The government of President Gabriel Boric decided not to support the candidacy Chilean lawyer Claudio Grossman to integrate the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague.
The determination of the Executive was communicated by the Chancellor Antonia Urrejola to the jurist through a Zoom meeting this Thursday afternoon. “Now I am going to a Zoom meeting with Claudio Grossman, I have a meeting with him”the minister had pointed out when asked about the issue prior to the meeting.
The prominent diplomat was emerging as one of the interested parties to occupy the seat of the deceased Brazilian judge Antônio Augusto Cançado.
His death opened a space that several countries in the region look with interestsince the person elected in November will fulfill the remaining five years that the Brazilian had left.
In that sense Grossman – who was Chile’s agent before The Hague in the trial with Bolivia for the La Paz maritime claim – had support in cross-sector sectors of the political world to assume the nomination. The jurist -former Mapu- has held international positions both in the Inter-American Court of Human Rights and in the United Nations Committee against Torture.
Currently, he is also president of the drafting committee of the United Nations International Law Commission and has been living in the United States for decades.
The trajectory of the lawyer is also respected in the right. In 2018 Grossman represented the UDI when the party asked Argentina for the extradition of ex-frontist Galvarino Apablaza, one of the authors of the murder of the founder of the community, Jaime Guzman.
In the last days, in fact, a group of former foreign ministers -from different political sectors- had promoted their candidacy against Minister Urrejola. However, Grossman did not get Boric’s approval.
Among the reasons put forward by the Executive for not giving its support to the jurist are that one of the priorities set by the current administration in foreign policy is to emphasize human rights y that, in that sense, The focus today is to advance in the candidacy that Chile launched to join the Human Rights Council of the United Nations.
“In the scenario described, considering that such an important election requires advance planning, vote availability, budget resources and campaign strategy, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is unfortunately not in a position to present this candidacy for the ongoing electoral process,” they explained. from the Foreign Ministry at the end of the day in a public statement.
And they added: “We are sure that in the near future – and considering the relevance of the International Court in The Hague – Chile will be able to make an application to this main judicial body of the United Nations Organization, which will be presented in advance and serious and adequate planning that the position deserves, in order to ensure its success”.
Those who spoke with Grossman say that La Moneda’s decision bothered him. In their environment they point out that there was little deferential treatment by the chancellor. In fact, they point out that the letter they sent weeks ago to promote his candidacy was not answered in a timely manner and that the jurist had an appointment with Urrejola postponed several times.
Grossman’s eventual arrival at the ICJ was seen as a significant step forward in international politics, since Chile has not had a judge on the court in the last 67 years.
In addition, one of the strong candidates that have emerged in the region for the position is, for example, Marcelo Cohen, promoted by Argentina -who advised Bolivia in its lawsuit against Chile before The Hague- and that has already made official its interest in competing for the position. Brazil, for its part, also presented its own applicant: Leonardo Taker.
“A great opportunity to have a Chilean judge on the Court has been lost, after 67 years. In elections where people, and not countries, compete, professional experience and respect are key factors, and in this regard, the jurist Claudio Grossman was a comparatively very powerful candidate. I’m sorry, but it was better that a decision be made than to remain in a holding pattern. The decision not to support Grossman’s candidacy is made at the presidential level, I respect it, and there is nothing more to say,” the former foreign minister said after learning of La Moneda’s determination. Heraldo Muñoz
While, Theodore Riverawho was foreign minister during the second government of Sebastián Piñera, told La Tercera that “I do not know the underlying reasons why the Foreign Ministry has decided not to support Claudio Grossman and it will be convenient for it to clarify it, because without an adequate foundation it costs understand a decision of this nature.
“Claudio Grossman is a renowned jurist who has dedicated his life to the issue of human rights, has been dean of a prestigious American university (Washington College of Law School of Law), and has had multiple international awards. From that perspective, his candidacy for the ICJ position is undoubtedly endorsed from a professional point of view,” he added.