2. The Application is filed against the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire (hereinafter referred to as the “Respondent State”) which became a party to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (hereinafter referred to as the “Charter”) on 31 March 1992 and to the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Establishment of an African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (hereinafter referred to as “the Protocol”), on 25 January 2004. The Respondent State also deposited, on 23 July 2013, the Declaration provided for in Article 34(6) of the Protocol (hereinafter referred to as “the Declaration”) by virtue of which it accepted the jurisdiction of the Court to receive applications from individuals and Non-Governmental Organizations having observer status before the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights. On 29 April 2020, the Respondent State deposited with the Chairperson of the African Union Commission an instrument of withdrawal of the said Declaration. The Court has ruled that this withdrawal has no effect either on pending cases or on new cases filed before the entry into force of the withdrawal one year after its deposit, in this case, on 30 April 2021.1 II. SUBJECT OF THE APPLICATION A. Facts of the matter 3. The Applicant avers that having discovered on 4 August 2020 that his name had been removed from the voters’ register, he submitted, on the following day, a request to the Independent Electoral Commission (hereinafter referred to as “IEC”) seeking to be reinstated in the said register. On 18 August 2020, the IEC declared his request inadmissible. 4. He appealed against the said decision before the Abidjan Court of First Instance (hereinafter referred to as “the Abidjan CFI”), which on 25 August 1 Kouadio Kobena Fory v. Republic of Côte d’Ivoire (merits and reparations) (2 December 2021) 5 AfCLR 682, § 2; Suy Bi Gohoré Émile and Others v. Republic of Côte d’Ivoire (merits and reparations) (15 July 2020) (merits and reparations) 4 AfCLR 406, § 67. 2

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