PART B
PROCEDURAL PROVISIONS AND JUDICIAL COOPERATION
II. JUDICIAL COOPERATION
Art. 20
1. Any request for surrender of a sought person to the ICC, done in English and officially
translated in Greek language, shall be directed to the Secretary of State for Justice, Transparency and Human Rights and consequently shall be forwarded to the Office of the Prosecutor of the Court of Appeals.
2. The request shall be supported, as a minimum, by the following documents:
(a) Data proving the identity of the accused, such as a thorough description of his/her physical characteristics, photograph or fingerprints or any other element of proof,
(b) A certified copy of the arrest warrant and a brief statement of the facts of the case and
(c) A certified copy of the indictment or of the judgment of the court pronouncing the guilt.
3. In cases of urgency, the above data may be transmitted via any medium leaving a written
or electronic trace. In such a case, the request shall be served according to the provisions of par. 1.
4. In case of competing requests for surrender to the ICC or to another court or to another
State requesting extradition or on the basis of a European arrest warrant, the provisions of art. 90 of the Statute of the ICC, which was ratified with Law. 3003/2002, shall apply.
Art. 21
Arrest of the requested person
1. The Prosecutor of Athens Appeals Court, upon reception of the request, shall order the arrest of the requested person, who must be brought before him/her without delay. The arrested person must be immediately informed about the existence and the content of the request, as well as for the right to legal representation by an attorney at law. In case that the arrested person lacks sufficient command of the Greek language, an interpreter shall be appointed. If the requested person has not appointed a legal representative, the Prosecutor is under the obligation to appoint one by his/her own initiative.
2. The arrested person shall have the right of recourse to the Judicial Council, in order to challenge his/her identification, in a time-limit of two working days after the arrest.
3. The Judicial Council of the Appeals Court (Chamber of 3 judges) shall sit in public in a period of 15 days after the arrest the latest and is under the obligation to decide finally and irrevocably in 10 days. The arrested shall be summoned before the Council at least 3 days before the date of the hearing.
Art. 22
Decision for surrender to the ICC
1. The Judicial Council of the Appeals Court, after examining the arrested, in cases he
preferred to present him/herself before it and after hearing the Prosecutor and the accused or his legal representative, shall decide by a reasoned judgment upon the following issues of the request:
(a) Whether the warrant applies to that person,
(b) Whether the person has been arrested in conformity with the lawful procedure (bene detentus)
(c) Whether the rights of the person have been respected, especially the right to an attorney and interpreter (in case that the arrested person lacks sufficient command of the Greek language),
(d) Whether the crime attributed to the arrested person or, in case of the existence of a verdict of guilt, the crime for which this verdict was issued, are included in the list of crimes for which the surrender is allowed, according to the provisions of the present law.
2. The Judicial Council of the Appeals Court may order the conduct of supplementary
investigations concerning the elucidation of the data of par. 1, deferring the final decision for 15 days the utmost.
3. The final decision of the Judicial Council of the Appeals Court may be appealed by the
person whose surrender is sought and by the Prosecutor before the Supreme Criminal Court (Areios Pagos)in a deadline of 3 days after the publication of the decision. A report of the appeal shall be drawn up by the Registrar of the Appeals Court.
4. The Supreme Court shall decide in camera within ten days. Art. 448 and 450 of the C.C.P. shall apply by analogy.
5. The person whose surrender is sought, shall be summoned by the General Attorney of the Supreme Court in person or through his appointed representative, at least 3 days before the hearing.
6. The Judicial Council of the Appeals Court may, at any stage of the proceedings, order the interim release of the arrested according to the stipulations of art. 59 paras 3-6 of ICC Statute , ratified by Law 3003/2002. The provision of art. 449 par. 2 of C.C.P. shall apply analogously. In case of appeal, the Judicial Council of the Supreme Court shall be competent for adjudication.
Art. 23 Surrender to the ICC
1. The decision for surrender issued by the competent Judicial Council shall be executed
within a period of one month after its public announcement. In such a case, the Prosecutor of the Appeals Court shall submit the decision, accompanied by the relevant record, to the Secretary of State for Justice, Transparency and Human Rights, who takes care of its execution.
2. In the case that an irrevocable decision concerning the request for surrender is not
published within 3 months from the date of arrest, the arrested person shall be released.
Art. 24
Provisional arrest
1. In urgent cases, the Prosecutor of the Appeals Court, after a relevant request by the ICC, shall order the provisional arrest of the person sought, pending presentation of the request for surrender.
2. The request for provisional arrest shall be made by any medium capable of delivering a
written record and shall contain:
(a) Information describing the person sought, sufficient to identify the person, and information as to that person's probable location;
(b) A concise statement of the crimes for which the person's arrest is sought and of the facts which are alleged to constitute those crimes, including, where possible, the date and location of the crime;
(c) A statement of the existence of a warrant of arrest or a judgment of conviction against the person sought; and
(d) A statement that a request for surrender of the person sought will follow.
3. If a request according to art. 20 is not submitted within 30 days after the arrest, the
arrested person shall be released.
4. The procedure of art. 21 paras 2 and 3 shall be also applicable in the context of this
article.
Art. 25
Provisional surrender to the ICC
1. The person in custody may, after a relevant decision of the Judicial Council of the Appeals Court upon request of the ICC, be temporarily transferred to the latter for purposes of identification or for obtaining testimony or other assistance. The person may be transferred if the following conditions are fulfilled: (i) The person freely gives his/ her informed consent to the transfer; and (ii) The requested State agrees to the transfer, subject to such conditions as that State and the Court may agree.
2. The person being transferred shall remain in custody. When the purposes of the transfer have been fulfilled, the Court shall return the person without delay to the requested State.
Art. 26 Consultations with the ICC
1. The Secretary of State for Justice, Transparency and Human Rights, in cooperation with
the Foreign Secretary, shall consult with the ICC in all circumstances specified by the ICC Statute or warranted by the particular circumstances of the case such as:
(a) when the production of any documents or disclosure of evidence at any stage of the proceedings before the ICC or during the course of judicial cooperation may jeopardize national security, according to art. 72 and 93 par. 4 of the ICC Statute, ratified by Law 3003/2002,
(b) When the execution of a certain measure of assistance requested by the ICC contravenes a fundamental, generally applicable legal principle of greek public order, as stipulated in art. 93 par. 3 of the ICC Statute,
(c) When the request for surrender of a person or for the provision of judicial assistance is inconsistent with the obligations of the Hellenic Republic with respect to the State or diplomatic immunity of a person or property of a third State, according to the provisions of art. 98 par. 2 of the ICC Statute.
(d) When the person sought for surrender brings a challenge before a national court on the basis of the principle of ne bis in idem, as provided in article 98 par. 2 of the ICC Statute.
(e) If the person sought is being proceeded against or is serving a sentence in the requested State for a crime different from that for which surrender to the Court is sought, as provided in article 98 par. 4 of the ICC Statute.
Art. 27
Transportation of a person under surrender through Greek territory
The Secretary of State for Justice, Transparency and Human Rights shall authorize transportation through the national territory of a person being surrendered to the Court by another State, provided that the conditions of art. 89 par. 3 of ICC Statute are fulfilled .
Cooperation under procedures of national law
Arrest for ICC proceedings - national procedures
EDIT.