2. No one may be condemned for an act or omission which did not constitute a legally punishable offence at the time it was committed. No penalty may be inflicted for an offence for which no provision was made at the time it was committed. Punishment is personal and can be imposed only on the offender. As the African Commission has explained, article 7 ACHPR (like the UDHR and ICCPR) provides an overarching guarantee, with and ‘inter-linked’ that are elaborated upon in various ‘mutually dependent’ sub rules Communications. Where an individual is charged with a criminal offence, all state parties must proceedings that [...] comply with fair trial standards ‘initiate as stipulated by the African Commission in its Resolution on the Right to (hereinafter adopted 1992 in Tunis). Recourse and Fair Trial’ ‘the resolution’, Those standards are in its Guidelines on the Right to Fair ‘elaborated upon’ Trial and Legal Assistance in Africa (hereinafter adopted in ‘the guidelines’, Niger in 2003). The of article 7 is as important as the letter in judging ‘spirit’ any particular proceedings. That approach is taken consistently across conventions on fair trial rights, with the European Court of Human Rights holding that a democratic society... the right to a fair administration of ‘in justice holds such a prominent place that a restrictive interpretation of Article 6(1) would not correspond to the aim and the purpose of that provision’. The African Commission has in considering the frequently drawn ‘inspiration’ content of the fair trial rights from law on human and ACHPR’s ‘international and thus taken into consideration other conventions, customs people’s rights’ and general principles of law, including the UDHR and ICCPR. Articles 60 and 61 of the Convention specifically empower it to do so. Any domestic measures or practices in Malawi must thus be reviewed against the full panoply of conventions to ensure consistency.
2. No one may be condemned for an act or omission which did not constitute a legally punishable offence at the time it was committed. No penalty may be inflicted for an offence for which no provision was made at the time it was committed. Punishment is personal and can be imposed only on the offender. As the African Commission has explained, article 7 ACHPR (like the UDHR and ICCPR) provides an overarching guarantee, with ‘inter-linked’ and ‘mutually dependent’ sub rules that are elaborated upon in various Communications. Where an individual is charged with a criminal offence, all state parties must ‘initiate proceedings that [...] comply with fair trial standards as stipulated by the African Commission in its Resolution on the Right to Recourse and Fair Trial’ (hereinafter ‘the resolution’, adopted 1992 in Tunis). Those standards are ‘elaborated upon’ in its Guidelines on the Right to Fair Trial and Legal Assistance in Africa (hereinafter ‘the guidelines’, adopted in Niger in 2003). The ‘spirit’ of article 7 is as important as the letter in judging any particular proceedings. That approach is taken consistently across conventions on fair trial rights, with the European Court of Human Rights holding that ‘in a democratic society... the right to a fair administration of justice holds such a prominent place that a restrictive interpretation of Article 6(1) would not correspond to the aim and the purpose of that provision’. The African Commission has frequently drawn ‘inspiration’ in considering the content of the ACHPR’s fair trial rights from ‘international law on human and people’s rights’ and thus taken into consideration other conventions, customs and general principles of law, including the UDHR and ICCPR. Articles 60 and 61 of the Convention specifically empower it to do so. Any domestic measures or practices in Malawi must thus be reviewed against the full panoply of conventions to ensure consistency.