CAT carriles

EMBASSY OF THE BOLIVARIAN REPUBLIC OF VENEZUELA
PRESS RELEASE
September 26, 2005

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) today in El Paso rested its case in the immigration matter of Luis Posada Carriles. DHS incredibly failed to put on any evidence or witnesses. It is our understanding that Judge William Abbott took the case under advisement and promised to issue a written decision soon. Judge Abbott also said that he was “inclined” to allow Posada Carriles to stay in the United States under the protection of the Convention Against Torture.

Posada is a fugitive from justice in Venezuela, where he is wanted for 73 counts of first degree murder involving the downing of a passenger plane on October 6, 1976.

Venezuela formally asked the U.S. Department of State for his extradition on June 15, 2005. Rather proceeding with the extradition of this self-confessed terrorist to stand trial for murder in Caracas, the U.S. Government has instead turned the case into a minor immigration matter in El Paso.

The Posada case reveals the Bush Administration’s double standard in its so-called war on terrorism. Immigration Judges are employees of the Department of Justice who are not authorized to determine whether to extradite or to determine the guilt or innocence of international criminals. Only federal judges may do that.
Posada is not eligible to request asylum in the United States, because he is an aggravated felon. He has therefore withdrawn his asylum application. He is instead applying for relief under the Convention Against Torture (CAT).

The legal standard to gain CAT relief is that it is “more likely than not” that he would be tortured by the government of Venezuela if returned. Prosecution is neither persecution nor torture. There is no evidence that the government of Venezuela would torture Posada. To grant CAT relief to Posada Carriles is to cynically twist an international treaty meant to protect innocent victims of torture into an instrument with which to shelter a terrorist.

DHS´ failure to contest Posada´s request for Torture Convention relief contradicts the position it took in the recent immigration case involving two Venezuelan Army Officers wanted in Venezuela for the attempts with bombs against the Embassies of Spain and Colombia perpetuated in Caracas in 2003. In this case, DHS denied the argument of protection under the Torture Convention relief, because of the absence of evidence that Venezuela tortures its prisoners. On the other hand, there is ample evidence that the United States engages in the systematic torture of its own prisoners at the Guantanamo Naval Base, the Abu Ghraib prison and other facilities.

The government of Venezuela reiterates it does not torture its prisoners, and that Luis Posada Carriles will be afforded due process of law upon his extradition to Caracas. Indeed, under our laws, if he is found guilty. As our Foreign Minister Ali Rodriguez Araque said last week, “we are willing to put him in a house made of gold and feed him caviar, as long as he is tried in Venezuela, because there is nothing to indicate that we torture people here”.

Three separate international treaties obligate the U.S. to extradite Luis Posada Carriles: 1. The Extradition Treaty between the United States and Venezuela signed on January 19, 1922, 2. The International Convention on Civil Aviation signed in Montreal on September 23, 1971, and 3. the International Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombings signed on December 15, 1997.

It is well settled law in the United States that the extradition process has priority over any immigration matters. Venezuela once again calls on the United States government to follow the law and put the immigration matter in abeyance and proceed with the extradition case of Luis Posada Carriles to Venezuela where is wanted for 73 counts of first degree murder.