By Catherine Ageno
The president of the African Court on Human and People’s Rights Justice Sylvain Ore, has sent a condolence message to the people of Tanzania upon the demise of their president John Magufuli.
In the letter addressed to President Samia Suluhu Hassan, Justice Ore says the death of President Magufuli is a great loss not only for Tanzania, to which he had dedicated his life, but also for Africa as a whole.
He says President Magufuli will be remembered for his foresightedness and dedication to peace, human dignity and the development of Africa, and that his legacy will endure and will continue to live in the hearts and minds of all.
“On behalf of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights and on my own behalf, I pay tribute to the memory of the guarantor of institutions and national unity he was,” said Justice Ore.
He says the African Court joins the family, and the entire Tanzanian Nation in mourning and expresses deepest condolences.
Magufuli, who died last week of heart-related complications is to be laid to rest tomorrow.
The Arusha-based African Court on Human and People’s Rights was established by virtue of Article 1 of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Establishment of an African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, to complement the protective mandate of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, with a view to enhancing the protection of human rights on the continent.
The Protocol was adopted on 9 June 1998 in Burkina Faso and came into force on 25 January 2004.
The Court officially started its operations in November 2006 initially in Addis Ababa and a year later moved to its permanent seat in Arusha, Tanzania.
