§ 11. Mr. Stokesasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what are the rare exceptions on which alleged war criminals are sent for trial to the country of origin of the person against whom the crime was committed instead of standing trial in the country where the crime took place; and whether he will quote his authority for so doing.
§ Mr. MayhewI presume my hon. Friend refers to the alleged war criminals held in the British zone of Germany. I must apologise for the inaccurate impression conveyed in my answer on 26th November and my subsequent letter. There are, in fact, 110 cases of persons being sent out of Germany for trial; of these 85 wee sent to Belgium, 15 to France, 8 to Poland, 1 to Holland and 1 to Russia. The exception to the usual practice is made where it is not practicable to try the case in the British zone, that is to say, where the crime was committed against persons of one country and the witnesses for the prosecution have returned to that country. In such cases the Commander-in-Chief, in the exercise of his supreme authority in Germany, may order extradition.