Brussels, 09/11/2010 (Agence Europe) - An individual who once belonged to an organisation on the EU's terrorism blacklist or who actively supported the armed struggle carried out by such an organisation cannot for that reason be refused refugee status unless the individual in question is held personally responsible for acts of terrorism. Such responsibility must, however, be assessed on a case-by-case basis and take account of relevant circumstances.
This is the substance of a ruling by the European Court of Justice in combined cases C-57/09 and C-101/09. The Court had been asked to interpret EU Directive 2004/83/EC (minimum standards for claiming refugee status) for two Turkish nationals of Kurdish origin who are refugees in Germany and former members of the DHKP-C and the PKK respectively (both organisations are on the EU and UN terrorist blacklists). The German government refused to grant refugee status to the one and revoked the asylum rights and refugee status from the other.
The German federal administrative court asked the Court of Justice whether having belonged to an organisation that the EU considers to be a terrorist organisation could be a serious crime under common law or run counter to the aims and principles of the United Nations. The Court answered that no, it could not, pointing out that individual examination of the facts can enable the competent authority to decide whether in their activities within the organisation the person in question had committed a crime under common law, instigated such crimes or actions contrary to the aims and principles of the United Nations or had participated in any other manner as set out in the directive.
In answer to two further questions, the European Court of Justice explained that refusing to grant refugee status is not subordinate to the individual being a “current danger” to the host country because the directive's exclusion clauses are only aimed at punishing action committed in the past.
Finally, the Court of Justice ruled that member states can grant asylum rights under their own legal system to somebody who is excluded from the status of refugee under the EU directive as long as the asylum rights do not include the danger of confusion with the status of refugee under the EU directive. (F.G. trans fl)