Late last month, the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights issued an order for provisional measures, directing the Libyan government to “immediately refrain from any action that would result in loss of life or violation of physical integrity of persons”, in response to Application No. 004/2011 from the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights. Human Rights Watch, in particular, is urging the African Union to pressure Libya to comply with the AfCHPR’s orders. [HRW] Government forces have been engaging in attacks against civilians since February. [HRW; NPR; BBC]
In March, the UN General Assembly suspended Libya from Human Rights Council; in February the UN Security Council voted to impose sanctions against Libyan authorities and the International Criminal Court prosecutor subsequently announced that the ICC had initiated an investigation into possible crimes against humanity in response to the Security Council’s referral. [UN News Centre]
The attacks in Libya are the second matter the AfCHPR has resolved, the first being the complaint of Michelot Yogogombaye v. Senegal, decided in December 2009. (That application sought to halt Senegalese proceedings against Hissein Habré, the former Chadian dictator, as retroactive application of the law. The Court held it did not have jurisdiction to entertain an individual complaint against Senegal. For background on the Senegal proceedings, see Dustin N. Sharp, Prosecutions, Development, and Justice: The Trial of Hissein Habré, 16 Harv. Hum. Rts. J. 147 (2003)).
For more on the use of provisional measures in human rights protection, see discussion here.