ASSEMBLY PASSES BILL ON EXTRADITION

The Mozambican parliament, the Assembly of the Republic, on Friday passed unanimously the first reading of a government bill setting out the basic rules for extradition.Mozambique has ratified the conventions on extradition of both the Southern African Development Community (SADC), and of the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP), but until now has not had a legal framework for dealing with requests for extradition from other states.The bill states that extradition may only occur if the crime allegedly committed by the person concerned is also a crime under Mozambican law, and is punishable by a prison term of not less than a year. Extradition may be granted both for purposes of bringing the fugitive to trial, and for carrying out prison terms ordered by courts in cases where the criminal has been tried in absentia or has escapedThe bill forbids extradition in cases of political or military offences, or where the person extradited may face the death penalty or life imprisonment. Furthermore there can be no extradition, if there are grounds for believing that the alleged criminal may be subjected to torture or to other forms of inhuman, degrading or cruel treatment, or if he or she is being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, sex, ethnicity or nationality. Mozambicans may not be extradited from Mozambique to other countries (unless they acquired Mozambican citizenship after their alleged crimes were committed).Extradition requests will be treated as a matter of urgency. The request will first by analysed by the government, but the final decision is in the hands of the courts.“We live in a world increasingly open to the mobility of persons and property”, said Justice Minister Bemvinda Levi, introducing the bill. “Under these conditions citizens who have committed crimes also move from one state to another. This justifies the approval of this bill, which will be a cornerstone in cooperation with other states in the field of criminal law”.When the bill becomes law “We shall have a fundamental instrument for regulating cases in which we are requested to hand over individuals who have committed crimes in other states”, said Levi. “We shall be giving a signal that Mozambique is not a refuge for foreign citizens trying to escape from justice”.Although the bill was passed unanimously, it come under criticism from the Assembly’s Legal and Constitutional Affairs Commission because it only deals with extradition from Mozambique, and not with any requests for extradition that the Mozambican authorities may make of other states.Amendments to the pill proposed by the Commission will be considered during its second reading, probably next week.