Learn more about the African Commission, which is tasked with promoting and protecting human rights by interpreting the African Charter and considering individual complaints.

Learn more about the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, a judicial body that delivers binding judgments on compliance with the African Charter.

Learn more about the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Community Court of Justice, which has accepted the submission of individual complaints for human rights violations since 2005.

Learn more about the East African Court of Justice, which hears cases on violations of the rule of law, one of the fundamental and operational principles set out in the East African Community Treaty.

Locking up prisoners for extended periods while awaiting trial feeds corruption; bribes are needed for food and water, for blankets and even to see a lawyer.

Of the nearly ten million people in detention around the world, those held before trial or conviction are most at risk of torture.

The majority of Sierra Leone's prison population is in pretrial detention. To reduce the numbers, a local NGO is piloting a prorgam that provides early legal assistance to criminal defendants.

There are many causes for the global over-use of pretrial detention, but there are also cost-effective solutions. As this fact sheet outlines, early intervention by lawyers and paralegals can have a positive impact.