Vi- ANALYSIS BY THE COURT
A. Jurisdiction
i.
Court’s Jurisdiction ratione materiae
69.
Respondent submits that the Court lacks jurisdiction to hear this
Application
as
the
Applicants
have
cited
only
provisions
of the
Declaration and no provision of the Constitutive Act or the Charter.
The Respondent argues further that Article 3(1) of the Protocol limits
the jurisdiction of the Court to deal only with human rights instruments
“ratified by the States concerned”.
70.
Article 3(1) of the Protocol confers on the Court the jurisdiction
to hear all cases concerning
alleged
human
rights violations.
This
Article states as follows: “the jurisdiction of the Court shall extend to
all cases and disputes submitted to it concerning the interpretation
and application of the Charter,
human
this Protocol and any other relevant
rights instrument ratified by the States concerned’.
\t should
be noted that Article 3(2) of the Protocol further empowers
the Court
to decide on its jurisdiction. It provides that “/n the event of a dispute
as to whether the Court has jurisdiction, the Court shall decide”.
TA;
The issue at stake in this Application is to determine whether or
not, the Universal
protection of human
Declaration
is a human
rights instrument for the
rights to be taken in
sideration within the
meaning of Article 3(1) of the Protocol.