acts violating the fundamental rights granted him by the constitution or by law) has been violated. 12. More specifically, the Applicants emphasize that “.... the crucial element in the obligation to protect the right to life and guarantee the existence of effective remedies when the said right is violated is the duty to investigate the perpetrators of the acts of homicide such as that of Norbert Zongo, identify the suspects and bring them to justice...”. 13. They further stress that “instead of fulfilling that obligation, Burkina Faso patently and repeatedly chose io frustrate the efforts of the families of Norbert Zongo and his companions ait ensuring that those responsible for the deaths account for their actions”. 14. They also contend that “by failing to initiate an effective inquiry to determine the circumstances surrounding the death of Nobert Zongo and ensuring that those responsible are identified, tried and punished, Burkina Faso violated Norbert Zongo’s right to life as guaranteed under article 4 of the Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and article 6(1) of ICCPR, as well as article 3(2) of the Charter on equal protection of the law”. a 15. Finally, they submit that “these actions for which Burkina Faso is held liable constitute a violation of article 9(2) of the Charter and article 9(1) and (2) of the ICCPR...” both of which guarantee freedom of expression. il, HANDLING OF THE MATTER AT NATIONAL LEVEL 16. At this juncture, a summary of the manner in which this matter was handled at national level would be appropriate. According to the narrative of events by the Applicants, both in their Application and in their submissions on the Merits, as well as at the Public Hearing of 28 and 29 November 2013, the matter went through the following main stages: - Seizure of the Dean of the Examining Magistrates of Cabinet No. 1 of the Ouagadougou High Court, by the State Prosecutor through a formal request dated 24 December 1998