It is a little unusual to produce a second edition of a collection of essays, yet the circumstances surrounding the African human rights system are such as to make this – we hope – a worthwhile endeavour. The first edition of this collection appeared in 2002 and focused on what might now be described as the foundational phase of that system, a phase in which institutions were established and the basic approaches to human rights issues as addressed in the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights were explored and its potential for further development reflected and worked upon. During the last four years, the human rights system as established by the Charter has undergone considerable change. At one level, such change flows from the evolution of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) into the African Union (AU), and with it a new dynamic in the system of human rights protection. Change has also come about through the adoption and entry into force of new protocols to the Charter, on the establishment of the African Court of Human Rights and on Women's Rights. There has also been a greater richness to the work under the system through the increasing jurisprudence under the complaints mechanisms, as well as further growth in the number of, and thematic reach of, its working groups and special rapporteurs.

This new collection of essays seeks to capture these developments in a number of ways.