ICJ Judge Cesar Bengzon Hall Inaugurated at PH Embassy in The Hague
(First row, left to right) Ms. Josephine Feliciano Reyes (daughter of Justice Florentino Feliciano), H.E. Kirill Gevorgian, Vice President of the International Court of Justice, Dr. Rena Cristina Koa-Malaya (spouse of Ambassador J. Eduardo Malaya), H.E. Iwasawa Yuji (Judge of the ICJ). (Second row, left to right) Mr. Anthony Bengzon (grandson of ICJ Judge Cesar Bengzon), Ambassador Malaya, Dean Raul Pangalangan (former Judge of the International Criminal Court). (The Hague PE photo)
THE HAGUE, 21 July 2022 – The International Court of Justice (ICJ) Judge Cesar Bengzon Hall at the Philippine Embassy in The Hague was inaugurated 19 July 2022 in a ceremony attended by the Vice President of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), four other judges of the ICJ, and other international legal luminaries, diplomats and Filipino community members.
The event was held in honor of Chief Justice Cesar Bengzon as the first and so far the only Filipino Judge of the International Court of Justice, who served a full nine year-term at the World Court from 1967 to 1976. Also honored were two highly acclaimed Filipino jurists, Justice Florentino Feliciano, former Senior Associate Justice of the Supreme Court and founding Member and then President of the Appellate Body of the World Trade Organization (1995 to 2001); and Dean Raul C. Pangalangan, Judge of the International Criminal Court (ICC) (2015 to 2021).
In his keynote address, ICJ Vice President Kirill Gevorgian praised the valuable experience of Judge Bengzon as Chief Justice of the Philippine Supreme Court which provided a different perspective to the members of the ICJ and gave added flavor to the work of the Court and the development of international law.
“Judge Bengzon made significant contributions to the work of the Court and to the development of international law… He contributed to a number of seminal judgments and advisory opinions that have become crucial to the protection of human rights around the world,” added Gevorgian.
In his opening remarks, Philippine Ambassador to The Netherlands J. Eduardo Malaya, said that "by having this event, the Embassy and the Philippines Government reaffirm its abiding faith and commitment to international law and the rule of law in inter-state relations. We do this by recalling the valuable services of three eminent Filipinos who in their own ways have made significant contributions to the international legal institutions they served and to the field of international law generally… By inaugurating the ICJ Judge Bengzon Hall, we hope that it would be a place that would memorialize the legacies of Bengzon, Feliciano, and Pangalangan not only for the Philippines and other countries, but to the The Hague, which we call affectionately as the international city of peace and justice."
Bengzon is the sole Filipino and Southeast Asian to have sat at the ICJ, Malaya noted.
In attendance were a number of international law luminaries and diplomats, notably ICJ Judges Peter Tomka and Hilary Charlesworth, Secretary General Marcin Czepelak of the Permanent Court of Arbitration, Secretary General Prof. Jean-Marc Thouvenin of The Hague Academy of International Law, Director Karin Mossenlechner of the Netherland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs - Department of Asia and Oceania, and Mr. Jules van Eijndhoven, Head of the MFA Treaties Division. Permanent Representative Manuel Teehankee of the Philippine Mission to the World Trade Organization in Geneva also attended the inauguration. END
Left photo: ICJ Vice President Kirill Gevorgian delivers his remarks during the dedication ceremony. Right photo: Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo addresses the assembly through video remarks. (The Hague PE photos)
From left to right: Peter Tomka (ICJ Judge), Iwasawa Yuji (ICJ Judge), Ambassador J. Eduardo Malaya, Kirill Gevorgian (ICJ Vice President), Mr. Anthony Bengzon (grandson of ICJ Judge Cesar Bengzon) and Hilary Charlesworth (ICJ Judge). (The Hague PE photo)
From left to right: Hilary Charlesworth (ICJ Judge), Iwasawa Yuji (ICJ Judge), Ambassador J. Eduardo Malaya, Peter Tomka (ICJ Judge), Kirill Gevorgian (ICJ Vice President), Ms. Josephine Feliciano Reyes, Manuel Antonio J. Teehankee (PH Permanent Representative to the WTO in Geneva). (The Hague PE photo)
From left to right: Prof. Elizabeth Aguiling-Pangalangan, H.E. Hilary Charlesworth (ICJ Judge), H.E. Iwasawa Yuji (ICJ Judge), H.E. Peter Tomka (ICJ Judge), H.E. Kirill Gevorgian (ICJ Vice President), Dean Raul Pangalangan, Ambassador J. Eduardo Malaya and Dr. Rena Cristina Koa-Malaya. (The Hague PE photo)
ICJ Judge Iwasawa Yuji delivers his message at the dedication ceremony. (The Hague PE photo)
Philippine Ambassador to The Netherlands J. Eduardo Malaya delivers his welcome remarks. (The Hague PE photo)
Judge Raul Pangalangan delivers his message. (The Hague PE photo)
Memorabilia of ICJ Judge Cesar C. Bengzon. (The Hague PE photo)
For more information, visit https://www.thehaguepe.dfa.gov.ph or https://www.facebook.com/PHinTheNetherlands/.