JOINT STATEMENT Tunisia's Withdrawal of Individuals’ and NGOs’ Access to the African Court Marks a Serious Setback for Human Rights Accountability
POLICY BRIEF 27 March 2025
The undersigned Tunisian and international civil society organizations condemn the Tunisian et droits humains : government’s decision to Entreprises withdraw its declaration under Article 34(6) of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. This decision prevents individuals and nonLa Tunisie doit se saisir pleinement des instruments internationaux governmental organizations (NGOs) with observer status before the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights to directly bring cases against Tunisia before the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (the African Court). This withdrawal is yet another illustration of the rollback on human rights and the rule of law in Tunisia since President Kais Saied’s power grab in July 2021, and the adoption in its aftermath of several decrees that systematically eroded fundamental democratic safeguards. Since then, the African Court has been at the forefront of exposing and promptly condemning the human rights and democratic backsliding in the country. It has issued several rulings against Tunisia, including:
Its ruling in September 2022 ordering the repeal of Presidential Decrees No. 117 and Decrees No. 69 and 109, adopted under the “state of exception”, considering them violations of Article 13 of the African Charter, which, among other things, guarantees the right of citizens to participate freely in the government of their country. The Court ordered Tunisia to return to constitutional democracy within two years, and to establish an independent Constitutional Court within the same period. In 2024, the African Court reiterated this order and further ordered Tunisia to repeal Decree-Law No. 2022-11 dissolving the High Judicial Council and to reinstate the latter within six months.
Its ruling in August 2023 ordering the adoption of urgent measures for detainees' access to medical and legal counsel, family communication, and full disclosure of the legal basis for their detention, citing concerns over their health and due process.
Its ruling in October 2024 ordering the suspension of Decree-Law No. 2022-35 allowing the President to summarily dismiss judges and Presidential Decree No. 2022-516 dismissing 57 judges, as they posed a threat to the independence of judicial officers and of the judiciary as a whole.
The Tunisian authorities have failed to implement these rulings, showing complete disregard for their legally binding nature. By depriving apparent victims of human rights violations in Tunisia from direct access to a key regional human rights mechanism, the Tunisian authorities send another clear message of contempt and disregard for the African human rights system and human rights accountability