001073
eK
107. The Court notes that Article 6 of the Charter guarantees the right to liberty as
follows:
“Every individual shall have the right to liberty and to the security of his person. No one
may be deprived of his freedom except for reasons and conditions previously laid down
by law. In particular, no one may be arbitrary arrested or detained.”
108. The Court notes that the right to liberty and security as enshrined above strictly
prohibits any arbitrary arrest or detention. An arrest or detention becomes arbitrary
if it is not in accordance
with
the
law,
lacks
clear and
reasonable
grounds
or is
conducted in the absence of procedural safeguards against arbitrariness.28
109.
In the instant case, the Court notes from the record that the Applicant was initially
detained on the basis of the Respondent State’s criminal laws for having allegedly
entered and stayed in its territory unlawfully. The Applicant’s conviction for the same
was premised on the assumption that he was not a Tanzanian
national. However,
the Court recalls its earlier finding above that the Respondent State has not provided
evidence to substantiate that the Applicant is not a Tanzanian before or at the time
of his arrest
or conviction.
In the
opinion
of the
Court,
this
renders
his arrest,
conviction and detention unlawful.
110. The Court notes that the Applicant has remained in prison to date notwithstanding
that he fully served two (2) years' imprisonment sentence as far back as 2012. In this
regard, the Court finds that his alleged refusal to cooperate for the purpose of his
expulsion is not a reasonable justification for keeping him in prison indefinitely.
28 Kennedy Owino Onyanchi and Another v. Tanzania (Merits), § 131.
29