ndate under the league of Nations and which it ruled. After a long and tedious process, the ICJ proclaimed that the case of Ethiopia and Liberia was illegal, and thus, the case was dismissed on a "procedural point". Other instances of the ICJ's limitations in its effectiveness was its 1979 verdict that ordered the release of US diplomats held Hostage in Teheran, and payment of reparations. In this case Iran contested and duly ignored the ICJ's jurisdiction. In 1984 Nicaragua complained that the US had helped the Nicaraguan Contra rebels against the Sandinista government. Two years later, the ICJ ruled in favour of Nicaragua's claims, but in 1985, a year before, the US had already withdrawn its acceptance of the ICJ's jurisdiction. All these examples reflect the limitations of the ICJ in helping to settle interstate disputes. Also, some cases may take several years to be heard. the Court may require certain provisional measures before a final judgement. Hence it is very time consuming to go through the ICJ. However, the blame for the limited effectiveness of the ICJ cannot be laid on the court itself. The ICJ's neutrality has been maintained as far as possible, no two ICJ judges may be of the same nationality, but prejudices are impossible to eliminate totally due to human bias. In addition, major issues of peace and security between the more powerful states are rarely submitted as most governments tend to "consider the recognition of the jurisdiction of the court as infringing on their sovereignty". Indeed the average yearly number of decisions has not been more than two. Furthermore, there is no real means of enforcing the ICJ's verdict. THe ICJ has also been criticized as time consuming with little usefulness. However, it cannot be wholly blamed as parties involved in claims often request for more time to prepare their cases. Since its use is totally voluntary, it cannot be expected ...
