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Spain: Extradition of political refugees

01 November 1997

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The Spanish government presented to Parliament in October a draft Organic Law on International Judicial Co-operation in Criminal Matters, which would allow the extradition of persons recognised as refugees, and of those accused of political offences. The draft was immediately criticised by members of the Council of State and of the General Council of the Judiciary. Non-governmental organisations claimed that the law would violate the 1951 UN Convention on the Status of Refugees. All the parliamentary parties came out against the draft and have announced their intention to make substantial amendments during its debate. Needing to secure a minimum level of support to bring the bill forward, the government accepted a number of modifications proposed by the Catalan nationalists, most notably one establishing that in no circumstances could a person granted refugee status be extradited to his or her country of origin, and their extradition to a third country would depend on that country guaranteeing that the person would not be returned to the country of origin.

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