INTRODUCTION This publication aims to provide an introduction to the African regional human rights system, by presenting an overview of the framework and evolving norms and jurisprudence of the regional and sub-regional human rights bodies. Additionally, this Handbook seeks to act as a practical guide for civil society actors and NGOs by detailing procedures and requirements for utilising the various human rights tools built into the system. In general, this publication will describe the accomplishments, potential and challenges of this system to deal with the pervasive problem of torture. In Part A, the broader African Union (‘AU’) institutional framework within which the system functions is set out and explained. A basic introduction is then given of the main AU human rights treaty, the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (‘African Charter’, ‘the Charter’), and its implementing body, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (‘African Commission’, ‘the Commission’). In discussing the African Commission, a distinction is drawn between its protective and promotional mandates. The African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (‘African Human Rights Court’, ‘the African Court’), which supplements the Commission’s protective mandate, is then introduced, before other AU treaties of relevance to torture are briefly discussed. This second edition subsequently provides a detailed examination of the mandate, composition, and jurisprudence of various sub-regional human rights bodies, including Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Community Court of Justice, East African Community (EAC) Court of Justice, and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Tribunal. This section, importantly, also details the complaint procedure for accessing each of these human rights bodies. The main substantive norms of a binding nature are then extracted from the African Charter and are discussed in the light of the Commission’s interpretation of these norms in specific cases (in Part B). By examining the jurisprudence of the Commission, this part examines essential elements of torture and ill-treatment, such as the requisite threshold distinguishing torture, the treatment of detainees, and the obligations of States to investigate, punish, and avoid practices of immunity and amnesty. In addition, Part B makes note of the substantive norms set out regarding the rights of the child and the rights of women. This part also places emphasis on the means of remedy that are available through these human rights bodies. Part C explains the communications procedure in an effort to provide litigators with practical knowledge about the application procedure to the various regional and sub-regional bodies. The phases through which an individual petition before 8