13. The Secretariat also sent a letter referenced ACHPR/COMM 273/2002 by electronic mail and by post
on 3rd December 2003 reminding the Complainant to submit his arguments on admissibility. The
Secretariat further informed the Complainant of the difficulties encountered in contacting him and requested
information as to whether the victim was still detained and about the conditions of his detention.
14. On 19th April 2004, the Secretariat of the [African] Commission sent a letter to the Complainant again
by post informing him that since it had not received any information despite constant reminders, [the]
African Commission had decided to postpone the case for consideration to its 36th Session. The letter
further pointed out that if by the end [of] July 2004 it did not receive any information enabling it to rule on
the admissibility of the complaint it would be compelled to strike the complaint from its register for lack of
interest by the Complainant.
15. On 20th April 2004, a copy of the letter to the Complainant was sent to the Complainant through the
Nigerian National Human Rights Commission, which, some weeks later, informed the Secretariat of its
inability to trace the Complainant at the indicated address.
16. On 25th May 2004, the Secretariat of the African Commission received an electronic message from the
Complainant, through a one Mr Gerald Abonyi, informing the African Commission that the organisation was
withdrawing its complaint. He specified that his organisation would, from henceforth, stop all
correspondence on the subject.
17. At its 35th Ordinary Session, which was held in May/June 2004 in Banjul, The Gambia, the African
Commission realized that the request for withdrawal of the complaint came from the email address of the
Complainant but not from the usual correspondent in this case (Mr Ekene Chukwu, Secretary General of
CADSJCRHW). The [African] Commission requested the Secretariat to send him a note for confirmation on
whether the request for withdrawal was genuine.
18. On the 21st June 2004, the Secretariat sent a letter requesting clarifications and confirmation of the
request for withdrawal of the complaint from the CADSJCRHW. However, no response was received from
the Complainant.
19. During its 36th Ordinary Session held in Dakar, Senegal from 22nd November to 7th December 2004 the
African Commission decided to give the Complainant one last chance to confirm withdrawal of his
complaint.
20. The Secretariat via a letter dated 23rd December 2004 requested the Complainant to confirm
withdrawal of the complaint. However, to date no response to the request has been received by the
Secretariat.
Law
Admissibility
21. Article 56 of the African Charter provides that communications referred to in Article 55, in order for them
to be considered, must necessarily be sent to the African Commission after exhaustion of local remedies if
any, unless it is obvious that this procedure is unduly prolonged.
22. It is worth noting in the case under study, that from the date the Complaint was submitted to the
Secretariat of the African Commission (17th March 2003) and in spite of several letters sent to request the
Complainant and the Respondent State to submit on admissibility, there were no responses.
23. The Complainant in May 2004 requested the withdrawal of the Complaint via email and again despite
various efforts to get a written confirmation of the withdrawal the same was not forthcoming to date.
Holding
24. Consequently, the African Commission decides to close the file for lack of further interest in the
communication by the Complainant.
Adopted at the 37th Ordinary Session of the African Commission held from 27th April to 11th May
2005 in Banjul, The Gambia.
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