the African Court”).The Appellant further, contended that all the
EAC Partner States have signed, ratified, or acceded to the
Treaty and have thereby undertaken to be governed in
accordance with Article 6 (d) of the Treaty which obliges every
EAC Partner State to promote and protect “human rights in
accordance with the provisions of the Charter.”
21. The Appellant went further to mention the requirement of Article
126 of the Treaty under which, all Partner States are enjoined to
cooperate in legal and judicial affairs; to harmonize their
national laws which appertain to the Community; and, under
Articles 130
and
131
of
the
Treaty,
to
honor
their
commitments under the Treaty in respect of multinational and
international organizations especially the African Union and the
United Nations.
22. The Appellant relied on the Vienna Convention under which, a
Partner State cannot invoke its own internal laws to defend its
failure to comply with its international obligations. According to
him, the failure, delay or neglect of the 2nd, 3rd, and 5th
Respondents to deposit the declarations under Articles 5 (3) and
34 (6) of the Protocol to the Charter is not justifiable since they
have already ratified the said Protocol; and, by ratification, they
have expressed their consent to be bound by the provisions of the
Protocol. To that end, the Appellant averred that in accordance
with the provisions of the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of
Treaties, the Partner States are bound to refrain from acts which
would defeat the object and purpose of the Treaty.
9