Wakilii

Saitoti and Another v United Republic of Tanzania (Application No. 007-2020)

African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights · [2026] AfCHPR 1 · 2026 Application Struck Out 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 human rights violations during domestic criminal proceedings in Tanzania
Decision
Application struck out without prejudice to restoration

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 struck out the application from its cause list under Rule 65(1)(c) of the Rules of Court. The Court found it was no longer justified to continue examining the application where both parties failed to file information on the status of domestic retrials despite multiple extensions of time, and the applicants' counsel could not contact the applicants following their reported release from custody. The striking out is without prejudice to the applicants' right to file for restoration under Rule 65(3).

Outcome

Application struck out without prejudice to restoration

Facts

The applicants, Kenyan nationals, were arrested in Tanzania in July 2007 and charged with armed robbery and murder following an alleged bank robbery in which a police constable was killed. They were convicted in separate trials and sentenced to 30 years imprisonment for armed robbery and death by hanging for murder. On appeal, the Tanzanian Court of Appeal quashed both convictions and ordered retrials due to procedural irregularities. The applicants filed an application with the African Court alleging human rights violations during the domestic proceedings. In October 2021, the Tanzanian Court of Appeal nullified the proceedings and quashed the convictions, and the applicants were released from custody. The applicants' counsel subsequently lost contact with the applicants and could not obtain further instructions. Despite multiple extensions of time, neither party provided the Court with information on the status of the domestic retrials as requested.

Issues

  1. Whether the application should be struck out from the Court's cause list under Rule 65 of the Rules of Court where the applicants failed to provide updates on the status of domestic retrials and could not be contacted by counsel.

Orders

  • Application No. 007/2020 struck out from the Court's Cause List.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Strike Out — Failure to Prosecute — Duty of Diligence
Parties to an application before the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights must pursue their case with diligence, and where they fail or implicitly or expressly indicate their lack of interest to do so, Rule 65 of the Rules empowers the Court to strike out the application from its cause list.
Civil Procedure — Strike Out — Discretion of Court — Circumstances Justifying Strike Out
The Court retains discretion to decide whether a particular application should be struck out, and may strike out an application if in the circumstances it is no longer justified to continue with the determination of the matter.
Civil Procedure — Strike Out — Duty to Update Court — Change of Circumstances
Regardless of their purported release or possible change of address, it behoves applicants to give updates or notify the Court on their prison status or current whereabouts.

Cases cited (6)

  • Andrew Ambrose Cheusi v United Republic of Tanzania (Merits and Reparations) (26 June 2020)
  • Abdallah Ally Kulukuni v United Republic of Tanzania (Strike Out) (25 September 2020)
  • Magweiga Mahiri v United Republic of Tanzania (Application No. 029/2017)
  • Henry Massanja v United Republic of Tanzania (Application No. 002/2018)
  • Ngasa Nhabi v United Republic of Tanzania (Application No. 004/2018)
  • Vuyo Jack v United Republic of Tanzania (Application No. 001/2019)

Full judgment

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

Saitoti and Another v United Republic of Tanzania (Application No. 007-2020) [2026] AfCHPR 1 (25 March 2026)
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.