the Commission declared the communication admissible. Merits 12. The Complainant alleges the illegal arrest and detention of the journalists as being in violation of their right to liberty and security of person as provided for in Article 6 of the Charter. Article 6 of the Charter provides: 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 laid down by law. In particular, no one may be arbitrarily arrested or detained. 13. The Complainant also alleges violation of Article 7 of the Charter and Principle 5 × Everyone shall have the right to be tried by ordinary courts or tribunals using established legal procedures. Tribunals that do not use the duly established procedures of the legal process shall not be created to displace the jurisdiction belonging to the ordinary courts or judicial tribunals. of the United Nations Basic Principles on the Independence of the Judiciary in that the journalists were tried in secret, were denied access to counsel of their choice and later sentenced to various terms of imprisonment. Further, that the convicted journalists could not appeal against their sentences because of the various decrees promulgated by the military government that oust the jurisdiction of the regular courts from hearing such cases. Article 7 (1) of the Charter provides: Every individual shall have the right to have his cause heard. This comprises: (a) The right to an appeal to competent national organs against acts violating his fundamental rights as recognised and guaranteed by conventions, laws, regulations and customs in force. Principle 5 of the UN Basic Principles stipulates: Everyone shall have the right to be tried by the ordinary courts or tribunals using established legal procedures. Tribunals that do not use the duly established procedures of the legal process shall not be created to displace the jurisdiction belonging to the ordinary courts or judicial tribunals. 14. It is alleged that the convicted persons were not allowed access to their lawyers, neither were they given the opportunity to be represented and defended by lawyers of their own choice at the trial. Article 7 (1) (c) of the Charter provides: Every individual shall have ...the right to defence, including the right to be defended by counsel of his choice. 15. In its Resolution on the Right to Recourse Procedure and Fair Trial, the Commission in re-enforcing this right observed in paragraph 2 (e) (i) × e. In the determination of charges against individuals, the individual shall be entitled in particular to: i). Have adequate time and facilities for the preparation of their defence and to communicate in confidence with counsel of their choice; thus: In the determination of charges against individuals, the individual shall be entitled in particular to ... communicate in confidence with counsel of their choice. The denial of this right therefore is in contravention of Article 7(1)(c) of the Charter. 16. The issue of the arraignment and trial of the journalists must also be addressed here. The Complainant alleges that the Journalists were arraigned, tried and convicted by a Special Military Tribunal, presided over by a serving military officer and whose membership also included some serving military officers. This is in violation of the provisions of Article 7 of the Charter and Principle 5 × 5. Everyone shall have the right to be tried by ordinary courts or tribunals using established legal procedures. Tribunals that do not use the duly established procedures of the legal process shall not be created to displace the jurisdiction belonging to the ordinary courts or judicial tribunals. of the UN Basic Principles. 17. It could not be said that the trial and conviction of the four journalists by a Special Military tribunal presided over by a serving military officer who is also a member of the PRC, the body empowered to 2