Ensuring justice for those facing charges abroad is a difficult job for the lawyers at Fair Trials International, but also a rewarding one. Lucy Trevalyen reports


Though there is not a cape in sight, the staff at Fair Trials International (FTI) are the crusaders of the legal world, defending the rights of people facing charges in foreign countries, fighting for fair trials based on international standards of justice.



FTI was founded by British lawyer Stephen Jakobi in 1992 after he became involved in the cases of two British backpackers arrested for possession of drugs in Thailand. After securing their release, recounts FTI chief executive Catherine Wolthuizen, he was inundated with similar requests for assistance, and founded the organisation to provide that help. Known as Fair Trials Abroad until October 2007, the organisation reverted to its founding name ‘to better reflect the international character of its work’.



At any one time, FTI is providing assistance to 300 or so individuals around the world, working with local lawyers to prepare defence cases and appeals, liaising with local officials regarding clients’ welfare and, where acquittals cannot be secured, working to arrange pardons or transfers home. It also plays a prominent campaigning role.



High-profile successes include helping secure the releases of Leeds man Mirza Tahir Hussain, sentenced to death in Pakistan for murder, and Jody Aggett, who faced the death sentence in Thailand after being accused of being involved in manufacturing ecstasy.



Wolthuizen says the Aggett case is one of the most rewarding she has worked on: ‘It took six years to secure his release, but his return in September 2007 and reunion with his son, who was born while he was behind bars, has given hope to Patrick Malluzzo, a young Briton in a similar situation in India,’ she says.



‘Our intervention in a case makes a real difference to our clients’ prospects – whether it’s preparing a defence case, taking up mistreatment or torture complaints or working to overturn an unsafe conviction.’



FTI was in the headlines again recently, assisting Essex men Luke Atkinson and Michael Binnington, who were passengers in a car driven by their uncle Julian Harrington which hit a moped while on holiday in Cyprus, killing the driver and seriously wounding his passenger. All three were charged with manslaughter and grievous bodily harm (GBH) on the basis that Julian had deliberately driven into the moped and that Atkinson and Binnington had jointly decided with him to do so.



Harrington pleaded guilty to the charges after being advised this would see his nephews released without charge. The pair still had to stand trial and, although acquitted, were then convicted on appeal to the Cypriot Supreme Court. There is no further right of appeal.



FTI lawyer Saima Hirji, who assisted the men, says: ‘It was an affront to justice that these men were ever charged with such serious offences in the first place, when they were merely passengers in a car. The Supreme Court’s decision to overturn their acquittal beggars belief; the prosecution evidence was purely circumstantial and there is to be no retrial.’



They will be sentenced on 13 March and face up to 15 years in prison. Failure to return voluntarily could result in Cyprus issuing a European Arrest Warrant and seeking extradition there.



A spokesman for the British High Commission in Nicosia says full consular support was provided to the accused and family throughout the original trial. This included ensuring they had a solicitor, visiting Harrington in prison, keeping the family up to date with developments and contacting police over security in the courtroom.



‘We will closely monitor the case and remain in contact with the defendants’ solicitor on the island. We will provide appropriate consular support if required or requested,’ he said.



Amanda Cumberland, FTI’s head of research and campaigns, says consular assistance is vital for FTI clients, so FTI’s relationship with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is very important.



‘In addition to regular contact over individual cases, we work with the FCO as a ‘critical friend’ to take a broader look at the services they provide to detainees,’ she says. ‘We are currently conducting an international research project examining the impact of consular trial monitoring on fair trial rights as part of our wider campaign for the reform of consular services.'



Ms Hirji says FTI lawyers face various challenges in their casework – language and cultural barriers, understanding the workings of legal systems in other countries, as well as difficulties in speaking to clients due to prison officials blocking post and/or telephone communication.



One of the most difficult countries to operate in is one of the most popular destinations for UK holidaymakers – Spain.



