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Mauritius: Teeren Appasamy's extradition explained
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L'Express (Port Louis)
INTERVIEW
9 November 2007
Posted to the web 9 November 2007
Deepa Bhookhun
Port Louis
Now a UK citizen, the Mauritian businessman has been arrested on Tuesday last by the British police. He is thought to be the beneficiary in a fraud affair of some Rs 881,6 millions. But the proceedings are long.
In 2002, one of the biggest scandals in the country comes to light: Rs 881,6 millions belonging to the National Pension Fund (NPF) are thought to have been embezzled from the Mauritius Commercial Bank. A Mauritian businessman living in the UK, Teeren Appasamy, is thought to have been the main beneficiary in this sordid fraud affair. An attempt to question Appasamy in 2003 failed. Ever since, the Independent Commission against Corruption (ICAC) through the government, has been attempting to have Appasamy, now a British citizen, extradited to Mauritius to further the enquiry in the matter.
Procedures started in 2004 - two years after the affair was brought to light - but it was only in 2005 that the Government of Mauritius asked Britain's Home Office to extradite Teeren Appasamy for the purposes of the ICAC inquiry. It is only last Tuesday that British Police managed to arrest Appasamy. Whether he will subsequently be extradited to Mauritius is open to speculation as everything now rests with British justice. Below is an explanation of the whole affair.
What is extradition?
Extradition is the surrender by one state to another of a person charged with a crime. This surrender is made in response to the demand of the latter state (in this case Mauritius) that the accused be returned to face the charge. Between nation states, treaties regulate extradition.
Has Mauritius signed treaties with Great Britain?
No, Mauritius has not signed any extradition treaty with Great Britain but, according to the Supreme Court, "it is clear that there is no need for an extradition treaty in respect of extradition relations between England and a designated Commonwealth country like Mauritius". Therefore, extraditions have taken place in the past between the two countries. Appasamy's lawyer, however, has put forward the argument that an extradition treaty does not exist between the UK and Mauritius, in an attempt to save his client from being extradited. The tactic has not paid off.
Why is the whole extradition process taking that long?
It is a lengthy process rendered lengthier by hesitations on the part of the Mauritian authorities. Then Foreign affairs minister Jayen Cuttaree signed the request for the extradition in 2005. The whole process started in November 2004. The extradition request was sent to Britain's Home Office along with an international arrest warrant that was issued by magistrate Aujayeb in March 2005.
Then there was a change in government and new attorney general Rama Valayden (incidentally also a former lawyer of businessman Teeren Appasamy) said : "We are still waiting for the ICAC to complete its inquiry", when questioned about the eventual extradition of his former client. This was in July 2005 and despite the fact that Government had announced that the extradition request together with the arrest warrant has already been sent to London.
Then followed a long waiting period during which British police said they could not find the MCB-NPF affair's main suspect. Subsequently Appasamy was said to be poor and in hospital after having suffered from a stroke. He was finally arrested last Tuesday; Appasamy was taken to court and subsequently released on bail.
"It is clear that there is no need for an extradition treaty in respect of extradition relations between England and a designated Commonwealth country like Mauritius"
Why doesn't Britain's Home Office just send Appasamy to Mauritius?
Teeren Appasamy is a British national. As such, he is entitled to the protection of the law in England. The request for extradition by the Mauritian Authorities was examined by the Home Office and found to be in order. The Home Office then gave instructions to the police to find Teeren Appasamy and arrest him. Appasamy's arrest, however, does not mean he is extradited to Mauritius. The British authorities have to be satisfied that there is enough evidence against Appasamy to warrant his extradition to Mauritius. It is only then that he will be sent to Mauritius.
Will Appasamy be judged in the UK?
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No, he will not. The point of taking him to court is to decide whether his country (in this instance, the UK) thinks there are adequate grounds to surrender Appasamy to Mauritius. Clearly one important obstacle has been overcome. The Crown Prosecution Service has already established that there is a prima facie case against Appasamy.
Otherwise, the businessman would not have been arrested. This has now to be established by a court of law. Following this, Teeren Appasamy could resist an eventual legal decision and ask for a judicial review and then appeal to the European Court of Justice. This could take a long time.
Will Teeren Appasamy (drawing top) be flown to SSR International airport in Mauritius? It all depends on the outcome of the legal battle, which however can take months, or years...
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