EAC court’s jurisdiction to be extended

The Council of Ministers of the East African Community have tasked the EAC secretariat to devise a policy that extends the jurisdiction of the East African Court of Justice, during their just concluded meeting in Arusha, Tanzania. The Council of Ministers is the EAC’s policy making organ.“The secretariat will prepare the document and give it to the attorneys general to scrutinise and then send to us to forward to the summit,” Monique Mukaruliza the Minister of East African Community Affairs told The New Times.She said the attorney generals will discuss all intricacies involved in the process to extend jurisdiction.The minister further clarified that the court would also be empowered to handle cases forwarded from national courts.“If it fails to handle a regional case, then it (case) will be forwarded to the international courts.”The Council of Ministers also directed the Sectoral Council on Legal and Judicial Affairs to meet by the end of July 2012 to consider the technical paper and thereafter report to the Council’s 25th Ordinary Meeting.At their April meeting, the EAC Heads of State welcomed a resolution by the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) to expedite the amendment of the EAC Treaty that extends the jurisdiction of the EACJ or the conclusion of the protocol on the said matter and consequently directed the Council of Ministers to see to its implementation and report to an extraordinary Summit.The East African Court of Justice was established under Article 9 of the Treaty for the Establishment of the East African Community. Its major responsibility is to ensure adherence to the law in the interpretation and application of and compliance with the Treaty.However, the court has faced frequent criticism for failure to handle international criminal cases especially the current case at the international criminal court that implicates four senior Kenyan government officials accused of inciting the 2007/08 post-election violence. If amended, the court would have powers to try genocide related cases as well as other criminal cases.The East African Legislative Assembly had earlier proposed the regional court handles the Kenyan post-election violence cases, a suggestion which was nonetheless watered down by the association of regional lawyers.East African Law Society vice president James Mwamu recently said the East African Court of Justice (EACJ) has no jurisdiction to handle such cases. The EACJ has no jurisdiction whatsoever to deal with criminal matters and the move by the legislative assembly to pass that motion is absolutely illegitimate, said Mwamu. The court also has jurisdiction to hear and determine disputes between the EAC Secretariat and its employees that arise from the terms and conditions of employment or the interpretation and application of staff rules and regulations.

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EAC court’s jurisdiction to be extended