Brief Facts
Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) and the Institute for Human Right and Development in Africa (IHRDA) filed communication 293/04 before African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACmHPR) against Zimbabwe. The Zimbabwean Electoral Act (Modification) No. 3 Notice of 2000 Statutory Instrument 318/2000 (Annexure 1) – Rule 31 of the Electoral (Applications, Appeals and Petitions) Rules 1995 (SI 74a/95) limited the jurisdiction of the national courts to adjudicate over election issues.
Issue
-Whether the legislations mentioned above violates the complianants rights enshrined in the African Charter
Alleged Violations
Article 2 Freedom from discrimination
Article 3 Equality before the law and equal protection of the law
Article 7 Right to fair trial
Article 13 Right to participate in government
Article 26 Respondent’s duty to guarantee the independence of courts
Status of Communication
The ACmHPR held that the respondent state did not violate any of the rights claimed above. The communication was decided on merits at the 43rd Ordinary Session of the ACmHPR held in Ezulwini, Kingdom of Swaziland (7- 22 May, 2008).
