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[p268] The Court,
composed as above,
after deliberation,
Delivers the following Order:
[1] Having regard to Articles 40 and 48 of the Statute of the Court ;
[2] Having regard to Articles 32, 33, 34, 35 and 39 of the Rules of Court;
[3] Whereas, by a letter dated July 18th, 1932, the Norwegian Charge
d'affaires at The Hague transmitted an application to the Registrar of the
Court, together with a request for interim measures of protection,
instituting proceedings against the Danish Government in regard to the legal
status of certain parts of South-Eastern territory of Greenland; [p269]
[4] Whereas the application, which bears the same date, is signed by the
said Charge d'affaires;
[5] Whereas the latter informed the Registrar that he possessed full powers
as Agent of the Norwegian Government before the Court in the case in
question ;
[6] Whereas the application mentions the address selected by the Norwegian
Government at the seat of the Court for all notices and communications
relating to the case;
[7] Whereas the application states the subject of the dispute and the facts
which have given rise to it, and indicates the claim ;
[8] Whereas, in consequence, the said application fulfils the formal
requirements of the Statute and Rules of the Court;
[9] Whereas the application cites the declarations whereby Norway and
Denmark have acceded to the optional clause referred to in Article 36,
paragraph 2, of the Court's Statute, regarding the acceptance of the
compulsory jurisdiction of the Court ;
[10] Whereas, according to the application, the subject of the dispute is
the situation arising from the fact that by the Royal Decree of July 12th,
1932, the Royal Norwegian Government has placed the South-Eastern territory
of Greenland, between latitudes 63� 40' and 60� 30' North, under the
sovereignty of Norway;
[11] Whereas, on the other hand, by a letter dated July 18th, 1932, the
Minister of Denmark at The Hague transmitted an application to the Registrar
of the Court, instituting proceedings against the Norwegian Government in
regard to the legal status of certain parts of South-Eastern Greenland;
[12] Whereas the application, which bears the same date, is signed by the
said Minister;
[13] Whereas, according to the application, the Danish Government intends to
make a subsequent communication to the Court with regard to the appointment
of its Agent;
[14] Whereas, by letter of July 25th, 1932, from the Danish Minister at The
Hague, the Court was informed of the appointment of MM. de Scavenius and K.
Steglich-Petersen as the Danish Government's Agents with the Court for the
suit in question ; [p270]
[15] Whereas the Danish Government's application contains the address
selected by that Government at the seat of the Court for all notices and
communications relating to the case;
[16] Whereas the application states the subject of the dispute and the facts
which have given rise to it, and indicates the claim;
[17] Whereas, in consequence, the said application fulfils the formal
requirements of the Statute and Rules of Court;
[18] Whereas the Danish Government's application cites the declarations
whereby Denmark and Norway have acceded to the optional clause of Article
36, paragraph 2, of the Statute of the Court ;
[19] Whereas, according to the Danish application, the subject of the
dispute is the fact that in a Royal Proclamation dated July 12th, 1932, the
Norwegian Government announced that it had proceeded to occupy the territory
on the Eastern coast of Greenland, situated between latitudes 63� 40' and
60� 30' North;
[20] Whereas it follows that both the Norwegian and Danish applications are
directed to the same object;
[21] Whereas the situation with which the Court has to deal closely
approximates, so far as concerns the procedure, to that which would arise if
a special agreement had been submitted to it by the two Governments, parties
to the dispute, indicating the subject of the dispute and the differing
claims of the Parties;
[22] Whereas, in any case, the two applications should be joined and the two
applicant Governments held to be simultaneously in the position of Applicant
and Respondent;
[23] Whereas, by a letter to the Registrar of the Court dated July 22nd,
1932, the Danish Minister at The Hague has suggested, on behalf of his
Government, that the Court should fix the time-limits for the proceedings
instituted by the application of July 18th, 1932, independently of the
time-limits fixed for the proceedings instituted by the application of July
nth, 1931, so that the Danish Government would -not have to submit its Case
in the new suit before the conclusion of the written proceedings in the suit
now in progress; [p271]
[24] Whereas, by a letter dated July 26th, 1932, the Agent of the Norwegian
Government has made an identical suggestion;
[25] Whereas, accordingly, having regard to the provisions of Article 32 of
the Rules, the suit concerning the legal status of certain parts of
South-Eastern Greenland brought on July 18th, 1932, should not, at least for
the time being, be joined to the suit concerning the legal status of certain
parts of Eastern Greenland brought on July nth, 1931 ;
[26] Whereas, in their concordant letters of July 22nd and 26th, 1932, the
Agents of the Parties have expressed the hope that, in fixing the
time-limits, the Court will bear in mind that the main question in issue has
already been dealt with in the suit brought by the application of July nth,
1931, a fact which may enable the two Parties to complete the exchange of
their documents of the written proceedings in a fairly short space of time ;
[27] Whereas the Parties have not made to the Court any joint proposal,
under Article 32 of the Rules, regarding the number of written documents to
be filed by each Party and the duration of the time-limits to be fixed for
their submission;
[28] Whereas, however, in the circumstances indicated above, the possibility
that the Parties may subsequently desire to waive their right to submit
written replies and rejoinders must be reckoned with;
[29] Whereas the two applications have formed the subject of the
communications prescribed by Article 40 of the Statute and Article 36 of the
Rules,
[30] THE COURT
(1) joins the two suits concerning the legal status of certain parts of
South-Eastern Greenland brought on July 18th, 1932, by the Norwegian
Government and by the Danish Government respectively;
(2) fixes as follows the time-limits for the written proceedings in the case
before it:
for the filing of a Case by each of the Parties, February 1st, 1933;
for the filing of a Counter-Case by each of the Parties, March 15th, 1933;
[p272]
(3) will, if necessary, subsequently fix the time-limits for the submission
of Replies and Rejoinders, if any.
[31] Done in French and in English, the French text being authoritative, at
the Peace Palace, The Hague, this second day of August, one thousand nine
hundred and thirty-two, in three copies, one of which shall be placed in the
archives of the Court and the others delivered to the Agents of the Royal
Norwegian Government and of the Royal Danish Govern-ment respectively.
(Signed) M. Adatci,
President of the Court.
(Signed) �. Hammarskj�ld,
Registrar of the Court.
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