I. THE PARTIES 1. Messrs Goh Taudier, Bamba Lamine and Coulibaly Ousmane (hereinafter referred to as “First Applicant, Second Applicant and Third Applicant”, respectively and “the Applicants”, jointly) are Ivorian nationals, who at the time of filing their applications, were serving a sentence of twenty (20) years in prison for armed robbery at the Abidjan prison (Arrest and Correctional Centre - MACA). They allege violation of their right to a fair trial during the domestic proceedings and challenge the twenty years imprisonment to which they were sentenced by domestic courts. 2. The Application is filed against the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire (hereinafter referred to as the “Respondent State”) which became a party to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (hereinafter referred to as “the Charter”) on 31 March 1992, and to the Protocol to the Charter on the Establishment of an African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (hereinafter referred to as “the Protocol”) on 25 January 2004. The Respondent State also filed, on 23 July 2013, the Declaration provided for in Article 34(6) of the Protocol (hereinafter “the Declaration) by virtue of which it accepted the jurisdiction of the Court to receive applications from individuals and Non-Governmental Organizations having observer status before the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights. On 29 April 2020, the Respondent State deposited with the Chairperson of the African Union Commission the instrument of withdrawal of the said Declaration. The Court has ruled that the withdrawal has no bearing on pending cases and on new cases filed before the withdrawal came into effect, being a period of one (1) year after the deposit of the instrument relating thereto, that is, on 30 April 2021.1 Kouadio Kobena Fory v. Republic of Côte d’Ivoire, ACtHPR, Application No. 034/2017, Judgment of 2 December 2021 (merits and reparations), § 2; Suy Bi Gohoré Émile and others v. Republic of Côte d’Ivoire (merits and reparations) (15 July 2020) 4 AfCLR 406, § 67; Ingabire Victoire Umuhoza v. Republic of Rwanda (jurisdiction) (3 June 2016) 1 AfCLR 540, § 69. 1 2