PRESS STATEMENT ON APPEAL IN EXTRADITION CASE

THIRTEEN NAMIBIANS CHALLENGE EXTRADITION

The thirteen Namibians, who are the subject of an extradition case have today filed an appeal at the Lobatse High Court against the decision of the Magistrate’s Court.

On 20 September 2001, Acting Chief Magistrate Annah Mathiba had ruled that the appellants “…would not be prejudiced at their trial (in Namibia), or punished, detained or restricted in their personal liberty by reason of their political opinion”. The Government of Namibia is seeking the return of the appellants to face trial on charges of treason, murder, attempted murder, robbery, unlawful possession of firearms, ammunition, explosives and bombs.

The three grounds of appeal are that `the decision was against the weight of evidence presented before the Court; that the Learned Magistrate misdirected herself on points of fact and points of law and that the Learned Magistrate erred in failing to uphold the political offence exception’.

The Extradition Act s 7 (1) (a) states that “a fugitive criminal shall not be surrendered if the offence in respect of which his surrender is demanded is one of a political character”, or if it appears to a Court or the Minister that the person is in fact being sought “ … with a view to try or punish him for an offence of a political character”. This is commonly known as the `political offence exception’.

DITSHWANELO – The Botswana Centre for Human Rights remains committed to the protection and promotion of human rights. We shall continue to monitor the case.

4 October 2001
Gaborone