‘Anyone arrested in Spain can face lengthy delays and difficulties accessing legal representation,’ she says. The Spanish penal code allows people to be held for up to four years [prior to trial], and legal aid lawyers only get paid in the region of ¤300 for a case from start to finish, so they lose money by doing anything more than the bare minimum.’



India too, says Ms Wolthuizen, can be a challenging country to operate in. ‘Unfortunately delays, corruption and the mistreatment of prisoners in that country are all too common. No country is perfect, but it seems India’s justice system is particularly problematic.'



Ms Cumberland says FTI has recently seen a huge increase of cases in Dubai, where possession of even trace amounts of banned substances – including medications that can be brought over the counter in the UK – can result in an automatic four-year sentence. ‘One man was sentenced to four years after 0.003g of cannabis was detected in the stub of a roll-up cigarette found on the sole of his shoe, and another was imprisoned after three poppy seeds from a bread roll he had eaten at Heathrow were found on his clothes.’



A registered charity, FTI does not charge for the assistance it provides and faces an ongoing battle to raise the money it needs, Ms Wolthuizen explains: ‘We receive some funding from the EU, plus project grants from charitable trusts and foundations for our research, campaigns and capacity-building work. Our casework is largely funded from donations and membership – sadly, this can be the most difficult area to secure funding for.’



FTI’s limited resources mean it cannot help everyone who contacts it for help, she says. ‘When someone contacts us, we ask them to complete a questionnaire. We then consider the request in light of three key factors: the nature and severity of the miscarriage of justice or breach of human rights which has been alleged, the vulnerability of the client and the extent to which our involvement in the case will be able to make a positive difference.’ The 2001 World Trade Center terrorist attacks set in train changes around the world that have added to FTI’s workload, she says. ‘The criminalisation of a broader range of offences and the licence that many governments took to severely downgrade basic civil liberties have generated a much more hostile environment for travellers.’



FTI has just five permanent staff and is heavily reliant on the goodwill of lawyers worldwide who will work with FTI on a pro bono or reduced-rate basis.



Faye Goddard, a solicitor at Oury Clark Solicitors, provides advice at FTI’s weekly London clinic. She gives research assistance, responds to queries and sends out letters and questionnaires to those who have sent in queries.



‘The most challenging thing about working with FTI is there are some queries that come in from people with the most horrific background story, which are truly upsetting,’ she says. ‘And there are some cases that you cannot help with for various practical and procedural reasons.’



Both sides of the legal equation benefit from the involvement of external lawyers in FTI work, she says. ‘It gives lawyers in private practice access to cases that would otherwise be difficult to get involved in because of resources and capacity. Lawyers gain valuable experience and get to feel like they are doing something really worthwhile, while FTI is able to use lawyers with some experience of human rights work to lend a bit of elbow grease and passion to lighten the load.’



Joe Stone, a barrister at Doughty Street Chambers, has been providing free assistance to FTI in preparing the defence of two London girls recently convicted of drug trafficking in Ghana.



‘FTI is professionally run and gets results. When you have to deal with the families of the defendants who are abroad and have been falsely imprisoned in miserable conditions, it underlines the importance of these types of organisations,’ he says.



But, Ms Wolthuizen says, FTI has to be sensitive to the integrity of local lawyers and views its role as supporting their work, not coming in over their heads. ‘We are not looking to export some imperial notion of justice, but to use universal standards of human rights to bring about improvements in the administration of justice around the world,’ she says.



There are clearly great personal benefits to the job, too, as Ms Hirji explains: ‘Knowing you’re helping people in such need, hearing the relief in someone’s voice when you speak to them and tell them that you’re going to help, providing information and support to the client’s family and friends, getting people back home, the varied and interesting work, the fantastic and supportive team I work with – all of these elements make it an incredibly rewarding job.’



Despite the money they earn, how often does one hear a commercial lawyer say that?



Lucy Trevalyen is a freelance journalist