African Court on Human and Peoples Rights - 2018

21 judgments
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Results. 21 judgments found.

21 judgments
December 2018
Court ordered stay of execution of special-court conviction pending African Court decision due to risk of irreparable harm.
  • Human rights — Provisional measures — Stay of execution of national court judgment pending African Court decision — Protocol art. 27(2) and Rule 51
  • Criminal procedure — Special courts and retrial — Risk to fair trial and non bis in idem where domestic appeal/execution rules may permit enforcement pending cassation
7 December 2018
Court orders stay of domestic criminal conviction to prevent irreparable harm pending determination of alleged human rights violations.
  • Human rights — Provisional measures — Prima facie jurisdiction — Enforcement of domestic criminal judgment — Risk of irreparable harm — Stay of execution — Right to a fair trial — Double jeopardy — Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights.
7 December 2018
Court found violations for undue trial delay and deprivation of food; awarded limited monetary compensation.
  • Human Rights — Jurisdiction and admissibility — State responsibility, exhaustion of local remedies and reasonable time — African Court jurisdiction
  • Criminal law / Fair trial — Right to a fair trial — Trial within reasonable time — State delay in prosecution attributable to authorities — Article 7(1)(d) African Charter
  • Human Rights — Cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment — Detention conditions — Deprivation of food as violation of Article 5 of the African Charter
7 December 2018
State's failure to provide trial records violated the right to appeal; Court ordered records produced and applicant released.
  • Human rights
    • — Right to appeal — State obligation to provide trial records and facilitate appeals — Article 7(1)(a) African Charter
    • — Admissibility — Exhaustion of local remedies — Remedies deemed ineffective where State prevents access to necessary documents
    • — Reparations — Release as appropriate remedy where prolonged deprivation of appeal causes a miscarriage of justice
7 December 2018
Court awards monetary compensation for fair-trial and free-expression violations, dismissing expungement and unproven claims.
  • Human rights
    • — Fair trial — Procedural irregularities affecting the right of defence — Article 7(1)(c) African Charter
    • — Freedom of expression — Protection under Article 9(2) African Charter and Article 19 ICCPR — Remedies and reparations
  • Remedies — Reparations — Compensation, restitution and rehabilitation — Burden of proof and evidentiary requirements
7 December 2018
Court found no fair‑trial or equality violations despite claims of mistaken identity and procedural isolation.
  • Human rights
    • — Fair trial — Visual identification and assessment of evidence — Court may review compliance with human rights standards without acting as appellate court
    • — Admissibility — Exhaustion of local remedies and reasonable time — Extraordinary review not required; delay assessed case‑by‑case
    • — Remedies and costs — No violation found; reparations denied; each party bears own costs
7 December 2018
Court exercised inherent power to reopen deliberations and admit new evidence linked to the original application.
  • Human Rights
    • — Court procedure — Reopening of proceedings and admissibility of new evidence after deliberation — Inherent power to set aside deliberation in interest of justice
    • — Continuity of facts — Subsequent developments linked to original application justify reopening pleadings
5 December 2018
September 2018
The failure to provide free legal aid to an indigent defendant in a serious criminal case violated his right to defence under the African Charter.
  • Human rights — Fair trial
    • — Right to defence/legal aid — State obligation to provide free legal assistance where indigent and interests of justice require — African Charter Article 7(1)(c)
    • — Right to be heard — African Court may assess conformity of domestic proceedings with Charter standards but is not an appellate court
  • Human rights — Admissibility — Exhaustion of local remedies and reasonable time — Case‑by‑case assessment; extraordinary constitutional remedies not always required
21 September 2018
Failure to provide free legal aid in a serious criminal case violated the applicant's right to defence.
  • Human rights — Fair trial — Right to legal aid — Obligation to provide free assistance when interests of justice require
  • Criminal procedure — Pre-trial detention/bail — Statutory bar to bail for armed robbery — Legitimate and proportionate restriction
  • Admissibility — Exhaustion and reasonable time — Incarceration, indigence and lack of awareness justify flexibility
21 September 2018
Court found fair‑trial breaches (no legal aid, no defence witnesses, insufficient evidence) and ordered a retrial within specified timelines.
  • Human rights — Fair trial
    • — Right to defence and legal aid — State obligation to provide free legal assistance where interests of justice require
    • — Defence witnesses — Duty of domestic courts to take proactive steps to secure attendance and explain decisions
  • Human rights — Admissibility — Exhaustion of local remedies and reasonable time — Constitutional petition not always required; timeliness assessed case‑by‑case
21 September 2018
May 2018
The Court found Mali’s Family Code violated regional instruments on minimum marriage age, consent to marriage, inheritance and harmful cultural practices.
