The jurisprudence of the African Commission on
Human and Peoples' Rights has widely recognised
the right to life as a foundational right. Without the
right to life, other rights cannot be implemented. The
Commission adopted General Comment No.3 on
the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights
on the right to life (Article 4) during its 57th Ordinary
Session, held in Banjul, The Gambia, in November
2015. It is designed to guide the interpretation and
application of the right to life under the Charter and
to ensure its coherent application to a range of situations, including its implementation at the domestic
level. The General Comment does not put in place
new standards or highlight best practices but rather
sets out the Commission’s perspective on dimensions of this universally recognised right.
African Commission on
Human and Peoples’ Rights
The text is also available, in the four official languages
of the African Union, on the African Commission’s
website: www.achpr.org
Pretoria University Law Press
PULP
www.pulp.up.ac.za
ISBN: 978-1-920538-45-3
GENERAL COMMENT NO. 3
ON THE AFRICAN CHARTER
ON HUMAN AND PEOPLES’ RIGHTS:
THE RIGHT TO LIFE (ARTICLE 4)