1/;~~HPt\ , ACH PR n~ African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights t\ Human Rights our Collective Responsibility about whether or .n ot the Liberty Fighters Network was a party to these proceedings or merely a representative, which misunderstanding has been cleared out by the Complainants' observations17. The records and the Secretariat's correspondence will according!y reflect this clarification. The parties are adequately identified, the Communication duly complies with Article 56 (1) of the Charter. Art icle 56 (2) of the Cha rter 46. Article 56(2) of the Charter states that "Communications ... received by the Commission shall be considered if they are compatible with the Charter of the Organization of African Unity or with the present Charter." In Communication 709/19 - Senator Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo v. Democratic Republic of Congo, the Commission interpreted Article 56(2) of the Charter to require compatibility with the Constitutive Act of the African Union or the Charter, and with the four (4) aspects of its competence, namely competence ratione personae, materiae, temporis and loci.18 Concerning the former, the Commission notes that this Communication seeks the protection of human rights which is one of the objectives of the Constitutive Act of the African Union, provided for in Article 3 (h) thereof. Furthermore, nothing in the Complainants' submissions and Complaint 'reveals any incompatibility with the Charter. Concerning jurisdiction, the Commission is satisfied that the Respondent State is party to the Charter; the Complaint alleges prima facie violations of rights protected by the Charter; the Complaint is brought in respect of violations that occurred after [the] Respondent State's ratification of the Charter.19 It follows that the Complainants have satisfied Article 56(2) of the Charter. Article 56 (3) of the Cha rter 47. Article 56(3) of the Charter states that "Communications ... received by the Commission shall be considered if they are not written in disparaging or insulting language directed against the State concerned and its institutions or to the Organization of African Unity (AU)". In Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights & Associated Newspapers of Zimbabwe v Republic of Zimbabwe, the Commission held that" in determining whether -----is disparaging 17 Complainants' Observations on Admissibility & Merits, page 4, p 18 Para 26-29 cc, 19 Communication 266/03, 27 May 2009, para 71 SI Pa ge The African ;-7$::;;;;;;;;:;:~ d Peoples' Rights , Kombo North District. West Coast Region Gambia Phone: (220) 230 4361 Fax: (220) 441 05 04 Fm~il · ;:ti 1-h ~ni1 11/m~frir.~-• 1ninn n rn