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The Secretary for Security, Mr Ambrose SK Lee, on behalf of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government and Consul General of the Republic of Korea, Mr Cho Whan-bok, representing the Government of the Republic of Korea, today (June 26) signed a bilateral agreement for the surrender of fugitive offenders (SFO).
The agreement is the 16th bilateral arrangement Hong Kong has signed on SFO. It sets out the conditions for the surrender of fugitive offenders between Hong Kong and the Republic of Korea, and contains the usual safeguards found in similar international agreements. These include:
* The double criminality rule: the conduct in respect of which a person's return is required must constitute an offence punishable by imprisonment for more than one year according to the laws of both parties;
* Death penalty: surrender may be refused if the offence for which surrender of a fugitive is requested is punishable with the death penalty;
* The political offences rule: surrender shall be refused if the offence in question is a political offence or connected with a political offence;
* The prima facie rule: the requesting party shall provide evidence that, according to the law of the requested party, would permit a decision to be taken to surrender a person in respect of an offence for which surrender is required;
* The specialty rule: a person returned must not be tried for offences other than those for which he was surrendered; and
* Protection against re-surrender to a third jurisdiction.
The Fugitive Offenders Ordinance provides the necessary legislative framework for the implementation of the agreement which shall come into force 30 days after both sides have notified each other in writing that their respective requirements for the entry into force of the agreement have been complied with.
Ends/Monday, June 26, 2006
Issued at HKT 16:32
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