The Right to a Speedy Trial in Ethiopia: The Case of Tigray

Awet, Guesh

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dc.contributor.author	Awet, Guesh
dc.date.accessioned	2017-10-10T10:17:35Z
dc.date.available	2017-10-10T10:17:35Z
dc.date.issued	2017-10-10
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/7888
dc.description.abstract	The right to a speedy trial of accused persons is recognized under Art. 20 (1) of the FDRE constitution and Art. 21 (1) of the constitution of National Regional State of Tigray. The right is also recognized under international and regional human rights instruments, in particular, Art. 14(3)(c) of ICCPR and Art. 7(1)(d) of the African charter. The right to a speedy trial plays a significant role by balancing two competing interests that infuse the criminal justice system; the search for the truth and the need to protect procedural rights of the accused throughout the process. The right to a speedy trial merges these interests by protecting the presumptively innocent accused persons from prolonged, oppressive incarceration that might result from delayed proceedings and by providing fresher evidence that will help the search for the truth. The right activates with an institution of criminal charge against a person. But, if the person is arrested before he is charged, the right starts to operate upon detention. Compared to other rights of criminal defendants, the right to speedy trial is vague concept because speed of criminal proceedings cannot be defined objectively. What constitutes a ‘reasonable’ time of proceedings differs according to the nature and circumstances of the case in dispute, such as the complexity of the case, the conduct of the parties, what is at stake for the applicant and the handling by the authorities. When we see the scope and implementation of the right to a speedy trial in Tigray region, it is being attacked through delays that occur at different stages of the criminal process. Various defective practices during investigation, prosecution and litigation have caused extended period of trials. Absence of legally prescribed time framework to finalize each stage of the criminal process and lack of consistently used criteria to determine reasonableness of time of proceedings have made justice actors reluctant in conducting speedy trials. Courts of the region are far from applying international human rights law. This has resulted in violation of not only the right to speedy trial, but also the right to a fair trial of accused persons. Key words/phrases: right to speedy trial, reasonable time, arrested/accused persons, criminal proceedings, FDRE constitutio	en_US
dc.language.iso	en_US	en_US
dc.title	The Right to a Speedy Trial in Ethiopia: The Case of Tigray	en_US
dc.type	Thesis	en_US