Wakilii

Uko and Others v Republic of South Africa (Application No. 004-2012)

African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights · [2012] AfCHPR 3 · 2012 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 violations of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights and other international instruments
Decision
Application struck out for manifest lack of jurisdiction ratione personae

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

Citator coverage is limited to judgments in the Wakilii corpus and source-matched treatment records. Absence of a signal is not an assertion that the case remains good law.

AI-generated summary. This summary was generated by AI from the full text of the judgment. It may contain errors or omissions—always read the source judgment before relying on it.

Holding

The African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights unanimously held that it manifestly lacks jurisdiction to receive an application submitted by individuals against the Republic of South Africa because South Africa has not made the declaration required under Article 34(6) of the Protocol accepting the Court's competence to receive cases from individuals and NGOs under Article 5(3). The application was struck out from the general list of the Court.

Outcome

Application struck out for manifest lack of jurisdiction ratione personae

Facts

On 20 February 2012, Emmanuel Joseph Uko, a Nigerian national, filed an application with the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights on behalf of himself and his family members resident in South Africa, alleging violations of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights, the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights by the Republic of South Africa. The Registrar acknowledged receipt on 28 February 2012 and sought clarification on the status of a communication the applicant had lodged before the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights. The applicant did not respond. The Registrar inquired whether South Africa had made the declaration under Article 34(6) of the Protocol accepting the Court's competence to receive cases from individuals. The African Union Commission Legal Counsel confirmed on 12 April 2012 that South Africa had not made such a declaration.

Issues

  1. Whether the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights has jurisdiction to receive an application from an individual against a State Party that has not made the declaration under Article 34(6) of the Protocol accepting the Court's competence to receive cases from individuals and NGOs.

Orders

  • Application struck out from the general list of the Court.

Rules and key headnotes

Human Rights — Jurisdiction of African Court — Individual Access — Declaration Requirement
The African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights lacks jurisdiction to receive applications from individuals or NGOs against a State Party that has not made the declaration under Article 34(6) of the Protocol accepting the Court's competence to receive such cases under Article 5(3).

Legislation cited (25)

  • Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the establishment of an African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 5(3)
  • 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)
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 2
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 3
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 4
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 5
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 6
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 7
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 10
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 11
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 18
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 19
  • International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights Article 7
  • International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights Article 10
  • International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights Article 12
  • International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights Article 13
  • International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights Article 14
  • International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights Article 17
  • International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights Article 19
  • International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights Article 23
  • International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights Article 24
  • International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights Article 26
  • Rules of Court Rule 8(2)
  • Rules of Court Rule 29(6)
  • Rules of Court Rule 34(1)

Cases cited (5)

  • Michelot Yogogombaye v Republic of Senegal
  • Effoua Mbozo Samuel v Pan African Parliament
  • National Convention of Teachers' Trade Union (CONASYSEO) v Republic of Gabon
  • Delta International Investments SA & Mr and Mrs AGL de Lang v Republic of South Africa
  • Ekollo Moundi Alexandre v Republic of Cameroon and Federal Republic of Nigeria

Full judgment

↓ Download PDF

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

Uko and Others v Republic of South Africa (Application No. 004-2012) [2012] AfCHPR 3 (30 March 2012)
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.