Article 14 (1) provides “Everyone has the right to liberty and security of person. No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, search or detention without a legal warrant.” Article 14 (5) provides that : “Anyone arrested or detained on a criminal charge shall be brought promptly before a judge or other officer authorized by law to exercise judicial power and shall be entitled to trial within a reasonable time or to release. Anyone arrested or detained on a criminal charge shall be brought promptly before a judge or other officer authorized by law to exercise judicial power and shall be entitled to trial within a reasonable time or to release.” Article 16 sets out the presumption of innocence and the following minimum guarantees including equality of arms, adequate time to prepare a defence, to be able to communicate with his/her family, the right to appeal and to security of person and privacy: 1. The right to be informed promptly, in detail and in a language which he understands, of the charges against him. 2. The right to have adequate time and facilities for the preparation of his defense and to be allowed to communicate with his family. 3. The right to be tried in his presence before an ordinary court and to defend himself in person or through a lawyer of his own choosing with whom he can communicate freely and confidentially. 4. The right to the free assistance of a lawyer who will defend him if he cannot defend himself or if the interests of justice so require, and the right to the free assistance of an interpreter if he cannot understand or does not speak the language used in court. 5. The right to examine or have his lawyer examine the prosecution witnesses and to on defense according to the conditions applied to the prosecution witnesses. 6. The right not to be compelled to testify against himself or to confess guilt. 7. The right, if convicted of the crime, to file an appeal in accordance with the law before a higher tribunal. 8. The right to respect for his security of person and his privacy in all circumstances. 31. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights Article 3 guarantees “the right to life, liberty and security of person.” 32. There is a series of cases before the European Court of Human Rights on the right to trial within a reasonable time. While not binding, these cases provide persuasive authorities as to the interpretation of the right to trial within a reasonable time.8 VIOLATION OF THE RIGHT TO A FAIR TRIAL I. Independence and impartiality of the tribunal. 8 Abdoella v The Netherlands 20 EHRR 585 p 24, X v France (1992)14 EHRR 483p32, Tomasi v France 15 EHRR 1 p 84 7