Republic of Georgia
Our lawyers successfully represented the Republic of Georgia in proceedings before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) against Russia. In September 2008, the ICJ held an emergency hearing prompted by a suit brought by Georgia accusing Russia of supporting nearly two decades of ethnic and racial discrimination that ultimately led to Russia’s invasion in August of the Georgian territories of South Ossetia and Abkhazia. By a vote of 8-7, the ICJ has ordered Russia to ". . . refrain from any act of racial discrimination," including "sponsoring, defending or supporting" discriminatory acts in the Georgian areas. The international judges further called on Russian security forces to ensure "freedom of movement and residence" within the Georgian borders, as well as "the protection of property of displaced persons and refugees." In essence, the Court ordered both parties to "comply with their obligations under the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination" - the international statute under which Georgia brought suit against Russia in August following its incursion into the Georgian territories. The Court also sent a clear signal to Russia not to challenge efforts by humanitarian organizations to help Georgians who may have been injured or displaced by the moves into South Ossetia: "Both parties..shall refrain from placing any impediment to humanitarian assistance in support of the rights to which the local population are entitled..." the judges wrote in concluding their 42-page opinion.
Categories: International, Litigation