Appeals judgment in open court
On 12 October 2022, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) delivered its judgment in the case of Al-Khawaja and Tahery v. UK (2015). The case concerned the non-disclosure of the identity of witnesses in criminal proceedings.
The applicants, Mr. Al-Khawaja and Mr. Tahery, were convicted of murder in the UK. They argued that their right to a fair trial under Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights was breached due to the non-disclosure of the identity of key prosecution witnesses.
“The Court considers that the disclosure of the identity of the witnesses was necessary in order to enable the applicants to prepare their defence effectively and to understand the case against them.”
The ECHR held that the UK government had breached the applicants' right to a fair trial. It found that the non-disclosure of the witnesses' identities had prevented the applicants from preparing an effective defence and had undermined the fairness of the trial.
The judgment was delivered in open court, meaning that it was made public and not reserved for the parties to the case. This was in line with the ECHR's practice of delivering judgments in open court, except in exceptional circumstances.
Author's summary:
In the case of Al-Khawaja and Tahery v. UK (2015), the ECHR held that the non-disclosure of the identity of key prosecution witnesses in a UK murder trial breached the applicants' right to a fair trial under Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
- The ECHR found that the non-disclosure of the witnesses' identities had prevented the applicants from preparing an effective defence.
- The judgment was delivered in open court, in line with the ECHR's practice.