Africa Human Rights Court President Attends AU Summit


The African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights leadership attends the 28th Summit of the Heads of State and Government of the African Union (AU), in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia which opened with a strong call for unity to uphold the maintenance of peace and stability in the continent.
     
The African Court President, Justice Sylvain Ore and Vice President, Justice Ben Kioko, are among high profile personalities participating in the AU Summit, which is 
under the general theme: “Harnessing the Demographic Dividend through Investments in the Youth”.
    
The African Court leadership would be making presentations on activities over the period to the AU summit.
      
The African Court was established by virtue of Article 1 of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights. On the establishment of an African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, (the Protocol) which was adopted by Member States of the then Organization of African Unity (OAU) in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, in June 1998. 
      
The Protocol came into force on 25 January 2004 and it complements and reinforces the functions of the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights.
       
As at October 2016, only seven of the 30 States Parties to the Protocol had made the declaration recognizing the competence of the Court to receive cases from NGOs and individuals. 
      
The seven States are; Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Mali, Malawi and Tanzania. The 30 States which have ratified the Protocol are: Algeria, Benin, 

Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, Comoros, Congo, Gabon, Gambia, 

Ghana, Kenya, Libya, Lesotho, Mali, Malawi, Mozambique, Mauritania, Mauritius, 

Nigeria, Niger, Rwanda, Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, South Africa, Senegal, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia and Uganda.
      
The African Court has jurisdiction over all cases and disputes submitted to it concerning the interpretation and application of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights, (the Charter), the Protocol and any other relevant human rights instrument ratified by the States concerned. 

Specifically, the Court has two types of jurisdiction: contentious and advisory.
       
Meanwhile, the AU Summit elected Mr. Alpha Conde, President of the Republic of Guinea, as the new Chairperson of the Union, Mr. Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, President of the Republic of Uganda, First Vice President, and Mr. Abdelaziz Bouteflika, President of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria as second Vice President.
      
The rest are: King MSWATI III, of the Kingdom of Swaziland as the third Vice President; and Mr. Idriss Deby Itno, President of the Republic of Chad as a Rapporteur.
     
The Summit also elected the Chadian Foreign Minister Moussa Faki Mahamat as the new Chairperson of the AU Commission; whilst Mr Thomas Kwesi Quartey, a Ghanaian Diplomat was also elected as a Deputy Chairperson.

SOURCE: GNA