  • Human rights
    • — Women’s rights — Minimum age of marriage — State obligation to set 18 years under Maputo Protocol Article 6(b)
    • — Family law — Consent to marriage — Requirement for free and full consent and procedural safeguards for religious marriages — Maputo Protocol Article 6(a); CEDAW Article 16
    • — Inheritance and non-discrimination — Default to religious/customary law disadvantaging women and children born out of wedlock — Maputo Protocol Article 21; Children’s Charter Articles 3 and 4
11 May 2018
Application dismissed as inadmissible for failure to exhaust domestic remedies; Rule 67 objection rejected.
  • Human rights — Admissibility — Exhaustion of local remedies — Requirement to pursue available remedies to the highest domestic level — African Charter Article 56(5)
  • Civil procedure — Review/Reopening of proceedings — Distinct new application versus judicial review — Rule 67 of the Rules inapplicable to a separate subsequent filing
11 May 2018
Court affirmed jurisdiction and admissibility but dismissed claims of violation of equality and health rights.
  • Human rights — Jurisdiction — Capacity of the African Court to assess compliance of domestic proceedings with Charter standards without acting as an appellate court
  • Admissibility — Exhaustion of local remedies — Appeals to highest national court sufficient; constitutional petition an extraordinary remedy not required to be exhausted
  • Human rights — Equality and health rights — Allegations that domestic appellate court’s failure to consider grounds violated Article 3(1) and Article 16 — Insufficient substantiation
11 May 2018
Court finds failure to provide free counsel and delayed disclosure of witness statements violated Article 7(1)(c) of the Charter.
  • Human rights — Fair trial
    • — Right to legal assistance — Obligation to provide free counsel in serious criminal proceedings — Article 7(1)(c) African Charter
    • — Disclosure of evidence — Duty to furnish prosecution witness statements promptly — Equality of arms
  • Jurisdiction — Material jurisdiction — Review of domestic proceedings for Charter compliance without acting as appellate court
11 May 2018
Failure to provide free legal assistance in serious criminal proceedings violated the Charter and the State’s Article 1 obligations.
  • Human rights
    • — Jurisdiction — Court may review national proceedings for compliance with Charter standards despite not being an appellate court
    • — Fair trial — Right to defence/legal assistance — State obligation to provide free counsel in serious criminal proceedings for indigent accused
    • — Admissibility — Exhaustion of ordinary local remedies and filing within reasonable time assessed case‑by‑case
11 May 2018
March 2018
Failure to disclose prosecution witness statements and refusal to facilitate an impotence test violated applicants' right to a fair trial.
  • Human rights
    • — Fair trial — Disclosure of prosecution witness statements and opportunity to cross‑examine — Article 7(1)(c) African Charter
    • — Jurisdiction — Review of domestic criminal proceedings for conformity with the African Charter (not appellate review) — Article 3(1) Protocol
  • Remedies — Reparations and costs — Presidential pardon does not extinguish non‑monetary and compensation claims; Court may defer reparation determination
23 March 2018
Court held that arbitrary deprivation of nationality and expulsion without judicial remedy violated regional and international human rights law.
  • Nationality — arbitrary deprivation — right to nationality — statelessness — expulsion — procedural fairness — judicial remedy — international human rights law — exhaustion of local remedies — right to be heard
22 March 2018
Application declared inadmissible because the dispute had been previously settled by the ECOWAS Court of Justice.
  • Human rights
    • — Admissibility — Prior settlement by regional court (ECOWAS) — Article 56(7) African Charter
    • — Fair trial; Equality before the law; Effective remedy — Allegations against national courts — Cognizability subject to admissibility
  • Procedure — Admissibility — Exhaustion of local remedies and reasonable time-period under Article 56(5)-(6) and Rule 40
22 March 2018
Failure to provide free legal aid to an indigent accused in a serious criminal case violated the right to defence under Article 7(1)(c) of the African Charter.
  • Human rights
    • — Fair trial — Right to legal aid — State obligation to provide free legal assistance to indigent accused in serious cases — Article 7(1)(c) African Charter
    • — Criminal procedure — Visual identification — Need to eliminate possibilities of mistaken identity and corroborate identification evidence
  • Procedure — Jurisdiction and admissibility — African Court may review whether domestic proceedings complied with Charter standards without acting as an appellate court
21 March 2018
Failure to exhaust domestic criminal and civil remedies, including seeking reclassification and producing medical evidence, rendered the application inadmissible.
  • Human rights — Admissibility — Exhaustion of local remedies — Undue delay exception
  • Criminal procedure — Classification of offences — Availability and effectiveness of re‑classification remedy
  • Civil procedure — Remedies for compensation — Requirement to pursue domestic civil action before international adjudication
21 March 2018
January 2018
The Court ordered amendment of the application’s title to reflect the alleged victim as the applicant for greater clarity.
  • Civil procedure — application title — substitution of applicant’s representative by the alleged victim — power of court to amend case title — effect on parties' rights.
17 January 2018