order to comply with the requirement of Rule 50(2)(e) of the Rules are judicial remedies,6 unless those remedies are unavailable, ineffective and insufficient or unless the proceedings are unduly prolonged.7 39. In this regard, the Court recalls that it has consistently held that the requirement of exhaustion of local remedies seeks to afford States, through their domestic judicial systems, the opportunity to prevent or remedy violations alleged against them before an international body is seized to rule on the same matter. 8 40. The Court points out in this regard that, in order to determine whether local remedies have been exhausted, the proceedings to which an applicant is a party must have ended at the time of filing the Application.9 41. It emerges from the record that two separate domestic criminal proceedings were instituted against the Applicants: first, proceedings for misappropriation of public funds against Soro Guillaume Kigbafori, Kamaraté Souleymane, Nguessan N. René (hereinafter referred to as “the first criminal proceedings”) and, secondly, the proceedings against all the Applicants for disturbing public order, disseminating false news to discredit the institutions and the way they operate, resulting in damage to public morale and undermining the authority of the State (hereinafter referred to as “the second criminal proceedings”). In each of these proceedings, the Court will examine whether the Applicants met the requirement of exhaustion of local remedies. 42. As regards the first set of proceedings, the Court notes that on 8 January 2020, the Abidjan public prosecutor seized the Respondent State’s 6 Fory v. Côte d’Ivoire, supra, § 47. 7 Safinaz Ben Ali and Lamia Jendoubi v. Republic of Tunisia, AfCHPR, Application No. 009/2023, judgment of 3 September 2024 (jurisdiction and admissibility), § 49. 8 African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights v. Republic of Kenya (merits) (26 May 2017) 2 AfCLR 9, §§ 93-94; Houngue Eric Noudehouenou v. Republic of Benin, (4 December 2020) 4 AfCLR 742, § 49; Komi Koutché v. Republic of Benin (jurisdiction and admissibility) (25 June 2021) 5 AfCLR § 231, § 60. 9Yacouba Traoré v. Republic of Mali, (jurisdiction and admissibility) (25 September 2020) 4 AfCLR 665, § 41 Koutché v. Benin § 61; Safinaz Ben Ali and Jendoubi v. Tunisia, supra, § 51. 11