Belgium’s constitutional court has given a thumbs up to the prisoner exchange treaty Belgium concluded with Iran. Friday’s ruling opens the way for convicted Iranian terrorist Assadollah Assadi being allowed to serve his sentence in Iran. It is also seen as a ray of hope for Belgian aid worker Olivier Vandecasteele, who has been incarcerated in Iran for a year now.
The Belgian parliament approved the exchange treaty last year, but opponents of the exchange of Assadi took the matter to the constitutional court. The court initially suspended the treaty but has now rejected all constitutional objections.
The court did decide that victims of prisoners exchanged must be informed and they can object to a proposed prisoner exchange in court. The Iranian opposition group National Council of Resistance of Iran has already indicated it will take action in the courts against Assadi’s exchange.
On hearing news of the ruling by the constitutional court a friend of the incarcerated Belgian aid worker Vandecasteele noted his family remained nervous because he is still in prison.
“The court will have to consider the rights of Mr Assadi’s victims, but also Mr Vandecasteele’s right to a humane existence” - if he is the subject of the exchange – says constitutional expert Vande Lanotte.
The Belgian government has welcomed the constitutional court’s ruling saying the treaty is an important legal tool to return Vandecasteele to Belgium.
Iran on Monday indicated it was ready to organise a prisoner exchange with Belgium.