A threatened extradition to a third country can mean more than the deprivation of liberty itself. In some cases, the concerned persons must also fear for their physical integrity, even their very lives.
Schlun & Elseven Rechtsanwälte is an internationally active law firm specialising, among other things, in representing clients in extradition proceedings. Our German extradition lawyers have the necessary expertise and years of experience in dealing with Interpol and the extradition authorities to represent you with competence and commitment during this difficult time. They assist clients who are to be extradited from or to Germany and take on the defence in all Interpol proceedings to obtain the cancellation of Interpol Red Notices.
Extradition requirements between Singapore and Germany continue to be governed by the 1872 Anglo-German Extradition Agreement.
In 2018, the last extradition from Singapore to Germany was granted. The last extradition from Germany to Singapore was in 2012.
Extradition of Citizens
According to Art. IV of the extradition agreement, extraditions of own citizens are not provided for. In this respect, the agreement is in line with the German Basic Law (GG), which provides for extraditions of German citizens only in exceptional cases for extraditions to EU member states or international courts, cf. Art. 16 II GG. Art. IV of the agreement does not include non-German EU citizens on the part of Germany. According to the case law of the ECJ, such a differentiation between EU citizens is compatible with the principles of the EU.
Extradition Prerequisites and Obstacles
Extraditions between Germany and Singapore only occur if an extraditable offence, according to Art. II of the agreement is at issue. For this to be the case, the offence must be punishable in both countries, and the extraditable offences are listed exhaustively in Art. II. These include offences such as homicide, bodily injury, fraud, piracy, and slave trade.
The agreement provides for an exception to the obligation to extradite if the person prosecuted for the offence on which the extradition request is based is subject to the death penalty under the law of the requesting state, while the law of the requested state does not provide for the death penalty in such a case, according to Art. II of the agreement.
In Germany, the death penalty is expressly abolished, cf. Art. 102 GG. In Singapore, the death penalty is provided for offences such as murder, illegal use of firearms and treason. Life imprisonment may be imposed instead of the death penalty for narcotics-related offences.
A further obstacle to extradition exists if the person to be extradited is threatened with torture or other inhuman or degrading treatment, cf. Art. 3 ECHR. Human rights violations in the requesting state can thus lead to a refusal of the extradition request.
Even though Amnesty International, in particular, criticises Singapore for having resumed the execution of death sentences in 2022 after several years without executions, no reports of torture or the like are known.
In April 2022, Singapore came under public criticism for executing a man with an intellectual disability despite previous international protests. He had been arrested on entry in 2009 for carrying heroin. However, the execution of persons with intellectual disabilities is against international law, and it could be argued that the human rights of persons with disabilities could be violated if they were extradited to Singapore.
Practice Group: German Extradition & Interpol Law
Practice Group:
Extradition & Interpol Law
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