No asylum for Chinese organ whistleblower

[NNN0LHI]

http://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/politics/foreign_affairs/No_asylum_for_Chinese_organ_whistleblower_.html?cid=18620140

Jul 29, 2010 - 16:06

A former Chinese policeman who says he saw organs being harvested from executed prisoners in his country wants asylum in Switzerland and is refusing to leave.

Swiss officials tried to deport the man on Thursday. The Federal Migration Office says that by law Rome must handle the man’s case, because he first arrived in Europe via Italy.

“The case has been well studied and is very clear legally,” said Michael Glauser, Migration Office spokesman. The man, a Uighur, arrived in Italy two years ago before eventually making his way to Switzerland.

The man's refusal to board a flight bound for Italy leaves Switzerland with two options. Officials could contact Italian authorities to organise another flight or they could work to process the man's application themselves under Swiss law.

Amnesty International has criticised the Swiss decision to deport the man, saying his case shows the dangers of regulations that determine how European countries share responsibility for processing asylum requests. It also sheds new light on severe human rights violations in China, where the death penalty “is a state secret”, the group said.