领土争端的关键日期

The Critical Date of Territorial Disputes

关键日期是领土争端当事国之间有关争议领土归属的事实状态"凝固"或"冻结"的时间点。国际法院在司法实践中习惯于把关键日期作为一些案件的证据采纳标准,并依据在这个时间点形成的法律情势来裁判争议领土的主权归属。关键日期作为一个在国际司法判例的基础上产生、并正逐步形成的国际法证据规则,对领土争端的事实认定以及避免冲突升级、维持国际和平都有重要意义。但其适用范围还比较有限。并且,不宜确定一个刚性的关键日期选择标准,而应依据公平原则与最密切联系原则来选定关键日期。

In international law the point of time falling at the end of a period within which the material facts of a territorial dispute are said to have occurred is usually called the＂critical date＂. On the moment the factual position between the parties becomes＂frozen＂or＂crystallized＂. Some international judicial organs take it as standard of evidence reliability to assess the value of evidence materials.However,it is still too early to declare that it is a rule of evidence in international law. And,as a technical rule for exclusion of evidence,its scope of application is limit. At last,it is difficult to set the rigid guideline to choose the critical date in territorial dispute.It is mostly justified to select the critical date through the principle of equity and the doctrine of the most significant relationship.