renown human rights instruments such as the European Convention on
Human Rights and the Inter-American Convention on Human Rights which
provide for a period of six months.
57. The Respondent State further contends that the Applicant has not
demonstrated compelling reasons as to why he did not file his Application
within a reasonable time.
*
58. The Applicant prays the Court to dismiss the objection contending that his
Application has been duly filed in accordance with the Charter.
***
59. The Court recalls that neither the Charter nor the Rules specify the time
frame within which Applications must be filed after the exhaustion of local
remedies.
As
per
the
Court’s
jurisprudence,
however,
“…the
reasonableness of the timeframe for seizure depends on the specific
circumstances of the case and should be determined on a case-by-case
basis.”12
60. Specifically, the Court notes that the decision of the Court of Appeal was
rendered on 3 September 2015 while this Application was filed on 5
December 2018. The period at stake, therefore is, three years, and three
months. The Court must, therefore, assess this timeframe to determine
reasonableness.
61. Notably, in its jurisprudence, the Court has taken into consideration, among
other factors, incarceration and being on death row with the resultant
limitation on movement and access to information13 and being without the
12
Nobert Zongo and Others v. Burkina Faso (merits) (28 March 2014) 1 AfCLR 219, § 92; Thomas v.
Tanzania (merits), supra, § 73.
13 Igola Iguna v. United Republic of Tanzania, ACtHPR, Application No. 020/2017, Judgment of 1
December 2022 (merits and reparations), §§ 37-38.
14