free to apply for the disqualification of the President of the Appeal Court in accordance with the current legislation,26 but did not do so. In any event, in the State party’s view, losing a case constitutes insufficient grounds for describing a judge as partisan or a court as biased. 7.6 With regard to the alleged violation of article 16 of the Covenant, which the Committee preferred to recategorize in terms of article 14, paragraph 1, of the Covenant, the State party holds that, contrary to the authors’ claims, exempting minors from the requirement to deposit a bond, in accordance with article 111 of order No. 91-0051/PRES of 26 August 1991, cannot be regarded as mandatory, so that it was not incumbent on the Supreme Court to note proprio motu Auguste Sankara’s status as a minor. Moreover, Auguste Sankara’s application is not separate from those of the other members of the family, and consequently cannot be considered separately. 7.7 Concerning the alleged violation of article 17 of the Covenant, which the Committee preferred to recategorize in terms of articles 7 and 9, paragraph 1, of the Covenant, the State party explains that the failure to hold an inquiry into the death of Thomas Sankara and identify those responsible are not admissible, in view of the fact that the events predated the entry of the Covenant into force for Burkina Faso. The State party maintains that article 7 of the Covenant cannot be invoked in so far as the authors have never been harassed, and have never suffered from treatment to which this provision refers. Moreover, such an allegation would involve a physical impossibility, in so far as the authors have not lived in Burkina Faso since the events of 1987. Similarly, according to the State party, article 9, paragraph 1, of the Covenant cannot be invoked since the authors no longer live in Burkina Faso. 7.8 Concerning the allegation that article 23 of the Covenant was violated, which the Committee ruled inadmissible, the State party, after referring to its legislation recognizing and guaranteeing the rights of the family, points out that the authors cannot accuse Burkina Faso of not having protected them, since they no longer live in the country and voluntarily removed themselves from the 26 Under articles 648-658 of the Code of Criminal Procedure and articles 291 and 292 of order No. 91-51 of 26 August 1991 on the organization and functioning of the Supreme Court, any party in court proceedings who entertains legitimate suspicions regarding a judge who is to rule on his or her interests may prevent the judge from doing so by applying for disqualification. However, according to the State party, the author did not make use of this opportunity. Nor did she make use of the appeal against judicial misconduct provided for in articles 283 and 284 of order No. 91-51, under which denial of justice may be punished. 129 129 supervision of the Burkina Faso authorities by seeking refugee status abroad, though they were in no way at risk, or being harassed. 7.9 The State party reiterates its position that the authors’ complaint constitutes an abuse of process, in so far as it pursues purely political aims. According to the State party, it would be difficult to subject the facts alleged by the complainant to a legal assessment in the light of Burkina Faso’s international human rights commitments, owing to their political nature. What are involved are incidents closely related to the country’s political life which occurred in a troubled national context that was linked to the aberrations of the revolutionary regime and the risks of instability in the country and to the military coup which was rendered necessary by circumstances. Hence these incidents cannot be dissociated from the events of 15 October 1987, and the Committee cannot evaluate them independently of their context. The State party claims that the Committee would be exceeding its authority if it were nevertheless to examine all of these incidents. It explains that Ms. Sankara has set herself the goal of seeking revenge for her dead husband, and harming the image of the country and the Government. 7.10 Lastly, the State party calls on the Committee to reject the communication and rule that there has been no violation since the Covenant entered into force. It adds that, at the express request of the parties concerned, the Government is nonetheless prepared to check Thomas’s death certificate and, if necessary, to have it corrected, in keeping with the applicable laws and regulations in force in Burkina Faso. In any event, according to the State party, there is nothing to prevent the authors from returning to Burkina Faso or living there. The State party maintains that it guarantees security and protection to all persons living on its territory or subject to its jurisdiction. Furthermore, if the authors consider themselves to be under threat or lacking security, it is for them to seek special protection from the competent authorities. However, according to the State party, Burkina Faso cannot effectively guarantee protection for its nationals living in a foreign State. In addition, according to the State party, it remains true that the security of the authors has never been disturbed at the hands of Burkina Faso in the various countries where they have chosen to live (Gabon, France, Canada). Authors’ comments 8.1 In their comments dated 15 November 2004, the authors state that they are presenting new elements which would warrant a partial revision of the Committee’s decision on admissibility. They consider that, in its observations on the merits, the State party acknowledged that Thomas Sankara did