c. General Principles of Law

Examples of “Generally Accepted Principles of International Law”

• Pacta sunt servanda (agreements must be kept);
• Rebus sic stantibus (things standing thus);
• Things remain as they are
• Rebus sic stantibus is a limited exception to continued treaty performance where the requirements for a fundamental change of circumstances are met (Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, Arts. 26 and 62).
• Par in parem non habet imperium (equals have no sovereignty over each other);
• All states are sovereign equals.
• An equal state cannot assume jurisdiction over another equal state.
• State Immunity from Suit;
• A state generally cannot be sued without its consent. An official may invoke state immunity for acts attributable to the state, but official status alone does not confer immunity for every act; the nature of the act and whether the suit is effectively against the state matter (1987 Constitution, Art. XVI, Sec. 3; Sanders v. Veridiano, G.R. No. L-46930, June 10, 1988).
• Right of states to self-defense; and
• Right to self-determination of people.

What are the customary norms identified by the Supreme Court of the Philippines?

• Rules and principles of land warfare and of humanitarian law under the Hague Convention and the Geneva Convention (Kuroda v. Jalandoni, G.R. No. L-2662, March 26, 1949)
• Pacta sunt servanda (La Chemise Lacoste v. Fernandez, G.R. Nos. L- 63796- 97, May 2,1984)
• Certain human-rights norms reflected in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights may be customary international law when established as such for the particular norm; the Declaration is not itself a treaty, and its rights are not customary law merely because they appear in it (Reyes v. Bagatsing, G.R. No. L-65366, November 9, 1983)
• The Principle of the Sovereign Equality of States (Sanders v. Veridiano, G.R. No. L- 46930, June 10, 1988)
• The principle in diplomatic law that the receiving state has the special duty to protect the premises of the diplomatic mission of the sending state (Reyes v. Bagatsing, G.R. No. L-65366, November 9,1983)
• The right of a citizen to return to his own country (Marcos v. Manglapus, G.R. No. 88211, September 15, 1989)
• The principle that “a foreign army allowed to march through friendly country or to be stationed in it, by permission of its government or sovereign, is exempt from the civil and criminal jurisdiction of the place” (Raquiza v. Bradford, G.R. No. L- 44, September 13, 1945)
• The principle that ordinary judicial and other nonpolitical acts of a de facto government established during military occupation may remain valid under international law; political acts are not validated by that rule (Montebon v. Director of Prisons, G.R. No. L-1352, April 30, 1947)
• The principle that private property seized and used by the enemy in times of war under circumstances not constituting valid requisition does not become enemy property and its private ownership is retained, the enemy having acquired only its temporary use (Noceda v. Escobar, G.R. No. L-2939, August 29, 1950)
• The principle that a State has the right to protect itself and its revenues, a right not limited to its own territory but extending to the high seas (Asaali v. Commissioner of Customs, G.R. No. L-24170, February 28, 1969).

c. General Principles of Law

What is the definition of general principles of law?

Principles based on natural justice common to most national systems of law. These refer to those general principles in municipal law (particularly those of private law) that may be appropriated to apply to the relations of states [OPPENHEIM]. (e.g., good faith, estoppel, exhaustion of local remedies, unjust enrichment).

General principles of law recognized by civilized nations are an independent source of international law under Article 38(1)(c) of the ICJ Statute; judicial decisions and scholarly writings are subsidiary means under Article 38(1)(d).

• The ban on enforced disappearance is a generally accepted principle of international law which is considered part of the law of the land (Razon v. Tagitis, G.R. No. 182498, December 3, 2009). Note, however, that RA 10353 (An Act Defining and Penalizing Enforced or Involuntary Disappearance) was passed on December 21, 2012.
• The Yogyakarta Principles (the Application of International Human Rights Law In Relation to Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity) has not yet evinced an obligatory norm in the Philippines. There are declarations and obligations outlined in said Principles which are not reflective of the current state of international law, and do not find basis in any of the sources of international law enumerated under Article 38(1) of the Statute of the International Court of Justice. (Ang Ladlad LGBT Party v. COMELEC, G.R. No. 190582, April 8, 2010).
• Rep. Act No. 9851 defines and provides for the penalties of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. This law provides for the non- prescription of the prosecution of and execution of sentences imposed with regard to the crimes defined in the Act. It also provides for the jurisdiction of the Regional Trial Court over the crimes defined in the Act. These crimes are, therefore, separate from or independent from the crime of rebellion even if they occur on the occasion of or argued to be connected with the armed uprisings. (Ocampo v. Abando, Leonen’s Concurring Opinion, G.R. No. 176830, 2014).

What principles are considered as general principles of international law? Roman Principles

• Principles such as estoppel, res judicata, res inter alios acta, and prescription; e.g. With respect to estoppel, when Thailand did not object to, and has in fact benefited from, the Treaty of 1904 for 50 years, it is deemed to have accepted said treaty. It is thereby precluded from questioning Annex I thereof, which showed that the Temple of Preah Vihear was within Cambodian territory (Temple of Preah Vihear Case (ICJ, June 15, 1962)).
• Other substantive principles, such as the duty to make reparations (Chorzow Factory Case, PCIJ, September 13, 1928), principle of reciprocity, pacta sunt servanda, separate corporate personality (see Barcelona Traction Case, ICJ, February 5, 1970).
• Procedural rules, such as rules governing the use of circumstantial and hearsay evidence are likewise so considered. e.g. Press reports can be used to corroborate the existence of a fact. When they demonstrate matters of public knowledge which have received extensive press coverage, they can be used to prove a fact to the satisfaction of the court (Nicaragua Case, ICJ, June 27, 1986).
• Circumstantial evidence is admitted as indirect evidence in all systems of law and its use is recognized by international decisions. Such circumstantial evidence, however, must consist of a series of facts or events that lead to a single conclusion (Corfu Channel Case, ICJ, April 9, 1949).
• Jurisdictional principles, such as the power of a tribunal to determine the extent of its own jurisdiction (competence de la competence).