entitled to adequate compensation from the State
party. He submits that following his release from the
first period of detention he continued to be harassed
and intimidated by the authorities; he claims that he
denounced these practices.
retaliation for the propagation of his opinions and his
activism, the authorities subjected him to threats and
intimidation, and that in January 1986 he was
dismissed from his employment. The Ndola City
Council subsequently expelled him and his family
from their home, while the payment of his father's
pension was suspended indefinitely.
3.3 The author states that, as a political activist
and former prisoner of conscience, he has been
placed under strict surveillance by the authorities,
and that he continues to be subjected to restrictions
on his freedom of movement. He claims that he has
been denied a passport as well as any means of
making a decent living.
2.2 Because of the harassment and hardship to
which he and his family were being subjected, the
author emigrated to Namibia, where other Zambian
citizens had settled. Upon his return to Zambia,
however, he was arrested and placed in custody; the
author's account in this respect is unclear and the
date of his return to Zambia remains unspecified.
Issues and proceedings before the Committee
2.3 The author notes that by September 1988 he
had been detained for 31 months, on charges of
belonging to the People's Redemption Organization
– an association considered illegal under the terms
of the country's one-party Constitution – and for
having conspired to overthrow the Government of
the then President Kenneth Kaunda. On an
unspecified subsequent date, he was released;
again, the circumstances of his release remain
unknown. At an unspecified later date, Mr. Bwalya
returned to Zambia.
4.1 Before considering any claims contained in a
communication, the Human Rights Committee must,
in accordance with rule 87 of its rules of procedure,
decide whether or not it is admissible under the
Optional Protocol to the Covenant.
4.2 During its forty-first session, the Committee
considered the admissibility of the communication.
It noted with concern the absence of cooperation
from the State party which, in spite of four reminders
addressed to it, had failed to comment on the
admissibility of the communication. It further noted
that the author's claim that the Supreme Court had
dismissed his appeal had remained uncontested. In
the circumstances, the Committee concluded that the
requirements of article 5, paragraph 2 (b), of the
Optional Protocol had been met.
2.4 On 25 March 1990, the author sought the
Committee's direct intercession in connection with
alleged discrimination, denial of employment and
refusal of a passport. By letter of 5 July 1990, the
author's wife indicated that her husband had been
rearrested on 1 July 1990 and taken to the Central
Police Station in Ndola, where he was reportedly
kept for two days. Subsequently, he was transferred
to Kansenshi prison in Ndola; the author's wife
claims that she was not informed of the reasons for
her husband's arrest and detention.
4.3 As to the claims relating to articles 7 and 10
of the Covenant, the Committee considered that the
author had failed to substantiate his claim, for
purposes of admissibility, that he had been subjected
to treatment in violation of these provisions.
Accordingly, the Committee found this part of the
communication inadmissible under article 2 of the
Optional Protocol.
2.5 With respect to the requirement of
exhaustion of domestic remedies, the author notes
that he instituted proceedings against the authorities
after his initial arrest. He notes that the district
tribunal reviewing his case confirmed, on
17 August 1987, that he was no danger to national
security but that, notwithstanding the court's
finding, he remained in custody. A further approach
to the Supreme Court met with no success.
3.1 In his initial submissions, the author invokes a
large number of provisions of the Covenant, without
substantiating his allegations. In subsequent letters,
he confines his claims to alleged violations of
articles 1, 2, 3, 9, 10, 12, 25 and 26 of the Covenant.
4.4 With respect to the author's claims that he:
(a) had been subjected to arbitrary arrest and
unlawful detention; (b) had been denied the right to
liberty of movement and arbitrarily denied a
passport; (c) had been denied the right to take part
in the conduct of public affairs; and (d) had been
discriminated against on account of political
opinion, the Committee considered that they had
been substantiated, for purposes of admissibility.
Furthermore, the Committee was of the opinion
that, although articles 9, paragraph 2, and 19 had
not been invoked, the facts as submitted might raise
issues under these provisions.
3.2 The author contends that, since he never
participated in any conspiracy to overthrow the
Government of President Kaunda, his arrests were
arbitrary and his detentions unlawful, and that he is
4.5 On 21 March 1991, the Committee declared
the communication admissible in so far as it
appeared to raise issues under articles 9, 12, 19, 25
and 26 of the Covenant.
Complaint
24
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