Saif al-Gaddafi’s right to fair trial undermined, Amnesty

London, 03 Jul – (ANA) - Four International Criminal Court (ICC) staff members are reportedly on their way back to The Hague in what Amnesty International has called a welcome end to their unacceptable detention by a Libyan militia for more than three weeks.
Libyan authorities had held the four since 7 June in the remote western town of Zintan after they met Saif al-Islam al-Gaddafi – the detained son of former ruler Colonel Mu’ammar al-Gaddafi. News of their release came as ICC President Sang-hyun Song visited Libya on Monday. “The release of these four ICC staff members is a very welcome development, but their detention by the Libyan authorities for more than three weeks was totally unacceptable,” said Marek Marczyński, International Justice Research, Policy and Campaign Manager at Amnesty International. “Not only has it denied them their liberty and stopped them from performing their functions, but it has also undermined Saif al-Islam al-Gaddafi's right to an effective defence and delayed the ICC's decision on the Libyan authorities’ recent application to bring him to trial in Libyan courts.” In early June, authorities accused one of the ICC staffers – Australian lawyer Melinda Taylor – of espionage, alleging she had attempted to smuggle documents to Saif al-Islam al-Gaddafi. Taylor and her colleagues Helene Assaf from Lebanon, Russian Alexander Khodakov and Spaniard Esteban Peralta Losilla remained in the custody of a militia in Zintan until their release yesterday. (ANA)

FA/ANA/03 July 2012---------------