ABSTRACT
The protection of human values means that human rights must be freed from ad hoc, periodic or constant denial, curtailing, deprivation and other abuses and violations. The African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights possesses a sui generis character and is a unique and innovative concept not just in Africa but also in other contexts. Thus, the term 'human rights' in the Charter refers not only to human rights and freedoms but also to the duties corresponding to those rights and to the kinds of right enumerated by the Charter –that is, 'popular', 'individual', 'state', 'universal' rights and so on. For a long time, many African states, especially those which chose to follow the socialist system of government, made no differentiation between peoples' rights and state rights. Ironi-cally, the World Conference was followed by probably the worst massacres and mass executions ever seen on the African continent.
