The Gambia vs. Myanmar Case: Jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice and Admissibility of the Application

Abstract

The case of ‘The Gambia vs. Myanmar’ was filed before the ICJ on 11 November 2019. But the case has not yet reached Merit. This case is between two parties of the Genocide Convention for the breaches of the obligations of the Genocide Convention. The Gambia has taken Myanmar to the International Court of Justice in this case. Though the Gambia is not directly affected by Myanmar’s violation of the Genocide Convention and the genocidal acts in Myanmar, the Gambia has the right to file the case against Myanmar as a party to the Genocide Convention. This paper has envisaged the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice. It explains the context of the Gambia vs. Myanmar case before ICJ and discusses the case’s current status. It gives a clear concept of the jurisdiction of ICJ in contentious cases. In establishing the jurisdiction in this case, the paper focus on the first and fourth preliminary objections of Myanmar. In addition, the Court has jurisdiction under the R2P and erga omnes principle and Myanmar have responsibilities under the Genocide Convention. In doing so, the paper has relied on existing scholarly articles, books, newspaper reports, ICJ Statute, and the Genocide Convention.