El-Masri v Macedonia (Case Note) - Brief PDF

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El-Masri v The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia Facts  Mr Khaled El-Masri (a German national), entered Macedonia via a bus and was immediately detained at the border  He was taken to a hotel in Skopje – he was kept for 23 days.  During his stay, Macedonian agents questioned him with regards to his possible links to Al Qaeda; sometimes threatening him with a gun.  He was then driven to Skopje Airport and handed over to CIA agents.  CIA agents performed: o Capture shock – handcuffing, blindfolding and undressing him o Sodomised, drugged, forcefully placed in an aircraft and finally flown out of Macedonia to a facility called the Salt Pit in Afghanistan. o Subjected to torture and repeated interrogation in Afghanistan.  During his time in captivity, he was not allowed to contact his family, legal counsel or any relevant judicial organ.  After the CIA realised it was the wrong person, they abandoned him near the Albanian border – Albanian authorities then sent him back to Germany. Held 

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Macedonia breached: o Article 3 (Prohibition of Torture) o Article 5 (Right to Liberty and Security) o Article 8 (Right to Respect for Private and Family Life) o Article 13 (Right to an Effective Remedy) With regards to the capture and handing over Mr El-Masri to the CIA agents. Court accepted the described facts as established ‘beyond reasonable doubt’, as they were corroborated with additional evidence, expert opinions and international, independent reports and investigations (Marty Report and Fava Report). Right to Truth o Lack of effective investigation raises one important issue of the right to truth o The inadequate investigation in the present case deprived the applicant of being informed of what had happened, including of getting an accurate account of the suffering he had allegedly endured and the role of those responsible for his alleged ordeal. o The concept of ‘state secrets’ has been often invoked to obstruct the search for the truth by many different governments. Substantive aspects of the breach of article 3 is evident in the Macedonian authorities active involvement by their agents and the awareness of the location of where the applicant was being sent, without taking any preventative measure or guarantees. Article 5 violation was found in the Mr El-Masri was held in unacknowledged detention without safeguards that should be provided by a judicial authority....