The first ever case against Seychelles before the Human
Rights Committee of the United Nations(UNHRC) was officially registered on May
28th 2014.
Viral Dhanjee, a militant citizen who was refused the right
to take part in the 2011 Presidential elections, has taken the matter before
the UNHRC under the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil
and Political Rights of which Seychelles is a party. Mr Dhanjee has argued that
the fact that he was prevented from taking part in the 2011 Presidential
elections was a violation of his civil and political rights as affirmed by the
covenant.
April 27th 2011 was declared Nomination Day for
the last Presidential elections and Viral Dhanjee registered as an independent
Presidential candidate. To do so, he needed to submit various documents
including his nomination form with an attached list of supporters. The law requires
that a prospective candidate submits a list of 500 supporters. When he
registered at 12.55 pm on April 27, he was given a receipt by the Chief Electoral
Officer that stated the following:” I acknowledge receipt of the following
documents in respect of your nomination as a candidate for the May 2011 Presidential
elections.
Source: Today
