Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1960-05-01
BY ALICK DE MoNTMoRENCY


The standstill award recently
handed down by the international
Court Of Justice at The Hague in
the bitter quarrel between India
and Portugal over Portugal's
Asiatic holdings shows that, after
so odd years, it is still continuing
its quest for peace and interna-
tional order under law.
The court ruled that Dadra
and Nagar-Aveli. a 113-square-
mile strip Of land near Goa. which
the Portuguese had owned since
1910, but which was surrounded
by Indian territory. and which a
non-violent Hindu mob captured
on August IS. 1855, was still
Portuguese. However, it also ruled
that the Indian government
which actually had engineered the
take-over-was not obligated to
allow Portuguese forces to cross
its territory to reclaim the lost
area.
1t is not very likely that this
last verdict will finally solve the
Luso-Indian territorial wrangle.
And 1t is still less likely that it
will resolve the persistent contro-
versy which surrounds the World
Court itself. For, while the parti-
sans Of that international institu-
ton are generally satisfied with
its performance and are sure that.
even though it has not yet COM.
pletely fulfilled the hopes of its
founders, it will do so in the fu-
ture. if given the opportunity, its
critics are of the contrary opinion.
They maintain that the World
Court has proved dismal failure
and is doomed to further i'm
potence in the years to come.
The court goes back to 1898.
On August "a of that year Count
Muraviev. Foreign Minister of
Russia, submitted to the diplo-
matte representatives in st. Peters,
burg a stirring appeal by Nicho-
las II, in which the last Emperor
OF All Russians sought the aid of
his fellow chiefs of state for the
maintenance of peace through dis
armament and arbitration of in
ternational disputes.
International Mediation
In his subsequent correspond
ence with the principal world
rulers the Car pointed out the
successful mediations which had
been carried out in the 18th GEN.
tury in a number of minor inter-
national disputes, and especially
to the famous acts of international
mediation earlier in history. Those
Included the award made on
May 4, 1893, by Pope Alexander
VI, which settled the conflicting
claims Of Spain and Portugal in
the New World and reserved
Brazil for the Portuguese.
The Cars appeal in 1898 and
his arguments drew favorable re-
spouse from Emperor Francis
Joseph of Austria, from President
Mckinley, from Queen Christine
of Spain and from the British
government of Lord Salisbury.
Further support came from France,
Germany, China, Portugal, Dem
mark, Sweden and Norway, as well
as from President Portfirio Diaz of
Mexico and Abdul-the-Damned,
Sultan Of Turkey. And Holland
offered to serve as host-nation for
the projected conference.
The peace conference met be-
tween May 10 and July 90, 1899,
in the Orange Hall of the Park
House, amid the oaks and alders
of The Hague Wood. 1t included
many leading statesmen of the
day among its 101 delegates from
II countries, and was the first
such multi-national, multi-lateral
gathering since the Congress of
Vienna, which had liquidated the
Napoleonic wars.
Beside adopting a number of