refers to the tardy lodging of the complaint, namely on 29 September 1997, whereas the statute of limitations expired on 15 October 1997, i.e., 10 years after the alleged events. The author was thus running the risk of her complaint being time-barred in the event of referral to a court which lacked jurisdiction. In the State party’s view, referral to the Tribunal de Grande Instance, in lieu of the military court, constitutes a procedural error attributable to the author. Given the victim’s status (Thomas Sankara was a captain in the regular army of Burkina Faso) and the location where the events occurred (the premises of the Conseil de l’Entente, classed as a military zone during the revolutionary period), the author should quite naturally, in accordance with the law, have brought the matter before the military courts. In the opinion of the State party, the timebarring of the proceedings, which was related to the tardy referral to the courts, and the procedural error invalidated any proceedings before the military court. Consequently, the author cannot blame the Procurator for having refused to refer the case to the Minister of Defence, in conformity with the provisions of the Code of Military Justice. Furthermore, in its view, the author cannot invoke the dismissal of the appeal to the Supreme Court for non-payment of the bond as a ground for denial of justice, since it was incumbent on her to conform to the procedures provided for by law. 4.9 Lastly, the State party claims inadmissibility as to substance in view of the political nature of the complaint. In its view, the late referral of her husband’s death to the national courts indicates the author’s clear lack of interest in establishing the truth through the law. The State party considers that the facts of the case are fundamentally political since they occurred in a particularly troubled national context which was linked, first, to the aberrations of the revolutionary regime and the risks of instability in the country, and secondly to the military coup which was rendered necessary by circumstances. Lastly, the author’s quest for justice is fundamentally political in nature and constitutes an abuse of law. In the State party’s view, the author has set herself the goal of avenging her dead husband. Since her decision to go into exile immediately after the events in question, she has persisted in taking numerous initiatives aimed at damaging the country’s image. In its opinion, despite the steps taken to facilitate her return to the country, the author has stubbornly remained abroad, where she has the status of a political refugee. Her complaint, therefore, does not fall within the competence of the Committee. The authors’ comments on admissibility 5.1 In their comments of 30 August 2003, the authors contest the State party’s arguments on admissibility. 5.2 In the first place, the authors stress that their complaint must be also viewed from the standpoint of article 7 of the Covenant, in that the authorities’ refusal to conduct a proper inquiry and to establish the facts surrounding the death of Thomas Sankara may be regarded as cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment inflicted on them. Thus, the authorities prevented them from finding out the circumstances of the victim’s death and the precise place where his remains were officially buried. Lastly, the unlawful conduct of the State has had the effect of intimidating and punishing the Sankara family, who have been unjustly left in a state of uncertainty and mental distress.9 5.3 The authors consider that the State party’s arguments on inadmissibility of the complaint ratione materiae and its allegedly political character are without legal basis. In their view, the Committee is competent to consider the facts of the present communication, which admittedly pre-date Burkina Faso’s accession to the Optional Protocol, but represent a continuing violation of the Covenant and produce effects which themselves constitute violations of the Covenant to this day, account being taken of the acts of the Government and decisions of the courts since the Covenant’s entry into force. 5.4 The authors maintain that the communication as a whole is admissible in that Burkina Faso has failed to comply with its obligations under the Covenant. Citing communication No. 612/1995 (Vicente v. Colombia, Views of 29 July 1997), the authors refer, first, to the fact that the State party did not fulfil its obligation to conduct an inquiry into the death of Thomas Sankara. Secondly, the State party has never denied its failure to fulfil that obligation under the Covenant, a violation which occurred before and after accession to the Optional Protocol. They further note that Thomas Sankara’s death certificate falsely attributed his death to natural causes, and that the State party refused or wilfully omitted to rectify it before and after it acceded to the Optional Protocol. Thirdly, the authors consider that, in its observations, the State party made an admission of legal significance, namely that the State authorities were fully aware that Thomas Sankara had not died of natural causes, but did nothing about it. 5.5 The authors emphasize that the acts and wilful omissions on the part of the State party have 9 Communication No. 886/1999, Schedko et al. v. Belarus, Views of 3 April 2003. 124 124