United Nations Decade of International Law : resolution / adopted by the General Assembly
- Author: UN General Assembly (44th sess. : 1989-1990)
- Document source:
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Date:
17 November 1989
The General Assembly,
Recognizing that one of the purposes of the United Nations is to maintain international peace and security, and to that end to bring about by peaceful means, and in conformity with the principles of justice and international law, adjustment or settlement of international disputes or situations which might lead to a breach of the peace,
Recalling the Declaration on Principles of International Law concerning Friendly Relations and Co-operation among States in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and the Manila Declaration on the Peaceful Settlement of International Disputes,
Recognizing the role of the United Nations in promoting greater acceptance of and respect for the principles of international law and in encouraging the progressive development of international law and its codification,
Convinced of the need to strengthen the rule of law in international relations,
Stressing the need to promote the teaching, study, dissemination and wider appreciation of international law,
Noting that, in the remaining decade of the twentieth century, important anniversaries will be celebrated that are related to the adoption of international legal documents, such as the centenary of the first International Peace Conference, held at The Hague in 1899, which adopted the Convention for the Pacific Settlement of International Disputes and created the Permanent Court of Arbitration, the fiftieth anniversary of the signing of the Charter of the United Nations and the twenty-fifth anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration on Principles of International Law concerning Friendly Relations and Co-operation among States in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations,
1. Declares the period 1990-1999 as the United Nations Decade of International Law;
2. Considers that the main purposes of the Decade should be, inter alia:
(a) To promote acceptance of and respect for the principles of international law;
(b) To promote means and methods for the peaceful settlement of disputes between States, including resort to and full respect for the International Court of Justice;
(c) To encourage the progressive development of international law and its codification;
(d) To encourage the teaching, study, dissemination and wider appreciation of international law;
3. Requests the Secretary-General to seek the views of Member States and appropriate international bodies, as well as of non-governmental organizations working in the field, on the programme for the Decade and on appropriate action to be taken during the Decade, including the possibility of holding a third international peace conference or other suitable international conference at the end of the Decade, and to submit a report thereon to the Assembly at its forty-fifth session;
4. Decides to consider this question at its forty-fifth session in a working group of the Sixth Committee with a view to preparing generally acceptable recommendations for the Decade;
5. Also decides to include in the provisional agenda of its forty-fifth session the item entitled "United Nations Decade of International Law".
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