By Raïssa Robles – The recent hearing of the Arbitral Tribunal was supposed to be closed to the public.

ITLOS-logo“However,” according to an official press release from the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague dated July 13, “after receiving written requests from interested States, and having sought the views of the Parties, the Arbitral Tribunal permitted the Governments of Malaysia, the Republic of Indonesia, the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam, the Kingdom of Thailand and Japan, to send small delegations to attend the hearing as observers.”