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Human Rights OU' Collective Bes nonsibi rv COMMUNICATION 716/19 Three Jehovah's Witnesses (Represented by Lawyers Associated for Human Rights in Africa) v The State of Eritrea Adop/I.d by 1M: African Comnu.uion 011 Human end Peoples' Rights Dw'lng tJse 7f1' Ordinar}' Session, held in hyI:rrldjormat,jro'fn " CI!?' c1 '" ~fncan Ilntnn 19 JtiIy to 2 bgu4t 2023. The African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights 31 Bijilo Annex Layout. Kombo North District, West Coast Regio;'] Phone: (220) 230 4361 Fax' (220) 441 05 04 Email: au-banlul(O>africa-union.org https;/achpr au InVO c...

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Communication 716/19 - Three Jehovah's Witnesses (Represented by Lawyers Associated for Human Rights in Africa) v. The State of Eritrea

ACHPR Decision

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Type of Document

Decision

Keywords

Arbitrary Arrest and Detention
Cruel and Degrading Treatment
Detention Facilities/Conditions
Freedom of Religion
Personal Liberty
Right to be Heard before a Competent Court
Right to Fair Trial
Torture and Ill Treatment

Case Head Notes: The victims were held incommunicado from September 1994 to November 2017. The Complainant submits that they were not charged with any criminal offence, and that their detention was predicated on their conscientious objection to Eritrea's mandatory military service. In detention they were subjected to beatings and torture and did not have adequate food or water. They were also subjected to psychological torture as, on various occasions, they were stripped in public and subjected to mock burials where they were forced to dig their own graves. There were also instances where the Jehovah's Witnesses were segregated from other detainees and imprisoned in shipping containers. The Complainant states that it is part of a broad state policy against Jehovah's Witnesses, and note that the President previously made a decree to deprive Jehovah's Witnesses of their Eritrean citizenship. The Commission found a violation of Article 5, citing the dire conditions and traumatic experiences the Respondent State inflicted on the victims, and also stated that incommunicado detention, on its own, can be held to be a form of cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment. The Commission found a violation of Article 6, stating that arbitrary arrests of believers of a religion constitute a violation of Article 6. Additionally, in contravention of Article 6, the Commission stated that there was no authority procedurally or substantively competenent to certify the detentions, the individuals were not detained in an officially recognized place of detention and the victims were held incommunicado and were not presented with an opportunity to defend themselves in front of a competent judge. The Commission found a violation of Article 7 because the Respondent State failed to bring the victims before a judicial authority, they effectively punished the victims (through detention) without a bringing a charge against them, or providing the victims a chance to defend themselves, they denied the victims access to a lawyer, and because they held the victims for 26 years without bringing them before a competent court. The Commission did not find a violation of Article 8 because they stated that military service is not a religion, and that it would be incorrect to say that compelling people to perform military service amounts to compelling them to change to, or adhere to, another religion. The Commission requested the Respondent State to take measures to compensate the victims for the suffering they were subjected to, and for their inability to make a living for 26 years, and requested the Respondent State to adopt all necessary measures to ensure compliance with the Charter and the Guidelines on the Right to Fair Trial and Legal Assistance in Africa.

Country

Eritrea

Outcome: Decided on Merits

Year Decided: Aug 2, 2023

Rights Alleged to be Violated (ACHPR Provisions)

ACHPR 7: Right to Fair Trial
ACHPR 5: Cruel Inhuman and Degrading Treatment
ACHPR 6 : Right to Personal Liberty and Protection from Arbitrary Arrest
ACHPR 8: Right to Freedom of Conscience

Rights Violated (ACHPR Provisions)

ACHPR 7: Right to Fair Trial
ACHPR 7.1: Right to be Heard
ACHPR 5: Cruel Inhuman and Degrading Treatment
ACHPR 6 : Right to Personal Liberty and Protection from Arbitrary Arrest

Rights Not Violated (ACHPR Provisions)

ACHPR 8: Right to Freedom of Conscience

Duration of Procedure

Jan 7, 2019 ~ Aug 2, 2023

Country Geolocation

Latitude: 15.179384

Longitude: 39.782334

Country Geolocation (linked ACHPR Decision): Eritrea

Primary Documents

Three Jehovah's Witnesses (Represented by Lawyers Associated for Human Rights in Africa) v Eritrea.pdf
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African Human Rights CLA 2.0

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Communication 716/19 - Three Jehovah's Witnesses (Represented by Lawyers Associated for Human Rights in Africa) v. The State of Eritrea

Primary Documents

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