Fujimori to be extradite - or not ?

BBC News Japan 'won't extradite Fujimori'

Quote:

---

The international law enforcement agency Interpol passed a Peruvian request that Mr Fujimori be arrested to Japan at the weekend.

Peru is seeking to prosecute Mr Fujimori on murder, kidnapping and embezzlement charges.

Mr Fujimori, who is of Japanese extraction, fled to Japan in November 2000 amid a corruption and bribery scandal, and took Japanese citizenship shortly afterwards.

Under its constitution, Japan does not extradite its citizens, and the country has no extradition treaty with Peru.

---

Charges against the ex-president relate to:

• A 1991 massacre in which an army "death squad" allegedly killed 15 people at a barbecue in a poor Lima neighbourhood
• A 1992 massacre in which nine students and a professor with suspected leftist links were killed

Provided that Japan and Peru either signed a bilateral treaty on mutual extraditions (they haven't!) or are members of a multilateral/international extradition treaty, I see no reason why Fujimori should not be extradited to Peru. One legal reason to refuse extradition is the prospect of capital punishment.

Quote:

---

Japanese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hatsuhisa Takashima said the ministry had not confirmed the Interpol order and added that Tokyo had not received any extradition request for Fujimori from Peru. Japan has allowed Fujimori to stay, citing the absence of an extradition treaty with Peru and the fact that the disgraced former president has Japanese nationality because his parents registered him with consular authorities as an infant. Takashima repeated that position, adding: "We have absolutely no plan to take some sort of action against Mr. Fujimori at the moment."

---

=> http://www.chinapost.com.tw/detail.asp?ID=35686&GRP=A

Considering Japan's strict approach to naturalisation, MOFA's arguments sound rather weak. I really don't know what the government's true motives are.

Update: of course, no country is required to extradite its own citizens to other countries, most constitutions forbid that.

Quote:

---

fact that the disgraced former president has Japanese nationality because his parents registered him with consular authorities as an infant.

---

Japan strictly forbids dual nationality. Even if Fujimori had been born Japanese, he would have lost his nationality by becoming Peruvian, which is surely the least requirement to become president of Peru. I don't think any head of state does not have the nationality of the country he governs. That's ridiculous.
In addition, ordinary Nikkei Japanese returning to Japan from Peru or other (South American) countries often have a hard time recovering their Japanese nationality. Japan is not really making good press of herself by protecting a world-class criminal. Or is it just that Japanese people are proud to show their citizens can also be elected to govern other countries ; another disguised way of showing how capable and superior Japanese are.

Sooner or later the Japanese government will give in to outside pressure, as usual. As you stated, their approach to citizenship is too arbitrary. Besides, what are Fujimori's achievements? A once-intellectual-turned-despot who "pacified" a terror-ridden country the same way GWB plans to pacify the Middle East.

If I understand it correctly, Mr. Fujimori has some powerful conservative backers in Tokyo. He is living a life of pampered luxury there in a million dollar apartment. Who is paying for all of this stuff? I'm not sure but its probably one of those groups with the black vans and wads of criminal cash who seem to sympathize with Fujimori for no other reason than that he had people murdered and tortured and that sort of thing appeals to them.

Where is he getting all this money???? I got a good idea.

"Hello this is the Bank of Zurich, if you already have an account with us just input your code now. "

There is no way that he and Vladimir Montesinos didnt embezzle millions. Especially Montesinos who was caught on tape taking bribes, which led to Fujimori's downfall. Fujimori allowed him to have free reign over the security services, and he just about broke every rule in the book.

As for Japan returning him??? Good luck, I'll put money its not going to happen. Japanese people, in their poor knowledge of international events don't realize what Fujimori has done. It will be seen in the press as a domestic issue, about the government suspending non extradition for japanese citizens. You think Koziumi needs that headache right now?

Really he reminds me of Idi Amin sitting in his nice villa in Saudi Arabia.

Its true that they probably won't extradite Fujimori and will just try to hold off all the international pressure until everyone forgets he is here. It certainly highlighted some hypocrisy though. A few months back I remember Japan demanding North Korea extradite the agents who abducted Japanese citizens in the 70s to stand trial in Japan. I'm pretty sure North Korea and Japan, lacking any sort of diplomatic ties whatsoever, don't have an extradition treaty. So, I wonder what legal arguments Japan used to try to persuade them, given their own refusal to extradite Fujimori for more or less the exact same thing they accuse the North Koreans of doing. If anything North Korea's case is much stronger as their agents were actually born and raised in North Korea while Fujimori hadn't so much as set foot in Japan once in his entire life before he, on a whim, decided to rediscover his roots. The man is pathetic and Japan is a pathetic country for protecting him.

I moved the 2 posts about the US troops in Japan to the right thread : Why are U.S forces still in Japan