Live discussion with vice-president Viviane Reding on the Romanian misuse of EU mechanisms to continue persecution of refugees
VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rnb_PbUpYY#t=14
On 14th October Mrs. Reding visited the Citizens’ Dialogue in Stockholm. The Swedish representative of Soteria International, Mr. Konrad Swenninger brought up the issue of a human rights contradiction between the European Arrest Warrant and the International Convention for protection of Refugees. As an example, Mr. Swenninger mentioned the case of Gregorian Bivolaru, a Romanian political dissident continuously targeted by Romanian authorities and was given political asylum in Sweden. The asylum is now threatened by a European Arrest Warrant issued in June 2013 by Romanian authorities, as a result of a highly controversial decision of the Romanian Supreme Court against Bivolaru.
Acknowledging the case, Mrs. Reding stated that indeed the European Arrest Warrant has been a complicated subject in European politics. She and her team have insisted on precise procedures related to the warrant, so that it cannot be used by national authorities to pursue undemocratic interests. Referring to the situation in Romania, Mrs. Reding is concerned that indeed the country struggles with implementation and respect for democratic procedures. Mrs. Reding reminded the audience that in the summer of 2012, the Directorate General for Justice of the EC, which she conducts, severely criticized the attack on the constitution of Romania attempted by opposing Romanian governing parties.
In a follow-up briefing Mrs. Viviane Reding, Mrs. Brigitta Ohlsson, Swedish Minister for EU Affairs and MEP Olle Ludvigsson who co-chaired the meeting with citizens expressed their concern and interest to follow the case and received a communiqué from Gregorian Bivolaru concerning his situation.
In meetings 17th October in Brussels several Swedish MEPs expressed their concern and interest to work for the case, and the Romanian misuse of the European Arrest Warrant to pursue political persecution of the refugee Bivolaru.
We remind that earlier in October the case has been discussed at the Human Dimension Implementation meeting organized by OSCE in Warsaw, both in the plenary discussion on the protection of refugees and in the side-event conference organized by Soteria International. Representatives of the Swedish government assured Soteria International and the international community that Sweden takes its international obligations on Human Rights very seriously and reminded that Swedish legislation, as well as European law, foresee that national courts should take consideration of human rights implications in their rulings.
The statement of Swedish governmental representatives and the strong position of Viviane Reding in matters of defending human rights and democratic procedures bring confidence that human rights will be efficiently protected and countries such as Romania, still on their way to democracy, will be given a strong good example and will be prevented in their attempts to disregard or violate the rights of its citizens.
http://www.soteriainternational.org/live-discussion-with-vice-president-viviane-reding-on-the-romanian-misuse-of-eu-mechanisms-to-continue-persecution-of-refugees
COMMENT
The misuse of the European Arrest Warrant ("EAW") is not confined to issue of EAWs on trivial grounds. The EAW is also misused for political persecution of dissidents or those who otherwise fall foul of authorities.
Significantly, misuse of the EAW is not confined to dissidents of 'repressive Eastern European' regimes.
The dubious EAW has been used by Sweden and Britain to facilitate persecution of journalist-publisher Julian Assange, by blocking political asylum granted to Assange by Ecuardor.
So we have witnessed Sweden issuing a EAW and Interpol Red Notice in order to merely question Assange in respect of 'allegations' the Swedish prosecution claims it is 'investigating'.
Sweden has been able to issue such an arrest warrant because (a) it is a member of the European Union and (b) the requirement for proof that there is in fact a case to answer has not been written into legislation by Union lawmakers. How easy is that?
While Sweden was quick to issue an EAW and Red Notice, it has been unusually resistant in getting around to even questioning Assange during the 2 years he remained under house arrest in Britain, in addition to a further 2.5 years that Assange has remained trapped at the Ecuador embassy, under threat of British arrest and extradition to Sweden (almost certainly leading to subsequent extradition from Sweden to the United States).
The treatment of Assange is in stark contrast to Sweden's selectively liberal stance protecting Gregorian Bivolaru.
Gregorian Bivolaru's 2005 arrest would have been effected under an Interpol all-points-bulletin apprehension, as Romania's accession to the European Union was in 2007.
Despite allegations of a sexual nature involving a minor (which were later dropped on claim of 'coercion') and a whole host of other serious charges, Sweden refused to extradite Gregorian Bivolaru and proceeded to grant Bivolaru asylum in 2005.
A 2013 EAW now threatens Gregorian Bivolaru's asylum in Sweden and Swedish politicians are commendably quick to express their concern regarding Bivolaru's matter, but remain curiously silent regarding WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange, who has now been denied liberty (without charge) for over 4 years.
EAWs are a dime-a-dozen and generally used for pursuit of trivial matters, as the British surge in figures and analysis attests. Unfortunately, the EAW also does away with arrest initiating-authorities being required to prove subjects of an EAW actually have a case to answer.
The EAW sidestepping of the burden of proof is a travesty of justice that should never have been permitted (let alone recently adopted by the British, by default, thanks to the British Conservatives pushing through legislation by sleight of hand).
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The arrest warrant allows any European Union country to request the
arrest and extradition of a wanted person without proving they have a
case to answer – the traditional burden of proof that British courts
insisted foreign countries pass before agreeing an extradition.
Critics say the burden of proof now is too low, and can lead to people
being arrested simply on the word of foreign police or magistrates,
without any case to answer.
Sweden's treatment of American target, Julian Assange, captive
without charge on what strongly smells of trumped up allegations that
serve US political objectives, is blatantly incongruous and jarring.
Where Sweden's conscience should be, concerning the detention and
political persecution of publisher Julian Assange, lies a gaping,
unmentionable hole that goes unchallenged.
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