VZCZCXYZ0016
OO RUEHWEB

DE RUCNDT #0232/01 0740041
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 140041Z MAR 08
FM USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 3900
INFO RUEHXX/GENEVA IO MISSIONS COLLECTIVE PRIORITY

UNCLAS USUN NEW YORK 000232 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: AORC UUNR UNGA
SUBJECT: 62ND UNGA: GUIDANCE REQUEST - FIFTH COMMITTEE'S 
REVIEW OF CONDITIONS OF SERVICE FOR JUDGES 
 
 
¶1. (U)  This is an guidance request - see para 12. 
 
¶2. (U)  Summary: The Fifth Committee is soon to consider the 
conditions of service and compensation for judges of the ICJ 
and other Tribunals i.e. ICTY and ICTR.  Though some 
technical matters relating to pension schemes, education 
benefits and incentives to retain staff will be discussed, 
the central issue relates to a decision to bring the system 
for determining judges salary in line with the UN Common 
System.  End summary. 
 
¶3. (U) In response to the SYG's Report A/C.5/59/2, the 
General Assembly in 2005, as a temporary measure, raised the 
annual salary of the members of the ICJ and the judges and ad 
litem judges of the Tribunals by 6.3 percent from $160,000 to 
$170,080, effective January 1, 2005.  This figure was 
inclusive of post adjustments.  General Assembly Resolution 
59/282 Section III, also maintained the floor/ceiling 
mechanism, established for some duty locations, including The 
Hague, in 1987 by the International Civil Service Commission 
(ICSC).  The floor/ceiling mechanism was intended to address 
salary disparities caused by currency fluctuations.  Under 
the system established in 2005, judges serving in The Hague 
receive a net annual remuneration of $217,851, while those 
serving in Arusha, who do not have the benefit of the 
floor/ceiling mechanism, receive an annual remuneration of 
$170,080. 
 
¶4. (U) Resolution 59/282 also requested a comprehensive 
report from the SYG reviewing the conditions of service and 
remuneration of the judges of the ICJ and other Tribunals. 
In response, the SYG submitted report A/61/554 requesting the 
GA approve $170,080 (the current net remuneration) as the 
annual base salary for the judges, and additionally the post 
adjustment multiplier at 50.2 for The Hague and 38.6 for 
Arusha, while eliminating the floor/ceiling mechanism for The 
Hague.  The SYG's proposal would bring the system for 
compensating the judges of the ICJ and other Tribunals back 
in line with the rest of the UN Common System.  However, 
because the SYG's proposal started with the special $170,080 
base salary, the annual remuneration for judges in The Hague 
would rise some $35,000 to $255,460 and some $65,000 to 
$235,731 in Arusha. 
 
¶5. (U) In its report A/61/612, the Advisory Committee on 
Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ) was critical 
of the proposal to utilize the $170,080 as the base salary. 
The ACABQ said that using the current net remuneration 
($170,080) unduly inflates the remuneration calculated under 
the proposed post adjustment system.  The ACABQ recommended 
that the GA protect the judge's current level of remuneration 
and that the SYG present to the GA at its 62nd session a new 
proposal for adjusting remuneration for future judges. 
 
¶6. (U) After extensive discussion, the Fifth Committee 
adopted GA Resolution 61/262 phasing out the temporary 
compensation regime and aligning the compensation regime 
adopted in 2005 for members of the court with the common 
system regime for compensating international civil servants, 
as proposed by the SYG.  However, responding to the ACABQ's 
criticism of utilizing the $170,080, Resolution 61/262 set 
the annual base salary of the judges of the ICJ and other 
Tribunals at $133,500 per annum - rather than $170,080, with 
corresponding post-adjustment.  In bringing the compensation 
regime back in line with the UN Common System, the 
post-adjustment system also removed the floor/ceiling 
mechanism. 
 
¶7. (U) Article 32, paragraph 5, of the Statute of the ICJ 
states that "salaries, allowances, and compensation (of the 
judges) shall be fixed by the General Assembly.  They may not 
be decreased during the term of office."  Consistent with 
this provision, the resolution maintained the level of annual 
salary approved in 59/282 for current members of the ICJ, 
ICTY and ICTR for the duration of their current term of 
office, or until such a time as this amount is overtaken by 
the application of the revised annual salary system.  At the 
same time, the GA determined to treat ICTR judges serving in 
Arusha comparable to the current judges of the ICJ, 
satisfying G-77 concerns and resulting in roughly a $15,000 
increase in overall annual compensation for each ICTR judge 
effective 1 January 2007. 
 
¶8. (U) The Fifth Committee approved the text of resolution 
61/262 on March 29, 2007.  On April 3, 2007, the day before 
the resolution was to be adopted by the General Assembly, ICJ 
President Rosalyn Higgins wrote to the PGA, requesting that 
the "General Assembly postpone the approval of any new 
system, subject to submission by the Secretary-General of new 
proposals as recommended by the ACABQ."  Many delegations 
felt President Higgins' letter encroached upon the General 
Assembly's authority, both generally under the Charter and 
 
 
specifically under the Statute of the Court, to set 
compensation for the judges.  See, para 6.  The resolution 
was adopted by consensus by the Plenary. 
 
¶9. (U) President Higgins argued then and continues to argue 
that the GA resolution, by lowering the salary of new 
incoming judges, violates a general principle of equality, 
and should therefore be overturned.  There is no requirement 
in the Charter or the Statute of the Court for equal 
treatment of new judges in regard to such compensation. 
Indeed, if there were, it would negate the express authority 
of the GA to fix such compensation.  Moreover, Article 32(6) 
of the Statute of the Court, requiring that new judges take 
part in decisions of the ICJ on terms of "complete equality" 
with their colleagues, requires equality of status, not 
compensation. 
 
¶10. (SBU) Member States are faced with extraordinary and 
unacceptable growth in the UN budget for the 2008-2009 
biennium.  The current, temporary, base salary for ICJ judges 
($170,080) far exceeds the current base salary for an 
Under-Secretary-General ($120,429 single/$133,818 dependent). 
 The U.S. is in the forefront to reduce costs and restrain 
increases to the budget.  This is one of few examples where 
Member States took a step to reduce inflated costs, generated 
by the temporary, overly generous system previously in place. 
 USUN is aware that "certain members" of the ICJ believe 
statements made by U.S. representatives in the Fifth 
Committee reflect disrespect and hostility for members of the 
Court and their work.  Such allegations are unfair and appear 
to be prompted by the refusal of USUN to defer to the 
positions of those judges in the question of compensation. 
Notably the position of USUN on this matter was developed in 
consultation with the Department.  The objections from 
"certain members" of the ICJ to the position of USUN on this 
issue underscore the dilemma USUN faces in trying to exercise 
fiscal discipline.  As we understand, there is little support 
in the Fifth Committee for overturning the decision of the GA. 
 
¶11. (U) Department may wish to take into account the 
observations and recommendations of the ACABQ as contained in 
its report A/62/7/Add.36.  ACABQ is critical proposals to 
depart from the common system approach for determining 
salaries of the judges of the ICJ and other Tribunals and 
with the use of a currency other than United States Dollars. 
The ACABQ is concerned that these departures from current 
practices have implications for other arrangements. 
 
¶12. (U) Action Request.  USUN seeks guidance from the 
Department on how to proceed in this matter. 
KHALILZAD