Wakilii

Mallya v Tanzania (Application No. 018-2015)

African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights · [2019] AfCHPR 41 · 2019 Petition Granted AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application to the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights alleging violations of the right to appeal, right to be tried within a reasonable time, and right to liberty under the African Charter
Decision
Court found violations of the right to appeal, right to be tried within a reasonable time, and right to liberty. Reparations and costs reserved for later determination.

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights held that Tanzania violated the applicant's right to appeal under Article 7(1)(a) of the African Charter by failing for fifteen years to provide certified copies of the proceedings and judgment needed to pursue an appeal from his rape conviction as a juvenile. The Court also held that this failure violated his right to be tried within reasonable time under Article 7(1)(d) and his right to liberty under Article 6, as the lack of procedural safeguards resulted in continued arbitrary imprisonment. Reparations were reserved for later determination.

Outcome

Court found violations of the right to appeal, right to be tried within a reasonable time, and right to liberty. Reparations and costs reserved for later determination.

Facts

The applicant, a fifteen-year-old boy, was convicted of rape on 16 May 2000 by the District Court of Moshi and sentenced to life imprisonment. Three days after his conviction, he filed a notice of appeal. He requested certified true copies of the record of proceedings and judgment to pursue his appeal but these were never provided despite repeated requests to the District Registrar of the High Court. In February 2016, over fifteen years later and only after the applicant filed his application to the African Court, the High Court of Tanzania at Moshi of its own motion called for the applicant's records. On 22 February 2016, the High Court allowed the appeal, quashed the conviction, set aside the sentence, and ordered the applicant's release on the basis that the evidence relied upon by the District Court was flawed. The applicant was released in May 2016 after serving fifteen years and nine months in prison.

Issues

  1. Whether the Respondent State violated the Applicant's right to appeal by failing to provide certified true copies of the record of proceedings and judgment to enable him to file his appeal.
  2. Whether the Respondent State violated the Applicant's right to be tried within a reasonable time by not providing the Applicant with the necessary documents to pursue his appeal for over fifteen years.
  3. Whether the Respondent State violated the Applicant's right to liberty by failing to provide adequate procedural safeguards that resulted in his continued arbitrary imprisonment.

Orders

  • Declared that the Court has jurisdiction.
  • Declared that the Application is admissible.
  • Found that the Respondent State violated the Applicant's rights to appeal and to be heard within a reasonable time contrary to Article 7(1)(a) and (d) of the Charter, respectively, as regards the failure to provide the Applicant with certified true copies of the record of proceedings and of the judgment in Criminal Case No 1142/99 heard at the District Court of Moshi.
  • Found that the Respondent State violated the Applicant's right to liberty under Article 6 of the Charter, for not making available, adequate procedural safeguards to prevent the continued detention of the Applicant.
  • Declared that it will rule on reparations at a later stage.
  • Reserved its decision on costs.

Rules and key headnotes

Right to Appeal — State Obligation to Provide Procedural Mechanisms
The right to appeal under Article 7(1)(a) of the African Charter requires that States establish mechanisms for appeal and take necessary action to facilitate the exercise of this right by individuals, including providing them with judgments or decisions they wish to appeal against within a reasonable time.
Effective Access to Courts — State Obligations
A State which has established appellate courts is under an obligation to ensure that individuals enjoy the fundamental guarantees offered by those courts and must provide litigants with an effective right of access to the courts to verify the merits of all charges, including criminal cases.
Right to Trial within Reasonable Time — Scope and Coverage
The right to be tried within a reasonable time is one of the cardinal principles of the right to a fair trial, and unduly prolonging a case at the appellate level is contrary to the letter and spirit of Article 7(1)(d) of the African Charter. This right covers all stages of judicial proceedings, from the initial trial to the appellate courts.
Reasonable Time Assessment — Three-Element Test
In determining the reasonableness of time within which a trial must be concluded, three elements should be taken into account: the complexity of the matter, the procedural activities carried out by the interested party, and the conduct of judicial authorities.
Right to Liberty — Arbitrary Detention — Procedural Safeguards
There are three cumulative criteria to determine whether a particular deprivation of liberty is arbitrary: the lawfulness of the deprivation, the existence of clear and reasonable grounds, and the availability of procedural safeguards against arbitrariness. Non-compliance with one of these conditions makes the deprivation of liberty arbitrary.
State Responsibility — Effect of Subsequent Remedy on Liability
Measures to release a detainee or to repeal laws do not in any way change the violations which have been committed and do not absolve governments of their responsibilities vis-à-vis such violations. The mere fact of subsequently quashing a conviction and restoring freedom after prolonged imprisonment does not negate the State's obligation for failing to ensure procedural guarantees.
Admissibility — Exhaustion of Local Remedies — Availability and Effectiveness
For remedies to be considered available for purposes of exhaustion under Article 56(5) of the African Charter, it is not enough that they should be established in the domestic system; they must also be available for use to individuals without hindrance. Where a State fails to provide necessary documents to pursue an appeal, the applicant is prevented from exhausting remedies and the admissibility requirement is fulfilled.

Legislation cited (6)

  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 7(1)(a)
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 7(1)(d)
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 6
  • Constitution of the United Republic of Tanzania 1977 Article 13(6)(a)
  • Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Establishment of an African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 34(6)
  • Basic Rights and Duties Enforcement Act Sections 4 and 5

Cases cited (18)

  • Kennedy Owino Onyachi & Another v United Republic of Tanzania (Application No. 003/2015)
  • Kijiji Isiaga v United Republic of Tanzania (Application No. 032/2015)
  • Beneficiaries of Late Norbert Zongo & Others v Burkina Faso (Application No. 013/2011)
  • Action Pour La Protection Des Droits De L'Homme (APDH) v Republic of Cote d'Ivoire (Application No. 001/2014)
  • Mgosi Mwita Makungu v United Republic of Tanzania (Application No. 006/2016)
  • Alex Thomas v United Republic of Tanzania (Application No. 005/2013)
  • Wilfred Onyango Nganyi & 9 Others v United Republic of Tanzania (Application No. 006/2013)
  • Kempf and others v Luxembourg (ECHR Application No. 17140/05)
  • Henrioud v France (ECHR Application No. 21444/11)
  • Delcourt v Belgium (ECHR Series A no. 11)
  • Viard v France (ECHR Application No. 71658/10)
  • Vinter & others v United Kingdom (ECtHR Application Nos. 66069/09, 130/10, and 3896/10)
  • Kafkaris v Cyprus (ECtHR Application No. 21906/04)
  • Herrera-Ulloa v Costa Rica (IACtHR Judgment of 2 July 2004)
  • Reverend Christopher R. Mtikila v United Republic of Tanzania (Application No. 011/2011)
  • Beneficiaries of the Late Norbert Zongo and Others v Burkina Faso (Application No. 013/2011)
  • Ingabire Victoire Umuhoza v Republic of Rwanda (Application No. 003/2014)
  • Mohamed Abubakari v United Republic of Tanzania (Application No. 007/2019)

Full judgment

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

Mallya v Tanzania (Application No. 018-2015) [2019] AfCHPR 41 (26 September 2019)
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.