45
of the Charter, is an “instrument adopted by the United Nations on
human and peoples’ rights” that the Court can “draw inspiration from” in
its interpretation of the Charter.
108.
Furthermore, it is the view of the Court that the limitation imposed
by the Respondent ought to be in consonance with international
standards, to which the Respondent is expected to adhere . This is in
line with the principle set out in Article 27 of the Vienna Convention on
the Law of Treaties which provides that: “A party may not invoke the
provisions of its internal law as justification for its failure to perform a
treaty. This rule is without prejudice to article 46.’’ Additionally, Article 32
of the International Law Commission Articles on State Responsibility
2001 provides that “the Responsible State may not rely on the provisions
of its internal law as justification for failure to comply with its obligations”.
109. The Respondent relies on article 13(1) of the Charter,
that the
enjoyment of the rights thereunder must be in accordance with the law,
that is, the Respondent’s national law. It is pertinent to note that such
limitations as may be placed by national law may not negate the clearly
expressed provisions of the Charter.
Commission’s
finding
in
The Court agrees with the
Communication
No
212/98
Amnesty
International v Zambia Twelfth Activity Report (1998 – 1999) paragraph
50 that:
“The Commission is of the view that the “claw-back” clauses
must
not be interpreted against the Charter.
Recourse to