*** 45.The Respondent State refutes the Applicant's arguments that the Court of Appeal did not examine his contention regarding the victim's age and the mother's consent. It submits that the Court of Appeal did not take the contentions into consideration because it never considered them relevant for the reason that the Applicant had himself admitted having had sexual intercourse with a minor and that the said arguments have not been raised before the High Court. 46.The Respondent State also submits that the issue requiring determination is the age of the victim. Having been proven that the victim was 16 years old, it remained to be ascertained whether during the time she lived with the Applicant they had intercourse. According to the Respondent State, however, the Applicant himself confessed and confirmed the victim's statement that they had sexual intercourse at least once during the time they lived together in the Applicant's home. 47.The Respondent State alleges that, not only did the Applicant confess to sexual intercourse with the victim, but also that, during cross-examination, the Applicant did not interrogate the victim on the issue of her age and the alleged sexual intercourse. According to the Respondent State, this silence amounts to tacit acceptance of the veracity of the victim's testimony. *** aa. The Applicant alleges violation of Article 3(2) of the Charter which guarantees the right to equal protection of the law. However, it appears from the record and the content of the allegations that the relevant provision is rather Article 3(1) of the Charter, which states that "Every individual shall be equal before the law." 49. ln a previous case, this Court has stated that the right to equality before the law requires that "all persons shall be equal before the courts and tribunals".4 ln the instant case, the Court notes that, in his appeal before the Court of Appeal, the Applicant presented three arguments, namely: (i) the absence of 4 lsiaga v Tanzania Judgment, op. cit., para. 85. 11 E Y #*k J