Rwanda and Burundi seek dismissal of “aggression” case

Rwanda and Burundi have submitted their written arguments as to why the International Court of Justice (ICJ) should not take up a case filed against them by the DRC for “acts of armed aggression”, an ICJ official in the Hague said. The Court last year gave Burundi and Rwanda until 21 April 2000 to file documents challenging the Court’s jurisdiction in the case. “I can confirm that the written pleadings were filed within the time limit”, the official told IRIN on Wednesday. But she said the documents would remain confidential until the start of the “public” phase of the case, which was not expected this year.

The DRC has until 23 October 2000 to file its written response to the Rwandan and Burundian jurisdiction challenges, and the parties could then request a second round of written pleadings, the official added. Meanwhile, the DRC has until 21 July 2000 to submit written documents for a similar case it filed against Uganda, which has not contested the ICJ’s jurisdiction in the matter. In its complaints against Rwanda, Burundi and Uganda filed last June, the Congolese government called on the ICJ to order the three countries to withdraw their troops from the DRC.