Bahraini.TV

Reprieve for terror suspects’ families

by mahmood on 22/12/09 at 11:15 am · email  · print  

Courts will no longer be able to seize cash or property from the families of criminals convicted of financing terror or laundering money.

Bahrain’s law previously allowed them to do so, but it was ruled as unconstitutional by the Constitutional Court yesterday.

This also means authorities cannot freeze assets of the families of suspects facing similar charges.

Attorney Fatima Al Hawaj filed legal action at the Constitutional Court against judicial authorities on behalf of her client, who was charged with money laundering in 2007.

She argued the unconstitutionality of several articles of the Law on Incriminating and Combating Money Laundering and Terror Financing.

The Bahraini man, who stood trial at the High Criminal Court under the same law, was accused of conducting fraudulent financial transactions during 2005 and 2006.

Ms Al Hawaj had claimed that several articles of the law were unconstitutional and filed a case at the Constitutional Court in June 2007.

The High Criminal Court suspended the case against her client the following month for the Constitutional Court to issue a verdict.

Judges ruled the unconstitutionality of a paragraph in an article in the law, which stipulates that authorities can freeze and confiscate assets of families of suspects and convicts charged with money laundering and financing terrorism.

The verdict will now allow families of suspects or convicts to keep their possessions without being questioned by authorities.

It is understood that the article of the law is similar in the majority of the Arab countries and has not been ruled as unconstitutional so far elsewhere.

The law, which was originally backed by the US, was implemented to prevent terrorists to launder money in the region.

However, yesterday’s verdict means alleged terrorists financing money through Bahrain can now place their assets with their family members. The article of the law that was implemented in 2001 and amended in 2006 also stipulates that the assets of spouses or underage children will be frozen or confiscated if they are equal to the amount in question during the trial. It also says that a suspect cannot receive less than five years in prison and cannot be fined less than BD100 in such cases.