Commission
on
Human
jurisdiction pursuant
exhaustion
of local
and
Peoples’
Rights
(paragraph
to the Protocol (paragraphs
remedies
(paragraphs
37
33);
the
34 to 35); and
to 40),
which
Court’s
lastly, the
is once
again
relating to the admissibility of the application. In doing so, the Court mixed up
the consideration of the jurisdiction of the Court with that of the admissibility
of the
application,
This
mixed
consideration
poses
a problem
and
creates
confusion between two separate legal issues.
3. Whereas indeed, jurisdiction concerns the Court, admissibility concerns
application, and
the
naturally, it is necessary to treat these two issues separately
without mixing them.
On the order of consideration of these issues, it is clear
from the general past practice of the Court, from logic and common
sense, as
well as from Rule 39 of the Rules of Court, that the Court has to first determine
whether or not it has jurisdiction before considering the admissibility of the
application'.
4. In our opinion,
in the instant case,
the Court ought
to have first considered
separately all issues relating to its jurisdiction (both the preliminary objection
and its jurisdiction pursuant to the Protocol), and then all issues relating to the
admissibility
of
the
application
(both
the
preliminary
objection
and
the
question of exhaustion of local remedies). The judgment would only have been
clearer?,
Il. Determining the ratione temporis jurisdiction of the Court
5. On
the jurisdiction
of the
Court,
the
Respondent
State
had
raised
an
objection on the ratione temporis jurisdiction of the Court, drawn from the fact
that the alleged violation of articles 7 and
15 of the Charter occurred before the
! For further details, see the separate opinion of Judge
Gerard
Niyungeko,
annexed
to the
judgment of 14 June 2013 in the matter of Tanganyika Law Society & al. v. The United Republic
of Tanzania, paragraphs 2 to 7.
2 In the matter of Tanganyika Law Society & al. v. The United Republic of Tanzania cited in the
preceding paragraph, the Court had treated both issues distinctly, except that, in our opinion,
it unduly reversed the order of treatment,
Jbidern.
2
Ai&e
aes
ae
Y