conditions which genuinely afford the full guarantees stipulated in article 14. It is incumbent on a State party that does try civilians before military courts to justify the practice. The Committee considers that the State party must demonstrate, with regard to the specific class of individuals at issue, that the regular civilian courts are unable to undertake the trials, that other alternative forms of special or high-security civilian courts are inadequate to the task and that recourse to military courts is unavoidable. The State party must further demonstrate how military courts ensure the full protection of the rights of the accused pursuant to article 14. In the present case the State party has not shown why recourse to a military court was required. In commenting on the gravity of the charges against Abbassi Madani it has not indicated why the ordinary civilian courts or other alternative forms of civilian court were inadequate to the task of trying him. Nor does the mere invocation of domestic legal provisions for the trial by military court of certain categories of serious offences constitute an argument under the Covenant in support of recourse to such tribunals. The State party’s failure to demonstrate the need to rely on a military court in this case means that the Committee need not examine whether the military court, as a matter of fact, afforded the full guarantees of article 14. The Committee concludes that the trial and sentence of Abbassi Madani by a military tribunal discloses a violation of article 14 of the Covenant. 8.8 Concerning the alleged violation of article 19, the Committee recalls that freedom of information and freedom of expression are the cornerstones of any free and democratic society. Such societies in essence allow their citizens to seek information regarding ways of replacing, if necessary, the political system or parties in power, and to criticize or judge their Governments openly and publicly without fear of reprisal or repression by them, subject to the restrictions laid down in article 19, paragraph 3, of the Covenant. With regard to the allegations that Abbassi Madani was arrested and charged for political reasons, the Committee notes that it does not have sufficient information to conclude that there was a violation of article 19 in respect of the arrest and charges brought against him in 1991. At the same time, although the State party has indicated that the author is enjoying all his rights and has been resident abroad since that time, and notwithstanding the author’s allegations in this regard, the Committee notes that it does not have sufficient information to conclude that there was a violation of article 19 in respect of the alleged ban imposed on Abbassi Madani from making statements or expressing an opinion during his house arrest. 140 140 9. The Human Rights Committee, acting under article 5, paragraph 4, of the Optional Protocol, is of the view that the facts before it disclose violations by the State party of articles 9 and 14 of the Covenant. 10. In accordance with article 2, paragraph 3, of the Covenant, the State party is under an obligation to provide an effective remedy for Abbassi Madani. The State party is under an obligation to take the necessary steps to ensure that the author obtains an appropriate remedy, including compensation. In addition, the State party is required to take steps to prevent further occurrences of such violations in the future. 11. Bearing in mind that, by becoming a State party to the Optional Protocol, the State party has recognized the competence of the Committee to determine whether there has been a violation of the Covenant or not and that, pursuant to article 2 of the Covenant, the State party has undertaken to guarantee all individuals within its territory and subject to its jurisdiction the rights recognized in the Covenant, and to provide an effective and enforceable remedy when it has been determined that a violation has occurred, the Committee wishes to receive from the State party, within 90 days, information about the measures taken to give effect to the Committee’s Views. It also requests the State party to publish the Committee’s Views. APPENDIX Individual opinion (dissenting) by Committee member Abdelfattah Amor In this matter, the Committee, after affirming, in a style and language that it does not customarily employ, that: “The State party’s failure to demonstrate the need to rely on a military court in this case means that the Committee need not examine whether the military court, as a matter of fact, afforded the full guarantees of article 14.” concludes that: “the trial and sentence of Abbassi Madani by a military tribunal discloses a violation of article 14 of the Covenant”. I cannot associate myself with the approach followed and the conclusion underlying this paragraph 8.7 of the Committee’s Views. I believe that they exceed the scope of article 14 and deviate from the general comment on this article. Article 14 is essentially concerned with guarantees and procedures for the equitable, independent and impartial administration of justice. It is exclusively in that context that the body which administers justice is cited, and then only in the first paragraph of the article: “All persons shall be equal before the courts and tribunals. … everyone shall be entitled to a fair and public hearing by a