Wakilii

Ajavon v Republic of Benin (Application No. 065-2019)

African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights · [2021] AfCHPR 52 · 2021 Application Partly Allowed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application alleging failure by Respondent State to execute prior decisions of the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights
Decision
Application partly allowed; Respondent State found to have violated Article 30 of the Protocol and Article 1 of the Charter; symbolic damages awarded; State ordered to execute prior judgment

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The African Court held that it has jurisdiction to hear applications concerning State compliance with its own decisions under Article 30 of the Protocol. The Court found that Benin violated Article 30 by failing to execute prior decisions ordering annulment of a domestic criminal judgment, and violated Article 1 of the Charter by failing to implement rights protected under the Charter and Protocol. The Court awarded symbolic damages of 1 CFA franc and ordered Benin to execute the 29 March 2019 judgment.

Outcome

Application partly allowed; Respondent State found to have violated Article 30 of the Protocol and Article 1 of the Charter; symbolic damages awarded; State ordered to execute prior judgment

Facts

The Applicant, a Beninese businessman residing in France as a political refugee, brought this application alleging that the Republic of Benin failed to execute two prior decisions of the African Court: an Order for Provisional Measures of 7 December 2018 and a Judgment on Merits of 29 March 2019. Those decisions had ordered Benin to stay execution of, and subsequently annul, a criminal judgment (No. 007/3C.COR of 18 October 2018) delivered by Benin's Court for the Repression of Economic Offences and Terrorism (CRIET). The Applicant alleged that Benin's failure to comply resulted in ongoing violations of his human rights, including inability to obtain a certificate of clean criminal record, inability to stand for legislative elections, continued listing on the Ministry of Justice website as a wanted person, and forced exile.

Issues

  1. Whether the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights has jurisdiction to hear an application alleging failure by a State Party to execute the Court's prior decisions.
  2. Whether the Respondent State violated Article 30 of the Protocol by failing to execute the Order for Provisional Measures of 7 December 2018 and the Judgment on Merits of 29 March 2019.
  3. Whether the Respondent State violated Article 1 of the African Charter by failing to adopt measures to give effect to rights protected under the Charter and its supplementary protocols.

Orders

  • Dismisses the objection based on the lack of material jurisdiction.
  • Finds that it has jurisdiction.
  • Dismisses the objections based on inadmissibility.
  • Finds the Application admissible.
  • Finds that the Respondent State has violated Article 30 of the Protocol.
  • Finds that the Respondent State has violated Article 1 of the Charter.
  • Dismisses the Applicant's prayer for an expert appraisal of damages.
  • Dismisses the request for payment of Three Hundred Billion (300,000,000,000) CFA francs.
  • Dismisses the Respondent State's counterclaim for payment of One Billion (1,000,000,000) CFA francs as damages for abuse of process.
  • Awards the Applicant a symbolic amount of 1 CFA franc as reparation for moral prejudice.
  • Orders the Respondent State to comply with Article 30 of the Protocol by executing the Judgment of 29 March 2019, that is, by taking all necessary measures to annul judgment No. 007/3C.COR delivered on 18 October 2018 by the CRIET in a way to erase all its effects.
  • Orders the Respondent State to report to the Court within seven (7) days from the notification of this Judgment.
  • Orders each party to bear its own costs.

Rules and key headnotes

Human Rights — Regional Courts — Jurisdiction — Enforcement of Court Decisions
The African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights has material jurisdiction under Article 3 of the Protocol to hear applications concerning the interpretation and application of Article 30 of the Protocol, which obliges States Parties to comply with and execute the Court's decisions, without prejudice to the Executive Council's monitoring role under Article 29(2).
Human Rights — Regional Courts — Binding Nature of Provisional Measures
Orders indicating provisional measures issued by the African Court have binding character within the meaning of Article 30 of the Protocol, consistent with the jurisprudence of the International Court of Justice, the UN Human Rights Committee, the European Court of Human Rights, and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.
Administrative Law — Exhaustion of Local Remedies — Exemption Based on Context and Personal Circumstances
Where a court has previously exempted an applicant from exhausting local remedies due to the particular context of the matter and the applicant's personal situation, that exemption applies to subsequent related applications arising from the same circumstances, and the applicant should not be required to seize domestic courts including the Constitutional Court.
Human Rights — Reparations — Moral Prejudice — Presumption and Quantum
In cases of established human rights violations, moral prejudice is presumed as an automatic consequence of the violation without need for separate proof. The determination of quantum for moral damage is made on the basis of equity, taking into account the circumstances of each case, and may be satisfied by a symbolic award.
Constitutional Law — Charter Obligations — Relationship Between Charter and Supplementary Protocols
Article 66 of the African Charter provides for legal complementarity between the Charter and protocols or agreements adopted to supplement it. Consequently, violation of rights, duties, and freedoms set out in any supplementary protocol implies a violation of Article 1 of the Charter, which obliges States to adopt measures to give effect to Charter rights.

Legislation cited (14)

  • Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Establishment of an African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 30
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 1
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 2
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 3(2)
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 7
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 13(1)
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 13(2)
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 14
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 56
  • African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance Article 10(2)
  • Constitution of Benin Article 114
  • Constitution of Benin Article 117
  • Constitution of Benin Article 122
  • Constitution of Benin Article 155

Cases cited (16)

  • Houngue Eric Noudehouenou v Republic of Benin (Application No. 003/2020)
  • Sébastien Germain Ajavon v Republic of Benin (Application No. 013/2017)
  • Suy Bi Gohore Emile and others v Republic of Côte d'Ivoire (Application No. 044/2019)
  • XYZ v Republic of Benin (Application No. 059/2020)
  • Jean Claude Roger Gombert v Republic of Côte d'Ivoire (2018)
  • Dexter Eddie Johnson v Republic of Ghana (Application No. 016/2017)
  • Beneficiaries of late Norbert Zongo and others v Burkina Faso (2014)
  • Tanganyika Law Society and others v Tanzania (2013)
  • Mehemi v France (No. 2) (Application No. 53470/99)
  • Oberschlick v Austria (Application Nos. 19255/92 and 21655/93)
  • LaGrand (Germany v United States of America) (2001)
  • Mamatkulov and Askarov v Turkey (Application Nos. 46827/99 and 49951/99)
  • Loayza Tamayo v Peru (1997)
  • Factory at Chorzów (Germany v Poland) (1928)
  • Akdivar and Others v Turkey (Application No. 21893/93)
  • Selmouni v France (Application No. 25803/94)

Full judgment

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The original judgment as reported. Read the original PDF before relying on any passage.

Ajavon v Republic of Benin (Application No. 065-2019) [2021] AfCHPR 52 (29 March 2021)
Source: this page presents Wakilii’s issue analysis and metadata for a publicly reported Ugandan judgment. Any AI-generated summary is marked as such. Judgment text is sourced from the Uganda Legal Information Institute (ulii.org). Wakilii is not affiliated with ULII.