be determined on a case-by-case basis”.12 Among other factors, the Court
has taken into account the fact that the litigation brought by the Applicant
was in the public interest.13 It has further considered that the time taken by
the Applicant to decide to bring the case and to prepare the application
should be taken into account in determining whether or not the time limit in
question was reasonable.14
53. In the present case, the Court notes that the facts of the case present a
deleterious situation characterised by the “dismantling of republican
institutions, which has led to a feeling of discontent and disavowal among
the Tunisian people, resulting in the collapse of the rule of law, disintegration
of its institutions, constitutional stalemate, political crises, violence of all
kinds and the rise of crime”. It follows that the present Application raises
allegations that jeopardize public order and social cohesion, which are
eminently in the public interest. The Court considers that in such
circumstances, the reasonable time requirement should be assessed with
circumspection and applied in context.
54. Thus, the Court considers that even assuming that the Applicant was aware
of the filing of the Declaration on the above-mentioned date, she inevitably
must have taken time not only to decide whether or not to seize this Court
but could have also taken the time required to prepare her application. The
process can take a considerable amount of time, which must be taken into
account when determining whether or not the time limit for referral is
reasonable.
12
Alex Thomas v. United Republic of Tanzania (merits) (November 20, 2015) 1 AfCLR 465, § 73;
Christopher Jonas v. United Republic of Tanzania (merits) (September 28, 2017), 2 AfCLR 101, § 54;
Amir Ramadhani v. United Republic of Tanzania (merits) (May 11, 2018) 2 AfCLR 344, § 83.
13 Robert John Penessis v. United Republic of Tanzania, (merits and reparations) (November 28, 2019),
3 AfCLR 593, §§ 44-46; Glory Cyriaque Hossou and another v. Republic of Benin, (provisional
measures) (2020) 4 AfCLR 538, § 20; Ali Ben Hassen Ben Youcef Den Abdelhafid v. Republic of Tunisia
(jurisdiction and admissibility) (June 25, 2021) 5 AfCLR 193, § 40.
14 See Norbert Zongo and others v. Burkina Faso (preliminary objections) (21 June 2013) 1 AfCLR
197, §§ 122-123; Mohamed Abubakari v. United Republic of Tanzania (merits) (3 June 2016) 1 AfCLR
599, §§ 92-96.
15