33.
On the other hand, the Complainant asserts that though the amendments
made to the nationality Code by the Ivorian Parliament in August 2013 are
encouraging, they are not enough to correct the violations alleged by the
Communication. For instance, the Complainant refers to the fact that by
failing to include the definition of the term « Ivorian », the reform stopped
short of removing the main and fundamental source of legal uncertainty
regarding access to nationality. The lack of administrative regulation for the
implementation of the reform, according to the Complainant, is further beset
with the risk of continuing to leave access to nationality at the exclusive and
excessive discretion of the Executive in a country where the number of
Stateless persons account for 700, 000 persons according to the 2014 estimates
from the United Nations High Commission for Refugees.
34. In addition to these defects in the reforms referred to by the Complainant, the
latter alleges that the amendments adopted do not provide any compensatory
measure for the violations of the African Charter which extended over a long
period of time. The Complainant asserts that in the absence of compensation
measures, any remedy is inadequate and insufficient.
The arguments of the Respondent State on Admissibility
35. As the in-depth account of the procedure shows, the Respondent State
neither followed up on its own proposal for an amicable settlement dating
from May 2007 and much less for the one initiated by the Complainant in
November 2011. Following the decision by the Commission to continue with
the procedure on admissibility, the State also did not transmit its arguments
in spite of the numerous reminders sent by the Secretariat to that effect.
Analysis of the Commission on Admissibility
36. This Communication was submitted in accordance with Article 55 of the
African Charter which empowers the Commission to receive and consider
« communications other those – originating from – State Parties ». To be
declared admissible, the aforementioned communications must meet the
conditions laid down in Article 56 of the African Charter.
37. Under the provisions of Rule 105(2) of its Rules of Procedure, when the
Secretariat receives observations from the Complainant, it transmits them
immediately to the Respondent State to allow the latter to respond within two
months from the date the request was forwarded to it. In this
Communication, the Commission notes that the procedure referred to here
was complied with but the Respondent State had initially sought to proceed
8