Cape court rules that Dutch war criminal won’t be extradited | Weekend Argus

Cape Town - A notorious Dutch war criminal is a free man after a Cape Town magistrate ruled that he cannot be extradited to the Netherlands to spend 19 years in jail. Guus Kouwenhoven, 77, now residing in Constantia, could only be extradited if he had committed his offences in the Netherlands, ruled magistrate Ingrid Arntsen. Since his crimes were committed in Liberia, she was “obliged to discharge” Kouwenhoven “with great regret” in terms of section 10 of the Extradition Act.

In convicting Kouwenhoven, the Netherlands was exercising extraterritorial jurisdiction based on what is known as “active personality” jurisdiction, said Arntsen. “This allows nations to prosecute their own citizens for crimes committed outside of their borders. “South Africa also has legislation allowing it to prosecute persons for crimes committed beyond its borders,” she noted, adding: “The exercise of extraterritorial jurisdiction is accepted in many jurisdictions.”

But Kouwenhoven’s defence presented a “compelling” argument that “every time the word ‘jurisdiction’ is used in the Extradition Act, it refers to territorial jurisdiction only”.

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