On the 20th anniversary of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, Amnesty International has warned that a severe lack of state support is strangling the tribunal’s ability to deliver justice across the continent.<\/p>\n
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The global rights body released a critical report this Friday, coinciding with World Day for International Justice, titled “20 years of the African Court \u2013 Protect the Court, Protect the People.” The findings reveal deep geographic disparities and legal blockades that leave millions of African citizens without a voice.<\/p>\n
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Amnesty highlighted that out of the African Union\u2019s (AU) 55 member states, 21 have still not ratified the protocol establishing the regional court in Tanzania. Even more alarming, as of July 2026, only seven countries currently allow individuals and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to submit human rights complaints directly to the court.<\/p>\n
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Over the last two decades, five nations, Tanzania, Rwanda, Tunisia, Benin, and C\u00f4te d’Ivoire, have actively stripped their citizens of this right by withdrawing their direct-access declarations. This has effectively left Central, North, and Southern Africa heavily underrepresented in the court\u2019s jurisprudence, with the vast majority of its 250 finalised cases concentrated elsewhere.<\/p>\n
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“The African Court is an essential judicial avenue for individuals and civil society organizations who cannot obtain prompt, effective, and adequate remedy for human rights violations in their own countries,” said Japhet Biegon, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for East and Southern Africa. “It is vital that every AU member state ratifies the protocol and makes the declaration allowing individuals and NGOs to directly access the court.”<\/p>\n
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The report also slammed AU political bodies for failing to enforce the court\u2019s binding judgments. Amnesty noted widespread delays and outright non-compliance by member states when ordered to remedy violations, leaving historic rulings, such as landmark environmental protections and indigenous rights victories, unenforced on the ground.<\/p>\n
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–ChannelAfrica–<\/p>\n
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