Why ICJ Judge Sebutinde faces calls to quit from Israel genocide case

The International Commission of Jurists has filed a formal request for an investigation into International Court of Justice (ICJ) Vice President Julia Sebutinde over her recent comments about Israel.

The commission, which advocates for human rights and rule of law worldwide, argued that Sebutinde’s position on Israel reveals a bias that brings judicial integrity into question. Sebutinde, who is one of the 17 judges in the ICJ genocide case against Israel, also faces other critics.

Here is more about Sebutinde, what she said and why she is facing criticism:

Who is Julia Sebutinde?

Sebutinde is one of the judges hearing South Africa’s genocide case against Israel. These are the same judges who voted on provisional measures to protect Palestinians in Gaza in January 2024.

Sebutinde, 71, is a Ugandan judge who is currently serving her second term at the ICJ, where she has sat since March 2012. She is the first African woman appointed to the The Hague-based ICJ. She was elected as the vice president of the top United Nations court in February 2024.

According to the Institute for African Women in Law, Sebutinde was raised by a family of modest means during Uganda’s independence movement. She attended Lake Victoria Primary School in Entebbe, Uganda, and Gayaza High School, a girls boarding school. She earned her law degree from Makerere University in 1977.

In 1990, Sebutinde obtained a master of laws degree with distinction from the University of Edinburgh in Scotland, which also awarded her an honorary doctorate in 2009 for her legal achievements.

Before joining the ICJ, she served as a judge on the Special Court for Sierra Leone beginning in 2007.

What was Sebutinde’s dissenting opinion on Palestine?

In a case filed in December 2023, South Africa alleged that Israel was committing genocide in Gaza during the war that began on October 7, 2023. South Africa argued that Israel’s actions in Palestine were genocidal because they intended to “bring about the destruction of a substantial part of the Palestinian national, racial and ethnical group”.

On January 26, 2024, the ICJ issued a ruling on a number of interim steps. It ordered six provisional measures, telling Israel to:

Fifteen of the 17 judges voted for all the emergency measures to be put in place. An Israeli judge voted for two of the six measures to be implemented. Sebutinde was the only judge to vote against all the measures.

In her dissenting opinion, Sebutinde wrote: “In my respectful dissenting opinion the dispute between the State of Israel and the people of Palestine is essentially and historically a political one. It is not a legal dispute susceptible to judicial settlement by the Court.”

She also stated that South Africa did not demonstrate that Israel’s alleged actions were “committed with the necessary genocidal intent, and that as a result, they are capable of falling within the scope of the Genocide Convention”.

The court’s final verdict is still awaited. Last year, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes.

Several rights organisations have called Israeli actions in Gaza genocide. Israel has also been accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity during nearly 23 months of war, which have killed more than 62,000 Palestinians.

Who has called for Sebutinde to be investigated and why?

The Geneva-based International Commission of Jurists, made up of 60 judges and lawyers, wrote a letter on Friday to ICJ President Yuji Iwasawa requesting the investigation. It cited remarks Sebutinde made on August 10 at Watoto Church in Kampala, Uganda, where she said: “The Lord is counting on me to stand on the side of Israel.”

The letter added that Principle 2 of the UN Basic Principles on the Independence of the Judiciary affirms that “the judiciary shall decide matters before them impartially, on the basis of facts and in accordance with the law, without any … improper influences … from any quarter and for any reason.”

Sebutinde’s remarks are “inconsistent with these principles”, said the letter, signed by the commission’s secretary-general, Santiago Canton.

Canton closed the letter by urging Iwasawa to conduct an investigation into the allegations against Sebutinde and take remedial actions if the allegations are found to be true.

While an investigation takes place, Canton requested Iwasawa remove Sebutinde from further proceedings in the ICJ case filed by South Africa.

The government of Uganda distanced itself from her dissenting opinion.

“Justice Sebutinde’s ruling at the International Court of Justice does not represent the Government of Uganda’s position on the situation in Palestine,” Adonia Ayebare, Uganda’s ambassador to the UN, posted on X in January last year.

Could Sebutinde be removed? How?

The ICJ statute says members of the ICJ cannot be dismissed unless other members unanimously agree that they no longer fulfil the required conditions.

If a judge is dismissed, the ICJ registrar makes a formal notification to the UN secretary-general and this notification renders the position vacant.

The ICJ website adds that this has never happened.

The website sets standards for its judges, stating: “Judges must be elected from among persons of high moral character, who possess the qualifications required in their respective countries for appointment to the highest judicial offices, or are jurisconsults of recognised competence in international law.”

It also adds that “once elected, a Member of the Court is a delegate neither of the government of his own country nor of that of any other State.”

The ICJ statute adds that before assuming duties at the ICJ, members must make a solemn declaration that they will exercise their powers impartially and conscientiously.

Who are the judges in the case?

The ICJ has 15 judges elected for nine-year terms by the UN General Assembly and the Security Council.

For the case that South Africa brought against Israel, an Israeli judge and a South African judge joined the bench. From South Africa, senior retired Judge Dikgang Moseneke came on board while former Israeli Supreme Court Chief Justice Aharon Barak joined the case from Israel.