begin the voting process. I request representatives to use only those ballot papers that have been provided to them. They may start marking the ballot papers. The Secretary will now call on delegations in the seating protocol order and invite them to come forward to cast their ballots. I ask them to please proceed to the ballot box only after the name of their delegation has been called. Once their ballot has been cast, I would ask representatives to leave the General Assembly Hall and exit the building. The results of the election will be seen on the webcast.

The result of the voting is as follows: Number of ballot papers: 193 Number of invalid ballots: 0 Number of valid ballots: 193 Abstentions: 0 Number of members present and voting: 193 Absolute majority: 97 Number of individual votes obtained: Mr. Yuji Iwasawa (Japan) 161 Mr. Georg Nolte (Germany) 150 Ms. Xue Hanqin (China) 144 Mr. Peter Tomka (Slovakia) 141 Ms. Julia Sebutinde (Uganda) 124 Mr. Emmanuel Ugirashebuja (Rwanda) 97 Ms. Maja Seršić (Croatia) 71 Mr. Taoheed Olufemi Elias (Nigeria) 56

Since more than five candidates have obtained an absolute majority, and in accordance with the decision taken at the beginning of this meeting, we shall proceed to another ballot until only the required number of candidates and no more obtain an absolute majority. Only when five candidates, not more or fewer, have obtained the required majority in the Assembly will the President of the Assembly notify the President of the Security Council of the names of the five candidates. Therefore, as stated in the joint letter dated 4 November 2020 from the Presidents of the General Assembly and the Security Council, the balloting will continue tomorrow morning at 11 a.m. in this Hall.

Before proceeding further, I wish to inform the Assembly that it has been brought to my attention that the French-language press release of the 24th plenary meeting of 11 November 2020, which announced the results of the first round of balloting, was not accurate. As per the procedure agreed by the Assembly yesterday, all candidates remain eligible and will be listed on the ballot paper. As members are aware, there are still five seats on the Court to be filled. The Assembly will now proceed with the balloting. I should like to remind representatives that pursuant to rule 88 of the rules of procedure, “After the President has announced the beginning of voting, no representative shall interrupt the voting except on a point of order in connection with the actual conduct of the voting”. Any announcements, including those concerning withdrawals of candidatures, should therefore be made prior to the commencement of the voting process, that is to say, before the announcement of the beginning of the voting process. As indicated in the joint letter dated 4 November 2020, all representatives were requested to pick up their ballot papers from the East Documents Counter, located towards the back of the General Assembly Hall, before being seated. I request representatives to use only those ballot papers. Only those candidates whose names appear on the ballot papers are eligible. Representatives will indicate the five — I repeat, five — candidates for whom they wish to vote by placing crosses at the left of their names on the ballot papers. Ballot papers on which more than five names are checked will be considered invalid. Votes may be cast only for those whose names appear on the ballot papers. If a ballot paper contains any notation other than votes in favour of specific candidates, those notations will be disregarded. If a mistake is made in filling out the ballot paper, delegations should request a new ballot paper from the Secretariat at the East Documents Counter. Representatives of the following States have kindly agreed to serve as tellers: Andorra, Bahamas, Georgia, Saudi Arabia and Senegal. One ballot box has been placed at the front of the General Assembly Hall, where tellers will be able to observe it and the casting of ballots. For the casting of ballots, the Secretary will call the name of each delegation following the General Assembly protocol seating arrangement, starting from the delegation of Iceland, and ask the representative concerned to proceed to cast their ballot. Representatives are requested to practice distancing of no less than two metres and to proceed to cast their ballot only when the previous representative has completed casting their ballot. This will continue until the last representative has cast their ballot. In order to minimize the risks posed by prolonged exposure and crowding, representatives are requested to leave the General Assembly Hall upon the casting of the ballot through the exit on the west side. Once all ballots have been cast, the meeting will be suspended, and the tellers, accompanied by the Secretariat staff, will proceed to the Trusteeship Council Chamber for the counting of the ballots. Upon receipt of the results certified by the tellers, I will resume the plenary meeting to announce the results. The proceeding of the resumed plenary meeting for the announcement of the results will be webcast. If there shall be additional balloting, the next round of balloting will take place at the plenary meeting to be held tomorrow morning at 10 a.m. in this Hall. Representatives should start arriving in the Hall 30 minutes before the start time of the meeting to collect the ballot papers and to take their seats so that the meeting can begin on time. We shall now begin the voting process. I request representatives to use only those ballot papers that have been provided to them. They may start marking the ballot papers. The Secretary will now call on delegations in the seating protocol order and invite them to come forward to cast their ballots. Representatives should proceed to the ballot box only after the name of their delegation has been called. Once their ballot has been cast, I would ask representatives to leave the General Assembly Hall and exit the building. The results of the election will be seen on the webcast.

The result of the voting is as follows: Number of ballot papers: 193 Number of invalid ballots: 0 Number of valid ballots: 193 Abstentions: 0 Number of members present and voting: 193 Absolute majority: 97 Number of individual votes obtained: Mr. Yuji Iwasawa (Japan) 169 Mr. Georg Nolte (Germany) 160 Ms. Xue Hanqin (China) 155 Mr. Peter Tomka (Slovakia) 150 Ms. Julia Sebutinde (Uganda) 139 Mr. Emmanuel Ugirashebuja (Rwanda) 87 Ms. Maja Seršić (Croatia) 42 Mr. Taoheed Olufemi Elias (Nigeria) 31

I have communicated the results of the voting to the President of the Security Council. I have also received the following letter from the President of the Security Council, which reads: “I have the honour to inform you that at the 8773rd meeting of the Security Council, held on 11 November 2020 for the purpose of electing five members of the International Court of Justice for a term of office beginning on 6 February 2021, Mr. Yuji Iwasawa (Japan), Mr. Georg Nolte (Germany), Ms. Julia Sebutinde (Uganda), Mr. Peter Tomka (Slovakia) and Ms. Xue Hanqin (China) obtained an absolute majority of votes in the Security Council.” As a result of the voting which has taken place independently in the General Assembly and the Security Council, the following five candidates have obtained an absolute majority in both bodies: Yuji Iwasawa (Japan), Georg Nolte (Germany), Julia Sebutinde (Uganda), Peter Tomka (Slovakia) and Xue Hanqin (China). They are therefore duly elected members of the international Court of Justice to serve for a nine-year term commencing 6 February 2021. I take this opportunity to extend to them the congratulations of the Assembly on their election, and I thank the tellers for their assistance in this election. This concludes our consideration of sub-item (c) of agenda item 118.