China

The People's Republic of China requested the extradition of two individuals — a mother and son residing in Paphos, Cyprus since 2014 — for prosecution in connection with the alleged unlawful absorption of public deposits in violation of Article 176 of the Chinese Criminal Code, allegedly committed between August 2012 and April 2014 through a British company operating in Beijing. The requested persons raised objections on both formal and substantive grounds, arguing inter alia that their surrender would violate the fundamental principles of Cypriot and European law, given the prevailing situation of torture and systemic human rights violations in Chinese detention facilities. The court found that the formal requirements of the bilateral Extradition Treaty of 29 June 2018 (ratified by Law 12(III)/2019) and the double criminality condition were satisfied, but concluded — relying extensively on the ECtHR judgment in Liu v. Poland (App. No. 37610/2018, 6.10.2022) and expert evidence — that a general situation of violence and torture exists in Chinese detention and penitentiary facilities, thereby relieving the requested persons of the obligation to demonstrate specific personal risk factors. The court further held that the diplomatic assurances provided by China through the bilateral channel were insufficient to eliminate the real risk of ill-treatment, and accordingly rejected the extradition request as mandatorily precluded under Article 3(d) and (θ) of the Treaty.

South Korea requested the extradition of one of its nationals to serve a fifteen-year sentence for fraud after his appeal had been dismissed in absentia while he was residing in China. Before referring the request for judicial examination, the Supreme People’s Court obtained an assurance from South Korea that the requested person would receive a retrial in his presence following extradition. The Court also found that the conduct underlying the request constituted offences under the laws of both States and that more than six months of the sentence remained to be served. It therefore approved the lower court’s finding that the statutory and treaty conditions for extradition were satisfied.