50. The Court notes that the local remedies to be exhausted are judicial
remedies. They must be available, in the sense that they can be used
without impediment by the applicant, but also effective and satisfactory,
meaning that they must be “of such a nature as to satisfy the complainant
or redress the situation in dispute”.9
51. The Court further notes that exhaustion of local remedies presupposes not
only that the Applicant initiates domestic remedies, but also that he awaits
the outcome thereof.10 In the same vein, the Court notes that, in order to
determine whether the requirement of exhaustion of local remedies has
been met, the domestic proceedings to which the Applicant was a party
must have been concluded at the time of filing the Application with it.11
52. Furthermore, the Court has consistently held that the requirement of
exhaustion of local remedies is assessed, in principle, at the date on which
the Application is brought before it.12
53. In the present case, the Court observes that, from the record, the present
Application was lodged on 25 September 2023. On that date, as they
themselves state, the Applicants were in detention, pursuant to the
investigating judge’s committal orders of 21 June 2022 for Safinaz Ben Ali
and 5 July 2022 for Lamya Jenboudi, following their indictment by the
investigating judge of the Sousse II court for, inter alia, undermining the
external security of the State, attempted change of form of government,
offence to the Head of State and money laundering.
9
Houngue Eric Noudehouenou v. Republic of Benin, ACtHPR, Application No. 032/2020, Judgment of
22 September 2022, (jurisdiction and admissibility), § 39.
10 Komi Koutché v. Republic of Benin, Application 013/2020 - ACtHPR, Judgment 22 September 2022
(admissibility and jurisdiction), § 40; Sébastien Germain Marie Ajavon v. Republic of Benin (jurisdiction
and admissibility) (2 December 2021), 5 AfCLR 623, §74; Yacouba Traoré v. Republic of Mali
(jurisdiction and admissibility) (25 September 2020), 4 AfCLR 665, § 41;
11 Koutché v. Benin, ibid. § 40; Traoré v. Mali, ibid, § 41.
12 Komi Koutché v. Republic of Benin, (admissibility) (25 June 2021), 5 AfCLR 231, § 61; Ajavon v.
Benin, Application No. 027/2020, supra, § 74.
14