, PLEASE USE THIS DOCUMENT AS A GUIDE ONLY
1. Bankoka's submission is that due to the limited number of prisons and budget constraints,
they would allow juvenile prisoners to be detained with young adults up to age 25 if it is
deemed that the older inmates pose no harmful influence. The Minister approaches you for
legal advice as an expert in international law. With reference to the relevant authorities,
advise the Minister on how a state can express its consent under these circumstances.
Explain in full the process governing the reservations to treaties, including the concept of
permissible and impermissible reservations.
A Legal Opinion on Bankoka's Ratification of the ICCPR and the Permissibility of its Proposed
Reservation
To: The Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Republic of Bankoka
From: Expert in International Law
Subject: Ratification of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and
the Legal Process for Entering a Reservation to Article 10(3)
Date: 4 August 2026
1. Introduction
This legal opinion provides advice on the process by which the Republic of Bankoka may express its
consent to be bound by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) of 1966.
The central issue concerns the legal permissibility of a reservation Bankoka wishes to make to
Article 10(3) of the Covenant, which relates to the treatment of juvenile prisoners. The government's
proposal would allow for the detention of juvenile offenders with young adults up to the age of 25, a
departure from the Covenant's requirement for segregation. This opinion will explain the general
rules for a state to consent to a treaty, the detailed legal framework governing reservations to treaties,
and apply these principles to assess the permissibility of Bankoka's specific reservation. The analysis
will draw upon the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (VCLT), 1969, the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the jurisprudence of the International Court of Justice (ICJ),
and the authoritative interpretations of the UN Human Rights Committee.
2. How a State Expresses Consent to be Bound by a Treaty
The means by which a state becomes a party to a treaty are governed by international law, with the
foundational rules codified in the VCLT.¹ While Bankoka has not ratified the VCLT, it is widely
accepted that the provisions of this convention, particularly those on the conclusion and entry into
force of treaties, reflect customary international law and are binding on all states.² This is a principle
confirmed by the International Court of Justice in the North Sea Continental Shelf cases, where the
Court outlined the requirements for a treaty rule to become customary international law, which can
include widespread and representative ratification.³
¹ Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (VCLT), 1969, Preamble and Article 6. See also Hennie Strydom (ed), International Law
(Oxford University Press, 3rd ed, 2024), Chapter 3, pp 76-77.
² See North Sea Continental Shelf (Federal Republic of Germany v Denmark; Federal Republic of Germany v Netherlands) (Judgment)
[1969] ICJ Rep 3, para 71. Also see Strydom, International Law, Chapter 3, p 106.
³ North Sea Continental Shelf (Federal Republic of Germany v Denmark; Federal Republic of Germany v Netherlands) (Judgment) [1969]
ICJ Rep 3, para 71.
1. Bankoka's submission is that due to the limited number of prisons and budget constraints,
they would allow juvenile prisoners to be detained with young adults up to age 25 if it is
deemed that the older inmates pose no harmful influence. The Minister approaches you for
legal advice as an expert in international law. With reference to the relevant authorities,
advise the Minister on how a state can express its consent under these circumstances.
Explain in full the process governing the reservations to treaties, including the concept of
permissible and impermissible reservations.
A Legal Opinion on Bankoka's Ratification of the ICCPR and the Permissibility of its Proposed
Reservation
To: The Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Republic of Bankoka
From: Expert in International Law
Subject: Ratification of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and
the Legal Process for Entering a Reservation to Article 10(3)
Date: 4 August 2026
1. Introduction
This legal opinion provides advice on the process by which the Republic of Bankoka may express its
consent to be bound by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) of 1966.
The central issue concerns the legal permissibility of a reservation Bankoka wishes to make to
Article 10(3) of the Covenant, which relates to the treatment of juvenile prisoners. The government's
proposal would allow for the detention of juvenile offenders with young adults up to the age of 25, a
departure from the Covenant's requirement for segregation. This opinion will explain the general
rules for a state to consent to a treaty, the detailed legal framework governing reservations to treaties,
and apply these principles to assess the permissibility of Bankoka's specific reservation. The analysis
will draw upon the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (VCLT), 1969, the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the jurisprudence of the International Court of Justice (ICJ),
and the authoritative interpretations of the UN Human Rights Committee.
2. How a State Expresses Consent to be Bound by a Treaty
The means by which a state becomes a party to a treaty are governed by international law, with the
foundational rules codified in the VCLT.¹ While Bankoka has not ratified the VCLT, it is widely
accepted that the provisions of this convention, particularly those on the conclusion and entry into
force of treaties, reflect customary international law and are binding on all states.² This is a principle
confirmed by the International Court of Justice in the North Sea Continental Shelf cases, where the
Court outlined the requirements for a treaty rule to become customary international law, which can
include widespread and representative ratification.³
¹ Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (VCLT), 1969, Preamble and Article 6. See also Hennie Strydom (ed), International Law
(Oxford University Press, 3rd ed, 2024), Chapter 3, pp 76-77.
² See North Sea Continental Shelf (Federal Republic of Germany v Denmark; Federal Republic of Germany v Netherlands) (Judgment)
[1969] ICJ Rep 3, para 71. Also see Strydom, International Law, Chapter 3, p 106.
³ North Sea Continental Shelf (Federal Republic of Germany v Denmark; Federal Republic of Germany v Netherlands) (Judgment) [1969]
ICJ Rep 3, para 71.
