The Tunisian Ministry of Foreign Affairs denied on Saturday that Tunisia has withdrawn from the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights establishing the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights.

In a statement, the Ministry clarified that contrary to media and social media reports, Tunisia has not withdrawn from the Court, but rather "withdrew its 2017 declaration accepting the Court's jurisdiction to receive petitions from individuals and NGOs." The statement noted that while 34 of the African Union's 55 member states have ratified the Court's founding Protocol, only 12 initially accepted this supplementary jurisdiction - with just seven maintaining it today.

The Ministry explained that the Protocol allows optional acceptance of this additional jurisdiction. Several countries, including Tanzania (where the Court is based), later withdrew their declarations due to perceived interference in domestic affairs.

Tunisian authorities characterized their decision as "sovereign," citing recent cases filed against Tunisia at the Court that allegedly aimed to "politicize issues, defame state institutions, and undermine Tunisian judiciary's credibility" despite comprehensive judicial reforms ensuring fair trials.

While Tunisia originally accepted this jurisdiction believing in the Court's human rights mission, it joined other African nations in recognizing that "the mechanism became a tool to drag Tunisia into politically-motivated domestic matters of foreign states" - contrary to Tunisia's principle of positive neutrality and non-interference.

The Foreign Ministry emphasized that withdrawing from this specific jurisdiction:

• Is based on national sovereignty principles

• Reflects Tunisia's absolute rejection of foreign interference

• Does not constitute withdrawal from the Court itself

• Maintains the Court's role in resolving disputes about interpreting/applying the African Charter and other human rights instruments Tunisia has ratified