CASE IN WORLD COURT

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 71, Issue 35, 21 November 1950, Page 3

CASE IN WORLD COURT

ASYLUM GRANTED BY COLOMBIA FORMER REVOLUTIONARY LEADER (N.Z.P. A.—Copy right) (Rec. 9.30.) THE HAGUE, Nov. 20. The .World Court to-day ruled that Colombia was not legally justified in granting asylum in the Colombian Embassy in Lima, Peru, to the Peruvian revolutionary Victor Raul Hayda De La Torre.

It also ruled that Peru is not obliged to give him safe conduct out of the Country. De La Torre fled into the Colombian Embassy to evade arrest by his Government in January, 1949, and has been there ever since, cut off from contact with the world. The court rejected by 13 votes to 2 Colombia’s claim that as the country granting asylum she had the sole right to decide whether the alleged offence qualified for such asylum. A „ The court rejected by 15 votes to 1 the Colombian assertion that Peru was bound to grant safe conduct, and rejected by 15 votes to 1, on technical grounds, Peru’s counter-claim that the granting of asylum was illegal. The court found by 10 votes to 6, that the asylum granted is not in conformity with the 1928 Havana Convention on asylum. The Colombian delegation, m a statement after the verdict, declared that Colombia was immediately starting proceedings in the Court to obtain an interpretation of the decision. It demanded to have a clear decison oh “the only vital final question in this procedure, whether or not De la Torre must be surrendered to the Peruvian authorities.” Professor Carlos Sayan Alvarez, agent for Peru, said his Government would study the Court’s decision before committing itself on future action over Ee la Torre.