EU Ambassador to Tanzania pays a courtesy call to the President of the Court and pledges further cooperation
East African Court of Justice, 8th October 2020: His Excellency the Ambassador who was on an official tour to EAC Secretary General found it very important to understand the Court’s mandate and its operations as a judicial Organ of the Community contributing to the regional integration process. The President of the Court Hon Justice Dr Emmanuel Ugirashebuja welcomed and commended the Ambassador for the visit and informed him of the good relationship with the EU Court of Justice on capacity building program which is now a practice of the Court, all new appointed Judges attend the program to learn and share the international Courts’ standards, skills and experiences.
His Lordship also explained to the delegation the mandate and the jurisprudence of the Court, highlighting on a number of cases on human rights, media freedom of expression, good governance, democracy & rule of Law, environmental issues among others. The President further informed the delegation on the uniqueness of the Court (EACJ) compared to other International Courts in regard to exhaustion of local remedies where Litigants directly file cases to the Court as long as he or she is a resident in any of the East African Partner State. He explained the Ambassador on the enforcement mechanism of the Court decisions, that like any other international Courts, EACJ does not enforce its decisions but Partner States do execute the same. He further informed the delegation on the good relations with other International Courts like the African Court of Human and Peoples Rights.
Justice Dr Ugirashebuja also informed the delegation on the current digital mode of operation the Court has adopted due to Covid-19 challenges and the Court has continued adjudicating cases before it virtually. His Lordship added that the Court recently rolled out the e-filing system where litigants in their respective Partner States now file their cases online successfully.
His Excellency the Ambassador, commended the excellent, efficient and effective work done by the Court and pledged if there are areas of cooperation with the Court, the EU will be glad to discuss them further. The President of the Court expressed his gratitude and welcomed the interest for further of cooperation with the EU.
The Ambassador was accompanied by Mr Cedric Merel - Head of Cooperation, Mr Jocelin Cornet - Head of Infrastructure & Regional Corporation and Stine Hyldekjaer - Program Officer.
ENDS
For more information, please contact:
Yufnalis Okubo
Registrar
East African Court of Justice
Arusha, Tanzania
Tel: +255 27 2162149
mail: Okubo [at] eachq.org
www.eacj.org
About the East African Court of Justice:
The East African Court of Justice (EACJ or ‘the Court’), is one of the organs of the East African Community established under Article 9 of the Treaty for the Establishment of the East African Community. Established in November 2001, the Court’s major responsibility is to ensure the adherence to law in the interpretation and application of and compliance with the EAC Treaty.
Arusha is the temporary seat of the Court until the Summit determines its permanent seat. The Court’s sub-registries are located in the respective National Courts in the Partner States.
Tags: EACJ