Page 174 - Law of Peace, Volume ,

has decreased due to the fact that most of the territories been prepared for cooperation of thissort during the 19th
1 originally supervised have gradually over the years gained Century. Such organizations as Universal Postal Union,
/ independence. The last important trust territory still con- the International Bureau of Weights and Measures, and
sidered as such is the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, the Rhine and Danube River Cornmissions showed the
which is administered by the United States. Plans are feasibility of international economic cooperation.
bei made for the independence of these islands, but The Economic and Social Council consists of 54 members
they are hampered by the fact that some of the islands elected by the General Assembly. 25 Members are elected
would prefer a continued relation with the United States for a term of 3 years with one-third of the membership of
and others would not. In 1975 a covenant to establish a the Council beii replaced each year. Besides initiating
commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands was studies and conventions dealing with its field of interest, 26
signed at Saipan by representatives of the United States it also brings into cooperation with the U.N. the
and the Northern Mariana Islands. Under the agreement, numerous governmental and private international eco-
the Northern Mariana Islands will achieve self-governing nomic and socialorganizations which already exist. If the
commonwealth status under United States sovereignty. It organization is intergovernmental, it must enter into an
will come into force at the time the United States termi- agreement with the Economic and Social Council defining
nates the Trusteeship Agreement it has with the Security the terms on which the organization shall be brought into
Council. The United States has informed the United Na- relationship with the U.N. 27 The Council may make such
tions Trusteeship Council that it will terminate thisagree- arrangements with private international organizations as
ment simultaneously for all parts of the Trust Territory. may be suitable to both parties concerned. 28
Siplans for the rest of the Trust Territory have not yet f. The International Court of Justice. The Permanent
been settled, it may be some time before this takes Court of International Justice was created in 1920 shortly
place. 22 after the League of Nations. However, it never became an
It should be noted that the problem of non-self-governing organic part of the League. When the decision was made
territorieshas expanded from what was originally contem- during World War I1 to create a new international
plated in the Trusteeship provisions. In 1960, the General organization to replace the League of Nations, it was
Assembly adopted in resolution 15 14, a "Declaration on thought best, despite the commendable reputation which
the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and the court enjoyed, also to create a new court and to make
People," and in 1961, established a 17-member special this new court an organic part of the new organization.
committee to make suggestions and recommendations on Such was done in articles 92-96 of the Charter of the
the programs and extent of the implementation of this United Nations.
1960 Declaration. The committee was enlarged in 1962 to Article 92
24 members. It annually considers those territories which The International Court of Justice shall be the principal
have not, in the view of the General Assembly, achieved judicial organ of the United Nations. It shall function in
independence. Until the independence of the Portuguese accordance with the annexed Statute which is based upon
colonies, these territories in Africa were a major concern. the Statute of the Permanent Court of International
It is still concerned with Namibia or South-West Africa Justice and forms an integral part of the present charter.
and to some extent even with a state such as Rhodesia The Statute of the International Court referred to in article
which is considered as controlled by a minority govern- 92 was copied almost in its entirety from the Statute of its
ment not truly representatives of the majority of the predecessor, the Permanent Court of International
population. United States Territories such as the Vrgin Is- Justice. This was done because the Statute of the Perma-
lands, American Samoa, and Guam have also been con- nent Court was highly regarded in international legal cir-
sidered. cles. Its Statute was never subject to the same criticism as
e. Economic and Social Council. One of the purposes of was the Covenant of the League of Nations. 29
the U.N. is to achieve international cooperation in solving The organization of the Court and the opinions it has
international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or rendered since its creation will be discussed in section I1
humanitarian character. 23 The League was successll in below.
this endeavor, far more so than it was in the settling of 9-3. The Settlementof Disputes by the UnitedNations.
serious international political disputes. 24 The way had Article 1, paragraph 1 of the Charter declares that one of
the four purposes of the United Nations is:
22. See Digest of United Sates Practice in International Law at 97.
(Dept. of State 1975).
23. U.N. Charter Art. 1, para. 3. 25. U.N. Charter Art. 61, para. 1 (1973 text).
24. See II Walters, A History 4 the League of Nations, chap. 60 26. U.N. Charter Art. 62.
(1952) for a description of the renaissance of the economic and social 27. U.N. Charter Arts. 57, para. 1, and 63, para. 1.
agencies of the League during the period 1935-1939 which culminated 28. U.N. Charter Art. 71.
in the Bruce Report of August 1939 which recommended an organ for 29. See Goodrich & Hambro, op. ci~ supm note 1, at 476-478 for a
the League closely resembling the Economic and Social Council of the discussion of the debates surrounding the decision to discontinue the
U.N. Permanent Court of International Justice.