Chapter 7 • The Right to a Fair Trial: Part II – From Trial to Final Judgement The Committee has also made it abundantly clear that the “right to be tried by an independent and impartial tribunal is an absolute right that may suffer no exception”.252 It is further beyond doubt that the basic fair trial guarantees laid down in article 14 must be ensured even in severe crisis situations, although the Committee has accepted “that it would simply not be feasible to expect that all provisions of article 14 can remain fully in force in any kind of emergency”.253 However, it has not yet defined what aspect, or aspects, of the fair trial guarantees might possibly not be applicable in public emergencies threatening the life of the nation. ***** Since, as already noted above, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights considered that article 7 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights should be considered non-derogable, it follows that the fair trial guarantees contained therein must be ensured at all times.254 ***** The Inter-American Court has emphasized that “the guarantees to which every person brought to trial is entitled must be not only essential but also judicial”, a conception that implies “the active involvement of an independent and impartial judicial body having the power to pass on the lawfulness of measures adopted in a state of emergency”.255 In the case of Castillo Petruzzi “the military tribunals that tried the alleged victims for the crimes of treason did not meet the requirements implicit in the guarantees of independence and impartiality” that article 8(1) “recognizes as essentials of due process of law”.256 More details about the interesting inter-American jurisprudence relating to article 27 of the American Convention will be given in Chapter 16 of this Manual. The right to enjoy a fair trial must also be guaranteed in public emergencies threatening the life of the nation, although possibly some aspects thereof may be subject to limited enforcement. The right to be tried by an independent and impartial tribunal must be guaranteed at all times, including in public emergencies threatening the life of the nation. 252 Communication No. 263/1987, M. González del Río v. Peru (Views adopted on 28 October 1992), in UN doc. GAOR, A/48/40 (vol. II), p. 20, para. 5.2; emphasis added. 253 See UN doc. GAOR, A/49/40 (vol. I), p. 5, para. 24. This was prompted by a request by the Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities that a new optional protocol be elaborated to include, inter alia, article 14 in the list of non-derogable rights. 254 See e.g. ACHPR, Civil Liberties Organisation and Others v. Nigeria, Communication No. 218/98, decision adopted during the 29th Ordinary session, 23 April – 7 May 2001, p. 3 of the decision as published at http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/africa/comcases/218-98.html. 255 I-A Court HR, Castillo Petruzzi et al. case v. Peru, judgment of May 30, 1999, Series C, No. 52, p. 197, para. 131; emphasis added. 256 Ibid., para. 132. 312 Human Rights in the Administration of Justice: A Manual on Human Rights for Judges, Prosecutors and Lawyers