It is one of the most important news of the national news. For four years, the governments of Peru and Chile have been awaiting The Hague. “The ruling of The Hague will be respected” they say from both sides of the table. But do we all know what The Hague is? ? where is? Why is there a court that, from there, is in charge of making decisions about issues that are not related to your place of residence? The Hague It has become a recurring word in the news in Lima and campaigns have even been launched that seek to ensure that everyone, even the citizen least interested in politics, maritime disputes, etc., knows what is being talked about when one speaks of “ The Hague “. Here, in the blog, we are not going to deal with the historical case of the maritime dispute – a case, in the end, momentary and circumstantial – but of the court and the city in which it is located.
Let's start by saying that The Hague is a city located in the northwest of Holland (name with which we call the Netherlands ), where the seat of the central government is located, although it is not the capital. Furthermore, in The Hague all public agencies (ministries, government offices, courts of justice) and embassies are located. It is the third largest city in the Netherlands, after Rotterdam and Amsterdam . Its monumental buildings and beautiful squares make it an attractive city where history, art and modernity are combined (see video).
Regarding the Court of The Hague , this name is used interchangeably to refer to various courts that have once had their headquarters there. But, if one is going to speak properly, the International Court of Justice in The Hague is the judicial institution that is hearing the case of the maritime dispute between Peru and Chile. This court, made up of 15 Magistrates, is the judicial body of the United Nations Organization and was created in 1946 to resolve legal disputes raised by member countries and its rulings are conclusive. The fifteen judges are elected by the General Assembly and the Security Council and their mandate lasts 9 years. Since its foundation, they have judged 119 cases of bilateral disputes, the last one between Panama and Colombia.
The headquarters of the International Court of Justice (or The Hague Tribunal) It is a beautiful baroque-style building, with extensive gardens and luxurious facilities. Its current president is the Slovak magistrate Peter Tomka and the other judges come from countries as diverse as Mexico, Uganda, China, New Zealand, Morocco, among others.
THE ORIGIN OF THE NAME
The villa that originated around the Binnenhof Palace was first called “Haga” in a document from 1242. In the 15th century, the phrase “ Des Graven Hague” to name the town. This phrase literally means "the earl's wood," a reference to "an earl's lodging, cottage, or private retreat, or the earl's hidden lands." From the 17th century onwards the city was simply called "Gravenhague". Today, this name - Gravenhague - is used only on official documents such as birth or marriage certificates. In the city itself, "Den Haag" is spoken of for legal and public communications. When the Dukes of Burgundy took control of the counties of Holland and Zeeland at the beginning of the 15th century, they established this town as a point of administration for the surrounding states and their center of operations was located in "The Hague", a name with which the court is named in the local language and in English. The term "The Hague" is a Castilianization of that name.