diplomatic guarantees given by the People’s Republic of China, as well as the legal effects of
the supposed annulment of the death penalty for [the offense of smuggling], are aspects
that correspond to the merits of the matter.”
B. Considerations of the Court
14.
First, the Court notes that the guarantees attached by the Peruvian State are, in
essence, the same as those already examined by the Court in its Order of June 26, 2012. 13
On that occasion, the Court considered that the official translation of article 12 of the
Chinese Criminal Code provided by the State did not allow it to understand clearly the
applicability of the principle of retroactivity of the most favorable criminal law in relation to
the amendment that annulled the death penalty for the offense of smuggling merchandise
and other objects, which constitutes one of the offenses for which the extradition of Wong
Ho Wing was requested. 14 The Court notes that, at the present time, the State has sent the
Eighth Segment of the Criminal Code which clarifies the meaning of a phrase of article 12 of
the Criminal Code; however, the applicability to the case of Wong Ho Wing of the principle of
retroactivity of the most favorable criminal law in relation to the said amendment continues
to be ambiguous.
15.
Nevertheless, the Court recalls that it has already established that the exact
determination and explanation of whether the said penal reform would be applicable in the
eventual trial of Wong Ho Wing conducted in the requesting State constitutes an analysis
that falls outside the procedure of provisional measures, insofar as it requires an
examination of the merits of the facts, the evidence provided, and the reported legal
situation, which goes beyond what the State has alleged and the information in the body of
evidence. This examination is one of the issues that must be analyzed during the
examination of the dispute that is pending before the Commission. 15
16.
Furthermore, the Court recalls that, even though, in its Order of June 26, 2012, it
had taken note of the official translation of a “Clarification regarding the cases to which the
Eighth Amendment of the Criminal Code is applicable” made by the Supreme Court of the
People’s Republic of China, 16 and “assesse[d] positively the existence of the guarantees
presented,” the Court “recall[ed] that, as of its first Order in this matter, it had ruled on the
alleged guarantees issued by the People’s Republic of China,” indicating that:
The analysis of the guarantees received by Peru is a matter of merits, which is related to
compliance with the State’s international obligation derived from Article 4 and 1(1) of the
Convention, not to subject a person to the risk of the application of the death penalty through
extradition. It is also related to the formalities of due process that domestic law ensures in the
extradition procedure. Therefore, the assessment of the pertinence and appropriateness of the
said guarantees, as well as of the alleged violations of the rights recognized in Articles 8 and 25
of the American Convention, corresponds to the examination of the merits of the case that the
13
At the present time, the State merely added an official translation of some articles of the Chinese Criminal
Code in force before the amendment that presumably annulled the death penalty for the offense of smuggling, and
of the Eighth Segment of the Chinese Criminal Code where the general time frames for prescription are regulated.
14
Cf. Matter of Wong Ho Wing. Provisional measures with regard to Peru. Order of the Court of June 26,
2012, thirtieth considering paragraph.
15
Cf. Matter of Wong Ho Wing. Provisional measures with regard to Peru. Order of the Court of June 26,
2012, thirty-first considering paragraph.
16
This clarification indicates that, according to the said article 12, “the eighth amendment will be applied in
the case [of Wong Ho Wing]” and reiterates “the commitment assumed by the Supreme Court of the People’s
Republic of China not to apply the death penalty [to the beneficiary].” Matter of Wong Ho Wing. Provisional
measures with regard to Peru. Order of the Court of June 26, 2012, thirty-second considering paragraph.
6