- Year
- 2008
- Summary
- The 31st Activity Report of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, submitted under Article 54 of the African Charter, covers the intersession period between the 49th and 50th Ordinary Sessions in 2011, including the proceedings of the 50th Session. It reports the swearing‑in of five new Commissioners, the election of a new Chairperson and Vice‑Chairperson, the granting of Observer Status to two NGOs (bringing the total to 430), and statements on human rights situations by 19 State Parties. Intersession activities included promotional missions to the Central African Republic, Niger, Nigeria, and Algeria; meetings of working groups on indigenous populations, the death penalty, and economic, social and cultural rights; a colloquium marking the 30th anniversary of the African Charter; and a moot court competition. The Commission considered periodic reports from Nigeria, Togo, Burundi, Burkina Faso, and Uganda, adopting concluding observations for some and deferring others. A detailed table shows the status of reporting by State Parties: 11 are up to date, while many are behind or have never submitted a report. Regarding communications, 92 were considered (including three transferred from the African Court), four were dismissed for lack of diligent prosecution, one was withdrawn, and 74 were deferred. The Commission adopted 12 resolutions, including on special mechanisms, a working group on communications, and on human rights situations (e.g., human rights defenders, indigenous peoples, and the abduction of aid workers in Sahrawi camps). Positive developments noted include ratifications of regional instruments (e.g., Guinea and Zambia ratified the African Charter on Democracy), adoption of torture‑criminalisation bills in several countries, and peaceful elections in Cape Verde, São Tomé, Cameroon, Zambia, and Tunisia. Causes for concern include arbitrary detention, torture, overcrowding in prisons, conflicts in Somalia, Libya, and Sudan, and low implementation of international instruments. The Commission responded by adopting principles on economic, social and cultural rights, undertaking promotion missions, issuing provisional measures on Southern Kordofan, and adopting resolutions and press statements. The report concludes with the dates of the next Extra‑Ordinary and Ordinary Sessions.