The ongoing volatility in the Strait of Hormuz remains a critical threat to the global economy and continues to prompt questions about what rules of international law apply to the Strait both now and in the future. 

The 14-point memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Iran and the United States, which was agreed mid-June, did not restore the status quo for shipping through the Strait of Hormuz under international law. Instead, more questions were asked than answered as to the future legal regime governing the Strait of Hormuz.

As already observed, Point 6 of the MoU allowed for the free movement of ships for 60 days but left an implication that a toll or other fees may follow.

Ever since Iran first proposed a toll, governments and commentators have condemned this restriction on the freedom of navigation. A suggestion from the Indonesian Minister of Finance that charges could also be imposed on the Malacca Straits was promptly quashed by the Indonesian President and Singapore’s Minister for Foreign Affairs.

Under the law of the sea, there is no legal right for states bordering straits to charge vessels for transiting through a strait. The littoral states are not to impose any conditions that have the practical effect of denying, hampering or impairing the right of transit passage. Charging vessels to transit through a strait would clearly impair navigational rights; if a ship refuses to pay and they are denied the right to proceed through the strait, the right of passage is clearly impaired. 

There is an option under the UN Convention for the Law of the Sea (Art 43) for user states of a strait and the coastal states to agree on navigational or safety aids or other improvements that will enhance international navigation. So potentially the provision of services that improve or facilitate navigation might be a way to charge fees. But it is a fine line in determining what is a charge that aids international navigation versus a charge that impairs or hampers that navigation.

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The ILA Reporter, the official blog of the International Law Association (Australian Branch), has recently relaunched and is currently welcoming submissions. The ILA Reporter publishes analysis, commentary and discussion on issues in public and private international law which have a bearing on Australia and the wider region. We accept article submissions on a rolling basis from legal practitioners, academics and students within the field of international law.

Submissions may include analytical articles, book reviews, case analysis, and recounts of recent events in the field of international law. However, the articles should have a connection with Australia or explain the linkage of a wider international issue with Australian perspectives or practice.

The full submission criteria are available here: https://ilareporter.org.au/submissions/, which also directs prospective authors to our Style Guide and Terms & Conditions. Examples of previously accepted articles include this multi-part series and this standalone piece.

To submit a paper or to send queries on the submission process, contact the Editor-in-Chief at editor@ilareporter.org.au. Please note that when a call for submissions is active, responses may be slower but I will endeavour to respond to all queries within one week.

The SAARC Due Diligence Panel deliberates on the establishment of a South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Due Diligence Mechanism, similar to the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) Committee, headquartered in New Delhi. The issue of gender-based violence (GBV) is endemic to the subcontinent with women lacking an effective redressal mechanism. Frequently the jurisdiction of crimes of GBV are lumped together with other jurisdictions like family law and property issues. This lack of a specialized mechanism results in diluted and inefficacious solutions. The Due Diligence Obligation (DDO) to the CEDAW clearly states that states have a duty to prevent, prosecute and punish all forms of violence against women. 

The SAARC Due Diligence Mechanism is intended to effectuate India’s compliance obligations under the CEDAW. Arguably India has advanced a Declaration to its CEDAW obligations in respect of safeguarding its Personal Status Laws. This raises a number of key questions. How will this impact the issue of GBV under the Mechanism? What will establishing a SAARC Due Diligence Mechanism entail for peace in the region? Arguably the relationship between India and Pakistan is characterized by Hobbesian anarchy and warfare? Does this situation make international law fundamentally incompatible in the region? Can the endemic anarchy not be replaced by a gendered peace? Is it possible to open a new channel of gendered diplomatic communication that supersedes the situation of Hobbesian anarchy? Can we present a cogent case to the Government of India to undertake this measure to subvert the situation of terrorism in the subcontinent? 

The Indian Society for International Law are currently accepting expressions of interest for its panel at its Conference on 25-27 October 2024 on the promulgation of a SAARC Due Diligence Mechanism, which will submit recommendations to the Government of India. Expression of interests should be submitted before 1 October 2024 to Shritha Vasudevan at shritha87@gmail.com or +91 800 8554370.

The International Law Association (Australian Branch) and the Australian Institute of International Affairs is pleased to share the Nygh Hague Conference Internship Report completed by 2022 participant Rachel Van Der Veen ahead of the pending deadline for the 2024 Internship.

Ms Van Der Veen participated in the Internship from 29 August 2022 to 27 January 2023 and worked mainly across the HCCH Conference on Commercial, Digital and Financial Law Across Borders (CODIFI Conference), the 2023 Council on General Affairs and Policy and the Special Commission on the 2000 Protection of Adults Convention.

Ms Van Der Veen’s report describing her experience is now available online. To learn more about the 2024 Nygh Internship (for which applications close on 30 September 2023) and to read the reports compiled by previous interns, please visit the AIIA’s website. Ms Van Der Veen will be presenting at the upcoming first session of the Early Career Seminar on Private International Law on 17 August 2023, on the topic Fiduciary Duties and the 1985 Trusts Convention.

The Australian Branch is pleased to present the first seminar in its 2023 Early Career Seminar Series on topics in private international law. 

The event will be an online lunch time discussion on 17 August 2023 at 1:00pm AEST.

The panel will feature speakers Dr Sarah McKibbin, University of Southern Queensland, presenting The Australian Doctrine of Forum Non Conveniens in Practice and Rachel Van Der Veen, Australian Public Service, presenting Fiduciary Duties and the 1985 Trusts Convention. The commentator for the event will be Dr Brooke Marshall, UNSW Sydney and the session will be chaired by Danielle Kroon, Marque Lawyers.

To obtain further details, and to register, visit Eventbrite.

Call for Abstracts: Symposium on ‘Russia, Imperialism, and International Law’ , 3 July 2023

The Walther Schücking Institute for International Law at the University of Kiel, Germany, will host an international symposium on ‘Russia, Imperialism, and International Law’ on 14-16 September 2023. The symposium will discuss Russia’s past and present attempts to (re-)establish its dominance and control in the post-Soviet sphere, with a specific focus on geopolitical (e.g., the concept of the ‘near abroad’), nationality-related (e.g., passportisation), and economic ‘tools of imperialism’. Abstracts should be around 1,000-1,500 words, and must be sent to Professor Andreas von Arnauld <arnauld@wsi.uni-kiel.de> in a single document that also includes a brief CV by 3 July 2023. Authors of accepted abstracts will be invited to present their research in panels on their respective themes, and following the symposium, to publish their paper in a special focus section in Volume 66 (2023) of the German Yearbook of International Law. Full details can be found here.

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