22. The provisions of article 14 apply to all courts and tribunals within the scope of that article whether ordinary or specialized, civilian or military. The Committee notes the existence, in many countries, of military or special courts which try civilians. While the Covenant does not prohibit the trial of civilians in military or special courts, it requires that such trials are in full conformity with the requirements of article 14 and that its guarantees cannot be limited or modified because of the military or special character of the court concerned. The Committee also notes that the trial of civilians in military or special courts may raise serious problems as far as the equitable, impartial and independent administration of justice is concerned. Therefore, it is important to take all necessary measures to ensure that such trials take place under conditions which genuinely afford the full guarantees stipulated in article 14. Trials of civilians by military or special courts should be exceptional,36 i.e. limited to cases where the State party can show that resorting to such trials is necessary and justified by objective and serious reasons, and where 30 Concluding observations, Slovakia, CCPR/C/79/Add.79 (1997), para. 18. 31 Communication No. 468/1991, Oló Bahamonde v. Equatorial Guinea, para. 9.4. 32 Communication No. 814/1998, Pastukhov v. Belarus, para. 7.3. 33 Communication No. 933/2000, Mundyo Busyo et al v. Democratic Republic of Congo, para. 5.2. 34 Communication No. 387/1989, Karttunen v. Finland, para. 7.2. 35 Idem. 36 Also see Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War of 12 August 1949, art. 64 and general comment No. 31 (2004) on the Nature of the General Legal Obligation Imposed on States Parties to the Covenant, para. 11. CCPR/C/GC/32 Page 7 with regard to the specific class of individuals and offences at issue the regular civilian courts are unable to undertake the trials.3