The International Court of Justice on Thursday, September 5, 2019, postponed the initial hearing of a case that has pit Kenya against Somalia over maritime territory.
Kenya's Attorney General Kihara Kariuki had on September 3, 2019, written to the court requesting the case to be delayed as Kenya needed to recruit a new legal team.
Daily Nation reported that the Court's Registrar Philippe Gautier had stated that the ICJ would now open public hearings for the case on November 4, not September 9 as had been earlier scheduled.
“In light of the circumstances and the possible alternative dates in its judicial calendar, the Court decided to grant a postponement of the oral proceedings in the case and rescheduled the oral hearings to the week beginning Monday 4 November 2019,” the registrar noted.
In his request though, Kariuki did not explain what happened to Kenya's initial defence team that forced the country to try and constitute another one.
The initial team included Professor Payam Akhavan from the US, Professor Vaughan Lowe QC from the UK, Professor Alan Boyle (British), Professor Mathias Forteau (French), Karim Khan (British) and Amy Sanders (British).
After the announcement, the African Union Security Council chipped in and requested the two nations to reconsider dialogue to resolve the row.
With the Unions chair, Moussa Faki Mahamat mandated to reactivate talks.
In earlier September 2019, the Chairperson of the Pan African Forum, David Matsanga had filed another petition in court seeking the removal of the judge overseeing the case.
Matsanga stated that Abdulqawi Ahmed Yusuf should recuse himself from the case over alleged conflict of interest because he is a Somali national.
He further claimed that the judge should be cited for subjudice for allegedly commenting about the Kenya-Somalia case outside court and conflict of interest.
