respect of the applicant's complaints and offered reasonable prospects of success.9 Only once this burden
of proof has been met does the petitioners have to establish that the local remedy {quote]was in fact
exhausted or for some reason inadequate or ineffective in the particular circumstances.[/quote]10
49. Similarly, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights has expressly stated that the burden of
proving that effective local remedies exist and that they have not been exhausted falls upon the
Government making such a claim.11 In 46(1)
× Admission by the Commission of a petition or communication lodged in accordance with Articles 44 or 45
shall be subject to the following requirements: a. that the remedies under domestic law have been pursued
and exhausted in accordance with generally recognized principles of international law; b. that the petition or
communication is lodged within a period of six months from the date on which the party alleging violation of
his rights was notified of the final judgment; c. that the subject of the petition or communication is not
pending in another international proceeding for settlement; and d. that, in the case of Article 44, the petition
contains the name, nationality, profession, domicile, and signature of the person or persons or of the legal
representative of the entity lodging the petition.
and 46(2) [sic!
× 46(2)(a)] 2. The provisions of paragraphs 1.a and 1.b of this article shall not be applicable when: a. the
domestic legislation of the state concerned does not afford due process of law for the protection of the right
or rights that have allegedly been violated
and 46 (2b)
× the party alleging violation of his rights has been denied access to the remedies under domestic law or
has been prevented from exhausting them
of the American Convention on Human Rights it is stated that the State has duties to organize the
governmental apparatus and, in general, all the structures through which public power is exercised, so that
they are capable of judicially ensuring the free and full enjoyment of human rights.12 In the Loayza Tamayo
Case, the Court held that the State claiming non-exhaustion of domestic remedies has an obligation to
prove that the domestic remedies remain to be exhausted and that they are effective.13
50. A similar view regarding the burden of proof has been taken by the United Nations Human Rights
Committee which draws attention to the fact, among others, that the Government had failed to
provide...sufficient information on effective remedies.14 Equally, the European Court and Commission of
Human Rights have held that the Government shoulders the burden of proving that there are effective
remedies.
51.The African Commission has also held in several of its decisions that the rationale of the rule to exhaust
local remedies is to allow the State concerned an opportunity to remedy a grievance through its own
domestic legal system.15 However, the African Commission has gone ahead to state that it will not hold this
requirement to apply literally in cases where it is impracticable or undesirable for the Complainant to seize
the domestic courts.16 Accordingly, the African Commission, in Dawda Jawara v The Gambia,17 states that
for a Complainant to be able to exhaust local remedies, such remedies must meet three basic criteria - they
must be available, effective and sufficient.18 The African Commission went on to state with respect to that
case that, if the availability of a remedy is not evident, it cannot be invoked by the State to the detriment of
the Complainant.19 The burden of proof thus falls on the State of Kenya to prove that effective local
remedies exist and that they are reasonably accessible, available, effective and sufficient.
52. The African Commission having looked at all the issues arising from this matter and taking into
consideration the desperate situation of the Nubians is of the opinion that the Government of Kenya has not
met this burden of proof because it has not shown that Complainants have any adequate and effective
remedies. The African Commission is of the view that the Complainants in the particular circumstances are
unable to utilize local remedies mainly because of many procedural and administrative bottlenecks put in
their path.
53. For example, the African Commission notes that since CEMIRIDE filed an application on 17 March
2003, seeking leave of the High Court to file a Representational Constitutional Application on behalf of the
Nubians, no Bench has been constituted to hear the case despite many attempts by Legal Counsel of the
6