Fair Trials Abroad - youlikewelike

For many, Alan Parker's Midnight Express epitomises the foreign incarceration experience; corrupt trials, filthy prison conditions, harsh lighting. But what is the reality, and who is there to fight for Brits facing foreign court systems, guilty or not?

Catherine Wolthuizen, Director of charity Fair Trials Abroad (FTA) deals with numerous cases of foreign nationals being in the "wrong place at the wrong time" or who are "expressly targeted because someone is after a quick buck".

During the first half of 2007 FTA assisted Stephen Brown, a 55-year-old British male who had been arrested for assault in Tunisia on 31 December 2006. Bail was consistently refused on grounds of Brown being a 'flight risk' and he was then forced to endure six months in a Tunisian prison, under conditions where he lost two stone and ended up hospitalised for a week.

"Brown's case is very unfortunate because he was in a bar when a news item came on saying that Sadaam Hussein had been executed. A local took offence to that and set upon Stephen as the nearest westerner. The local authorities were keen to see him convicted. This was despite evidence indicating that Stephen was just trying to defend himself, and that the man had actually sustained his injury from falling over. Fortunately Stephen is back in the UK now, but he has a conviction and an outstanding fine. We are appealing these charges, because they will follow him wherever he goes."

The mission of the FTA is to promote fair trials, to defend the rights of the accused anywhere in the world and to tackle potential miscarriages of justice in line with standards of International Law (which the vast majority of countries which with the FTA works have ratified).

"We get referrals from various sources," according to Wolthuizen. "It could be a call from a seriously distressed relative saying their son or daughter has just been arrested. Or it could be people getting in touch after their final appeal has failed. We prefer to get cases early as there is often more we can do. It's much harder challenging existing convictions than preventing them in the first place."

Recently, British media attention has focussed on two 16-year-old girls from London who on 2 July were arrested at Accra Airport in Ghana, allegedly carrying 6.5 kilograms of cocaine. The Ghanaian juvenile justice system posits that all criminal proceedings must be concluded within six months [including appeals], which obviously presents challenges to due process.

"They have raced through the first trial which places a real strain on the defence," Wolthuizen explains. "They are trying to gather evidence to support the case, but that becomes much more difficult when you are under such time pressure."

Wolthuizen confirms that the British Consul has been "enormously supportive" of the girls.

We find in some cases, at a policy level, there is a creeping moralism that seems to suggest that some people are more deserving of extra support than others. This has been formalised through Discretionary Fees where some people will be charged for help from the Consulate, and others not. Our view is that just as we provide help without moral judgements, so should other agencies. After all, how do you know if someone isn't genuinely innocent if you weren't there and haven't seen all the evidence?"

The greatest challenge the FTA faces is from the court systems of countries around the world. This is particularly pertinent in countries without a democratic tradition. In these instances,Wolthuizen points to a bias in favour of police evidence.

"Not only does it create difficulties in individual cases, but also the profession of the defence lawyer is downgraded in those countries. As a result it can be very difficult for clients to get a fair hearing, because the whole system is built against them. There are hot spots, such as Spain, Greece, India and Thailand.They crop up again and again in our case work. These countries have a less ingrained respect for the role of the defence in court cases. This, coupled with local level corruption, can make the job very difficult."

words: Andrew Laughlin