Wakilii

Yogogombaye v Senegal (File No. 001-2008)

African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights · [2009] AfCHPR 4 · 2009 Application Dismissed — No Jurisdiction AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application brought directly by an individual against a State Party to the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights
Decision
Application dismissed for lack of jurisdiction

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 it has no jurisdiction to hear an application brought directly by an individual against a State Party that has not made the declaration prescribed in Article 34(6) of the Protocol accepting the Court's competence to receive cases from individuals. Senegal had not made such a declaration, and therefore the Court could not entertain the application. Each party was ordered to bear its own costs.

Outcome

Application dismissed for lack of jurisdiction

Facts

Mr. Michelot Yogogombaye, a Chadian national, brought an application against Senegal seeking suspension of proceedings instituted by Senegal to charge, try, and sentence Mr. Hissein Habré, former Head of State of Chad, who was residing in Dakar as a political refugee. The Applicant alleged that Senegal violated the principle of non-retroactivity of criminal law and the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights by amending its Constitution in July 2008 to allow retroactive application of criminal laws to try Habré. The Applicant sought an order suspending the proceedings and establishing a Truth, Justice, Reparations and Reconciliation Commission. Senegal objected to the Court's jurisdiction, asserting it had not made the declaration under Article 34(6) of the Protocol accepting the Court's competence to receive applications from individuals.

Issues

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

Orders

  • The Court has no jurisdiction to hear the case instituted by Mr. Yogogombaye against Senegal.
  • Each party shall bear its own costs.

Rules and key headnotes

Jurisdiction of African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights — Individual Access — Article 34(6) Declaration Requirement
For the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights to hear a case brought directly by an individual against a State Party, the State must have made a declaration accepting the competence of the Court to receive cases from individuals in accordance with Article 34(6) of the Protocol. The Court shall not receive any petition involving a State Party which has not made such a declaration.
Interpretation of Jurisdictional Provisions — Meaning of 'Receive' in Article 34(6)
The word 'receive' in Article 34(6) of the Protocol should not be understood in its literal meaning as referring to physically receiving an application, nor in its technical sense as referring to admissibility. It should be interpreted as referring to the jurisdiction of the Court to examine the application, that is, its jurisdiction to hear the case.

Legislation cited (5)

  • Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Establishment of an African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 3
  • 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 22
  • 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 7(2)

Full judgment

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

Yogogombaye v Senegal (File No. 001-2008) [2009] AfCHPR 4 (15 December 2009)
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.