ICJ Case Timeline Faces Delay Due to Court Changes, Says UDP Chairman

Very little has been said or is being said as it relates to Belize’s case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).  The most vocal the government has been was when the country went to a referendum back in 2019 under the previous administration.  Today, the UDP Chairman, Michael Peyrefitte gave a guesstimate on the timeline of the court matter, saying that things might be slightly delayed due to internal changes at the court.

Michael Peyrefitte, UDP Chairman: “If you look at where we are in the Belize / Guatemala situation, all that’s really left, except if maybe Honduras responds to our memorial, we have it’s oral arguments is primarily what’s remaining. So there’s not a lot of preparation left in terms of developing of arguments before we go to the ICJ, which I anticipate now, given the way the court is structured, given the new elections for the court that it will be probably around 2025 that oral arguments will begin. That’s my guess. I mean, the ICJ could come and say, okay we’re ready for oral arguments next week, and we have to be ready. They could come and say 2024, January, February, March. I’m just guessing, given how the court operates usually I am guessing it will be 2025. And I’m thinking that it would have been probably 2025, whether or not we had done the Honduras matter. But yes, Honduras being in the picture it did create more work, more spacing between the Guatemala Belize case and oral arguments. But I don’t think that it delayed it that much. But of course it’s something we have to do as well.”

Both Belize and Guatemala have submitted their claims and counterclaims on the matter.