The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (the Commission), meeting at its 55th Ordinary Session held from 28 April to 12 May 2014 in Luanda, Angola
Recalling its mandate to promote and protect human and peoples’ rights under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (the African Charter);
Considering the importance of the protection of human lives under Article 4 of the African Charter which requires respect for the right to life and physical and moral integrity of human beings;
Further considering that respect for the right to life is a pre-condition for the enjoyment of other rights guaranteed by the African Charter;
Recalling that all Member States of the African Union committed themselves to adopting legislative and other measures to give effect to the rights guaranteed by the African Charter;
Further recalling that all persons are entitled to the enjoyment of the rights guaranteed by the African Charter;
Considering that State Parties to the OAU Convention on the Prevention and Combating of Terrorism committed themselves to cooperate towards the eradication of terrorism pursuant to Article 4 of the Convention;
Commending the efforts made by the international community, the African Union and regional economic communities to prevent and combat terrorism in different parts of the continent, particularly in Somalia, Kenya, Mali and Nigeria;
Noting with regret that terrorist groups benefit from illicit trade, take advantage of corrupt systems, and use the normal channels to engage in money laundering and continue to acquire weapons;
Concerned by the attacks carried out by Al Shabaab including the attack at the Westgate Mall in Nairobi on 21 September 2013 and the bombings in Mombasa and Nairobi on 3 and 4 April 2014 respectively;
Saddened by the abuses committed by the Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb against innocent civilian populations;
Deeply concerned by the barbaric acts of Boko Haram, in particular the abduction of more than 200 girls from a school in Borno State, the bombing of a bus station in Abuja leading to the death of 71 people and 124 wounded persons on 14 April 2014, and the killing of 150 people in a village in Borno State in northern Nigeria on 7 May 2014;
The Commission:
Strongly condemns these violations of the right to life and these abductions which are cases of serious human rights violations;
Calls upon the perpetrators of these terrorist acts to put an immediate end to these shameful acts and urges them to use peaceful means to make their claims through dialogue among the various protagonists;
Urges States to take the necessary measures to ensure that the perpetrators of the various terrorist activities are brought to justice;
Further invites all African States to take the necessary measures to combat terrorism particularly by initiating joint actions aimed at preventing all activities relating to the financing, sale and transfer of weapons to terrorist groups ;
Invites States that are not yet parties to the OAU/AU Convention on the Prevention and Combating of Terrorism to take the necessary measures to ratify it;
Urges the African Union to strengthen its cooperation with the international community with a view to adopting a global strategy to stop the financing of these groups, and ensure that the alleged terrorists are prosecuted and punished in strict compliance with the right to a fair trial.
Adopted at the 55th Ordinary Session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights held in Luanda, Angola, from 28 April to 12 May 2014
