The paper aims to think anew about the jurisdiction ratione materiae of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (‘Court’). The Court, based in Arusha, enjoys a distinctive contentious jurisdiction which extends to the interpretation and application of any other relevant human rights instrument ratified by the States concerned. The Court’s striking features set it apart from human rights bodies and most international courts. The Court’s jurisdiction has been received with scepticism and fear arguing that, if the Court extends its jurisdiction over treaties other than the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, this will lead to jurisprudential chaos and will undermine the formation of the African corpus juris. The article discusses the case law of the Court since 2013, when the Court started functioning, and it argues that these concerns are over-emphasised. The analysis underlines the shifting authority of specialised and/or regional courts; the need not to overstress but to appreciate positively instances of divergence; and the consideration of new conceptual and geographical topoi, in which international law is to be found and produced.

中文翻译：

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关于新的“司法动物”：具有全球范围物质管辖权的非洲法院的奇特案例

本文旨在重新思考非洲人权和人民权利法院（“法院”）的属事管辖权。法院设在阿鲁沙，享有独特的诉讼管辖权，适用于有关国家批准的任何其他相关人权文书的解释和适用。法院的显着特点使其有别于人权机构和大多数国际法院。人们对法院的管辖权表示怀疑和恐惧，认为如果法院将其管辖权扩展到《非洲人权和人民权利宪章》以外的条约，这将导致法理混乱，并会破坏非洲法律语料库的形成。文章讨论了自 2013 年法院开始运作以来法院的判例法，它认为这些担忧被过分强调了。分析强调了专门和/或区域法院的权力转移；不需要过分强调，而是要积极地欣赏分歧的例子；以及考虑新的概念和地理拓扑，在其中发现和产生国际法。