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Proceeding contribution from Lord Goodhart (Liberal Democrat) in the House of Lords on Thursday, 5 February 2009. It occurred during Ministerial statement on Binyam Mohamed.


Binyam Mohamed

My Lords, some two or three years ago, the Appellate Committee of your Lordships' House ruled that, where a defendant claims that his confession should not be admitted as evidence because it had been obtained by torture in another country, the burden of the proof of torture rests on the defendant. Do the Government accept that, where it appears that evidence which may establish torture exists but has not been available to the United Kingdom court, the prosecution should be required to prove that the confession was not obtained by torture? That would be highly material if a prosecution of either Mr Mohamed or anybody else in a similar position was contemplated in the United Kingdom.


Secondary information

Type
Proceeding contribution
Reference
707 c808 
Session
2008-09
Chamber / Committee
House of Lords chamber
Subjects
Disclosure of information Detainees Evidence Intelligence services Judgements National security Official secrets Terrorism Trials Torture USA Afghanistan Guantanamo Bay High Court Mohamed, Binyam
Link
View this Proceeding contribution on www.publications.parliament.uk