SETTLEMENT OF DISPUTE under IL

Dispute means a difference of opinion among parties. This difference may be on a question of
fact or of law.
The basic object of IL is maintenance of world peace and security and prevention of threats to
international peace. For this either of the methods of settlement of disputes can be applied.
Settlement can be done by two means:
a) Peaceful Or Amicable Means: Settlement without use of force
b) Coercive or Compulsive Means: Compulsion / Use of Force. Non-Peaceful methods.
Such measures involve a pressure or force on a state to settle the dispute. It doesnt mean
use of armed forces in all the cases, usually those methods which are short of war.

Peaceful Or Amicable Means

Under IL, there is no document which provides for various means of settlement. But Article
33 of UN CHARTER provides for various peaceful means of settlement. They are as follows
a) Negotiations: Simple and direct method of diplomatic action aimed at settling a dispute
b/w two parties. This can be applied to all kinds of disputes, whether political, legal or
technical. This method used for solving contentious (controversial/debatable) issues.
b) Mediation: A third party state will interfere for facilitating decision. The 3rd party opens
negotiations with each of the parties to the dispute separately with the object of getting
them each of them to agree to its final proposals. Mediators task is to reconcile the
opposing claims and settle the feelings of resentment which may have risen b/w them.
c) Conciliation: Settlement of dispute by interference of third party in which third party
suggests certain solutions for settlement of dispute.
d) Arbitration: Settlement of dispute by interference of third party in which 3 rd party will
adjudicate after hearing the parties.
Similarity between Mediation, Conciliation and Arbitration is Presence of third party.
Difference between Mediation, Conciliation and Arbitration is Roles played by third party
is different.
In Mediation: only facilitation; In Conciliation: only suggestions and In Arbitration:
adjudication and decision.

Permanent Court of Arbitration provides for this :

e) Good Office: Where parties to a dispute are not inclined to settle it through negotiations, a
third party may offer its good offices, i.e. a platform for decision. Eg. LTTE and Sri
Lanka. Norway interfered and provided good office.
f) Enquiry: When a commission is appointed, consisting of impartial investigators, for
ascertaining the facts of the disputes, the process is called Enquiry. The function of
commission is confined only to the ascertainment of the fact.
g) International Court of Justice ICJ is principle judicial organ of the UN. ICJ can
exercise jurisdiction only when both the parties agree and the agreement conferring
jurisdiction is known as compromise. ICJ has two types of Jurisdiction :
Advisory
Contentious

Coercive or Compulsive Means

When states fail to settle their international disputes by peaceful methods then they resort to
compulsive methods. The methods are :
a) Retortion It is a retaliatory act used by a state against an unfriendly, discourteous or
inequitable act of another state. Such acts are not illegitimate and are within the
jurisdiction of the state employing them. If act of retortion endangers international peace
and security, it will be against the UN CHARTER.
b) Reprisals It is punitive act of a state against another state for the purpose of settling
some dispute brought about by the latters illegal act. The main object of reprisal is to
compel the wrong state to discontinue the illegal act and compensate the state wronged.
Difference between Reprisals and Retortion:
Reprisals are those acts which would, otherwise be quite illegal. Retorsion is merely an
unfriendly or discourteous act to which no legal objection can be taken.
Reprisal is activating by the illegal act of the wrong state. Reprisals were used to seize
property or persons, but now reprisal covers every coercive act against the wrong state. The
legality of reprisals is doubtful in view of UN CHARTER.
c) Embargo It means detention of commercial ships of the by a state when such ships are
in its ports. This is also a reprisal to compel the offending state to settle the dispute to the
satisfaction of the blocking state. Such embargo called hostile embargo. In another case,
known as civil or peaceful embargo, a state may not allow its own vessels to trade with the
offending state with a view to exert economic pressure on that state.

d) Pacific blockade: When the coast of a state is blocked by another state for the purpose of
preventing ingress (entrance) and egress (exit) of vessels of all nations by the use of
warships and other means in order to exercise economic and political pressure on that
state, the act is called blockade. When blockade is applied during peace time, it is known
as pacific blockade.
e) Intervention: IL is based on the sovereign equality if states. Sovereignty involves the
freedom to manage ones own affair, both internal and external. If a state interferes in such
freedom, it is intervention. In Oppenheims International law, 9th edition ,Intervention has
been defined as a forcible or dictatorial interference by a state in the affairs of another state
calculated to impose certain conduct or consequences on that other state.
f) War: According to Article 2(4) and 2(7) of UN Charter war is illegal.