Mogadishu (SONNA)-The International Court of Justice began oral hearings in the maritime dispute between Somalia and Kenya, despite the latter refusing to participate in the legal proceedings brought against it.
The presiding judge in the case, Joan Donoghue, confirmed that Kenya has pulled out. Kenya was not present in court or via videolink.
“Kenya informed the court by letter, dated March 11 received March 12, that they would not participate,” presiding Judge Joan Donoghue said. She added that “the court regrets the decision of Kenya not to participate in the oral proceedings.”
Despite Kenya’s boycott, the ICJ will still proceed with the hearing. Donoghue said that the court would rely on Kenya’s written submissions.
The court refused Kenya’s request to address the court for 30-minutes at the start of the hearings.
Kenya newspapers revealed the bombshell decision to not attend the weeklong hearings on Sunday due to the court’s perceived bias and its refusal to grant Kenya the fourth postponement. Kenya’s Attorney General argued that their legal team did not have adequate time to prepare.
Deputy PM: Kenya has no grounds to complain
Somalia’s Deputy Prime Minister Mahdi Mohamed found fault with Kenya’s reasoning for pulling out.
“We are deeply concerned that Kenya has decided not to appear at these hearings,” said Mahdi Mohammed Gulaid, opening Somalia’s case. He said it was “inconsistent with the rule of law” and Kenya’s commitment to the court.
Kenya “has no grounds to complain about its treatment by the court” after the ICJ granted three previous requests for delays that held up the case by 18 months, he said.
Guled said that Somalia found itself at the Hague after a failed attempt at settling the maritime dispute amicably with Kenya.
“We hoped that it would be possible to settle our dispute with Kenya bilaterally, through negotiations. Unfortunately, that proved impossible.”
The international court will decide who has legal jurisdiction over a potentially lucrative, triangular stretch of 100,000 square kilometres of offshore territory believed rich in hydrocarbons and fish. The ruling cannot be appealed, but its enforcement relies on the UN Security Council, of which Kenya is a non-permanent member.
The dispute has fuelled the deteriorated diplomatic relationship between the two East African neighbours. Mogadishu cut ties off with Nairobi in December 2020, accusing it of interfering in Somalia’s internal affairs. Kenya denied the charge.
