#EAW - Méadaíonn na hábhair imní maidir leis an mBarántas Gabhála Eorpach

Fair Trials, the global criminal justice watchdog, is calling for new EU human rights safeguards in order to counteract the misuse of the European Arrest Warrant. Fair Trials has just launched its report, which is the result of a comprehensive investigation of what happens to individuals after they are surrendered following the issuing of a European Arrest Warrant. Fair Trials, along with their partner organizations in Spain, Poland, Lithuania and Romania, showed that often the European Arrest Warrant is being abused, either to pursue people accused of very small crimes or else to investigate people.

The report highlights the fact that people are often sent back even when there is cause to believe that those surrendered will not receive a fair trial or will be placed in long pre-trial detention or in poor prison conditions.  Cases highlighted included that of a person sent back to Romania from the UK with the guarantee of a retrial which was rescinded when that person arrived back in Romania.

The release of the report coincides with Ireland’s High Court decision to postpone the extradition of Artur Celmer, 31, back to Poland over concerns over the Polish government’s alleged interference in the Polish judiciary. His extradition proceedings had followed the issuing of a European Arrest Warrant for him. Celmer’s case comes just three months after concerns were already being voiced over the use of a European Arrest Warrant against a Russian whistle-blower Maria Efimova who had to hand herself into police in Athens after Maltese authorities issued a European Arrest Warrant for her after her actions in exposing a corruption scandal in which Malta’s Prime Minister Joseph Muscat was named.

Celmer’s case has drawn particular attention as the Irish High Court ruled that Poland’s government has been undermining the independence of the judiciary and that this meant Celmer could be denied a fair trial if returned to Poland.  These cases and others involving other European countries (often the newer member states) have undermined already dwindling support for the use of European Arrest Warrants.

One newer member state in particular has drawn criticism. Requests from Romania to extradite suspects using the European Arrest Warrant have caused with an increasing concern that Romania’s intelligence services (the SRI) and the countries National Anti-Corruption Directorate (DNA) misuse the European Arrest Warrant system to target those Romanian’s they wish to pressure. Both the SRI and the DNA have come under scrutiny recently over protocols signed between the SRI, the Prosecutor General and the judiciary that allowed the SRI to initiate their own investigations or take over investigations. For many legal commentators and human rights organizations, those protocols in Romania have created a parallel justice system which completely contradicts European principles and norms. There are concerns that all extradition requests that occurred after these protocols were signed in 2009 are tainted by these alleged abuses by the SRI and DNA in Romania.

Speaking about the launch of the Fair Trials report, Fair Trials’ European Regional Director Ralph Bunche said: “If a commitment to human rights is really a defining feature of the EU, we must stop treating people like commodities to be shipped across borders no matter how they’ll be treated when they get there. These people can find themselves in unsuitable, even unsanitary conditions, without access to appropriate health care, while awaiting trial.”

Aiseolas

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