Spanish court sends Chavez case to The Hague
CORRECTED 24 Mar 2003 21:16:44 GMT
MADRID, March 24 (Reuters) - A Spanish judge threw out a terrorism case against Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Monday because he had immunity from Spanish prosecution, but the case was passed on to the International Criminal Court.
A group of Spanish citizens brought the case against Chavez, alleging terrorism and crimes against humanity based on violence during a protest in Venezuela last April, in which three Spaniards were injured and one Spaniard died.
The allegations against Chavez were presented by lawyers acting for some of the families of at least 19 people who were shot dead during a huge anti-government march on April 11 that came close to the presidential palace in Caracas.
The killings triggered a short-lived coup against the populist president by rebel military officers. Foes of Chavez, who survived the coup, accuse the Venezuelan leader of deploying armed supporters and troops against the April 11 protesters.
Chavez and his ministers strongly deny these accusations and say opposition gunmen started the shooting, in which more than 100 people were also wounded.
The case also refers to injuries suffered by two Spaniards in Venezuela on November 4, when more than a dozen people were wounded, several by gunfire, when thousands of Chavez opponents demanding an immediate referendum on his rule were attacked in Caracas by supporters of the left-wing president.
Judge Fernando Andreu Merelles, an investigating magistrate at the High Court, said in an 80-page ruling that Chavez enjoyed the extraterritorial immunity from prosecution that is granted to heads of state, diplomats and other high-ranking officials.
However, the judge said that although the case could not be heard in Spain, it would be passed on to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague under provisions of the Statute of Rome for its consideration.
Court documents did not give further details. --Additional reporting by Pascal Fletcher in Caracas