Transit proceedings

Liechtenstein

Liechtenstein - Cooperation with the ICC 2004 EN

I. General Provisions

Article 13
Free passage

(1) Persons summoned by the International Criminal Court or an International Tribunal from a foreign country to appear before the Court or Tribunal or persons whose presence is required at the seat of the International Criminal Court or International Tribunal shall for such purposes have a right of free passage through Liechtenstein, where they may not be prosecuted or punished or detained on account of any act engaged in prior to their entry.

(2) Prosecution, punishment or detention on account of an act engaged in prior to entry is admissible if the person summoned overstays the time required for transit through Liechtenstein and could actually have left the territory.

(3) No safe passage shall be granted where the International Criminal Court or International Tribunal requests the arrest of the person summoned (Articles 25, 27 and 28 below).

II. Specific provisions

D. Custody pending surrender, surrender and transit

Article 29
Transfer to the International Criminal Court or International Tribunal

(1) Once the order for surrender to the International Criminal Court or International Tribunal is enforceable, the judge of the princely court shall instruct the national police to promptly transfer the person to be surrendered to the International Criminal Court or International Tribunal. Unless there are serious security concerns or the Court or Tribunal seeks another form of delivery, the person to be surrendered shall be conveyed by air under the escort of Liechtenstein officials.

(2) The time of surrender shall be agreed with the International Criminal Court. Should circumstances prevent the transfer of the person to be surrendered, a new time will be agreed for the surrender.

(3) The time of surrender to the International Tribunal shall be notified to it and to the Netherlands authorities in due time by the national police, and include a reference to the time-limit on custody pursuant to Article 28(4) above.

(4) The judge of the princely court shall submit a copy of the order for surrender to the Ministry of Justice for onward transmission to the International Criminal Court or International Tribunal and also inform it of the time of the transfer to the latter.


Article 30
Provisional transfer to the International Criminal Court and repeal of the order for surrender

(1) In the event of criminal proceedings against the accused person in Liechtenstein or if the latter is serving a sentence in Liechtenstein for matters other than those for which surrender to the International Criminal Court was ordered, the person may be transferred provisionally to the International Criminal Court under conditions to be agreed on with it.

(2) The judge of the princely court shall promptly suspend custody pending surrender and repeal the order for surrender if:
(1) the International Criminal Court so requests or otherwise revokes its request for surrender;

(2) it is ascertained that in all likelihood the person arrested is not the person sought; or

(3) the International Criminal Court determines its lack of jurisdiction or the inadmissibility of the proceedings before it.


Article 31
Competing requests from the International Criminal Court and a State

(1) Should the Principality of Liechtenstein receive a request for surrender from the International Criminal Court and a request for extradition from another State in respect of the same person, the Ministry of Justice shall decide which request is given priority pursuant to article 90 of the Rome Statute.

(2) Should the Ministry of Justice give priority to a request for extradition from another State over a request for surrender from the International Criminal Court and the request for extradition is subsequently rejected or withdrawn, the International Criminal Court shall be notified of this without delay.


Article 32
Speciality of surrender to the International Criminal Court

(1) A person surrendered to the International Criminal Court pursuant to this law may not be prosecuted, taken into custody or sentenced for any act committed prior to transfer other than that for which he or she is being surrendered.

(2) At the request of the International Criminal Court the person may be released from the restrictions in paragraph 1. Prior to a decision in respect of such a request, the International Criminal Court may be requested to transmit a record regarding the statements of the person surrendered and additional information.

(3) The decision on such a request shall be taken by the Ministry of Justice. Release from the said restrictions shall be granted if the offence in respect of which the request is made falls within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court and there are no grounds for challenging the admissibility of proceedings before the International Criminal Court pursuant to Article 5(2) above.


Article 33
Transit and transport

(1) At the request of the International Criminal Court, persons may be transported through Liechtenstein and held in custody to secure such transit.

(2) There is no need to apply for authorisation where the person is conveyed by air and no landing is scheduled on Liechtenstein territory.

(3) In the event of an unscheduled landing, the person in transit shall be arrested and the International Criminal Court shall be requested to transmit a request for transit together with the documents referred to in article 89(3)(b) of the Rome Statute.

(4) The person in transit shall be released if the request for transit has not been received within 96 hours. Such release shall not preclude a renewed arrest on the basis of a request pursuant to Article 25(1) or 27(1) above.

(5) The decision on transit shall be taken by the Ministry of Justice. Such transit shall be approved unless it would impede or delay surrender. A domestic conviction for a criminal offence not within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court shall not prevent transit. The authorisation of transit is not open to appeal.

(6) Paragraphs 1, 2, 3 and 5 shall apply at the request of the International Criminal Court or of a State that has agreed to enforce a sentence passed by the Court for the transit of persons through the territory of the Principality of Liechtenstein on the understanding that the International Criminal Court will be requested to transmit a request for transit together with a copy of the enforceable judgement in the event of an unscheduled landing.

(7) Requests for transit from an International Tribunal or a State which has agreed to enforce a sentence passed by the Tribunal, shall be subject mutatis mutandis to paragraph 1 and to the first and fourth sentences of paragraph 5 above.

Rome Statute

Article 89 Surrender of persons to the Court

3.

(a) A State Party shall authorize, in accordance with its national procedural law, transportation through its territory of a person being surrendered to the Court by another State, except where transit through that State would impede or delay the surrender.