EXTRADITION

Convicted person leaving South Africa for UK while on bail - extradition provisions subsequently coming into force - retrospectivity of extradition proceedings not contravening convention rights R (Marais) v Governor of Brixton Prison and another: QBD (Lord Justice Kennedy and Mr Justice Pitchford): 30 November 2001In 1994 the applicant, who had been convicted of fraud offences in South Africa and was on bail awaiting an appeal, came to the UK.

In 1996 South Africa became a 'designated Commonwealth country' for the purposes of the Extradition Act 1989 and in consequence new extradition arrangements came into effect between South Africa and the UK.The South African government requested the applicant's extradition.

Following his committal under section 9 of the Extradition Act 1989, the applicant applied for a writ of habeas corpus under section 11 of the Extradition Act 1989 on the ground that the extradition proceedings were unlawfully retrospective under article 7(1) of the European Convention on Human Rights in that the relevant statutory provisions had come into force only after the offences had been committed.Malcolm Bishop QC and Robin Pearse Wheatley (instructed by Sherwood Wheatley, Kingston upon Thames) for the applicant.

Helen Malcolm (instructed by the Crown Prosecution Service) for the South African government.Held, dismissing the application, that the extradition proceedings did not themselves impose a penalty on the applicant but merely removed an obstacle from the way of the South African authorities so that they could determine an appropriate penalty for the applicant; and that, accordingly, the proceedings were not capable of falling within article 7(1) of the convention.