39.It emerges
from
November
therefore
2014,
that
the
record
when
date
that
local
the Supreme
which
must
be
remedies
Court
were
delivered
regarded
as
exhausted
on
its judgment.
the
starting
point
24
It is
for
calculating and assessing the reasonableness of the time, as provided for
in Rule 40(6) of the Rules and Article 56(6) of the Charter.
40. The present Application was filed on 24 February 2017, two (2) years and
three (3) months after the exhaustion of local remedies.
therefore,
decide
whether
or not
this
period
The Court must,
is reasonable
within
the
meaning of Charter and the Rules.
41.The
Court
depends
recalls that"... the reasonableness
on
the
particular
circumstances
of a time-limit for referral
of each
case,
and
must
be
assessed on a case-by-case basis ...'®
42.The
Court
has consistently
held that the six-month
provided for in other international human
time limit expressly
rights instruments
cannot
be
applied under Article 56(6) of the Charter. The Court has therefore adopted
a case-by-case approach to assessing what constitutes a reasonable time
limit, within the meaning of Article 56(6) of the Charter.”
43.The Court considers that, in accordance with its established jurisprudence
on the assessment of
reasonable time, the determining factors are, inter
alia, the status of the Applicant®, the conduct of the Respondent State® or
its officials. Furthermore,
the Court assesses
the reasonableness
of the
time limit on the basis of objective considerations.'°
6 Beneficiaries of the late Norbert Zongo, Abdoulaye Nikiema dit Ablasse, Ernest Zongo and Blaise liboudo
and Mouvement Burkinabé des droits de l'homme et des peuples v. Burkina Faso (preliminary objections)
(2013) 1AfCLR 197, § 121.
7 Norbert Zongo ibid. See also Alex Thomas v. Tanzania (merits) op.cit, §§ 73 and 74.
8 Alex Thomas v. Tanzania (merits) (2015) 1 AfCLR 465, § 74.
9 Anudo Ochieng Anudo v. Tanzania (merits) (2018), § 58.
10 As the date of deposit of the Declaration recognising the Court's jurisdiction, in accordance with Article
34(6) of the Protocol.
12