The African Union consists of 55 member states located on the African continent. The AU, officially launched in July 2002, is the successor to the Organization of African Unity (OAU) (1963 - 1999).
The African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Banjul Charter) promotes and protects human rights and basic freedoms on the African continent. This charter was adopted on 1 June 1981 and entered into force on 21 October 1986.
Commentaries provide article-by-article analysis of treaties and include citations to relevant jurisprudence, preparatory works, and other documents. The following commentary is available electronically through Oxford Scholarly Authorities on International Law. The complete list of titles included in this collection is available here.
You can find additional commentaries by searching on NUsearch, our library catalog, for keywords such as [name of treaty] + commentary (example: African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights commentary).
The African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights by
The African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights (ACHPR) is the principle regional human rights treaty for the African continent. Adopted in 1981, there is now a significant body of jurisprudence and interpretation by its African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights and the recentlyestablished African Court.This volume provides a comprehensive article-by-article legal analysis of the provisions of the Charter as it draws upon the documents adopted by the African Commission, including resolutions, case law, and concluding observations. Where relevant, case law adopted by the African Court on Human andPeoples' Rights, and that of other sub-regional courts and tribunals and domestic courts in Africa, are also incorporated.The book examines not only the substantive rights in the African Charter but also the work of the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights and provides a full examination of its mandate. A critical analysis of each of the provisions of the ACHPR is led principally by the jurisprudence anddocumentation of the African Commission and African Court. The text also identifies the overall development of the ACHPR within the broader regional and international human rights legal arena.
The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights interpret and apply the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and other African regional human rights instruments.
To find jurisprudence from the African human rights system:
Step 1: Consult a commentary or other secondary sources to identify citations to relevant cases and decisions. See above for suggestions on how to find commentaries and the Secondary Sources page of this guide for guidance on how to find additional secondary sources.
Step 2: Use the subscription and/or free resources suggested below to search for or retrieve cases. Note that resources differ in scope of coverage, when they were last updated, and search capabilities.