Order of the Surveillance Court of Torino 26 March 2014

The Surveillance Court of Torino annulled the expulsion of a Syrian migrant that had been ordered by the Surveillance judge on the grounds of Article 16 of legislative decree No. 286/1998 (consolidated act on immigration and the status of aliens). This provision allows, under certain circumstances, to order the expulsion of a foreigner as a substitutive or alternative measure to detention for a criminal offense. The Surveillance Court’s decision originated from the fact that the return of this person in his country of origin would have put him at risk of serious violation of his fundamental rights, due to the conflict situation existing in Syria. The Court remembered the principles enounced by the Court of Cassation in its decision No. 20514 of 2010. Accordingly, the principle of ‘non-refoulement’ enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the UN Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the ECHR “is an absolute prohibition, which applies in respect of every person, irrespective of his, or her condition, the kind of indictment or conviction in a penal proceeding and of the legal title for his, or her return, including extradition or expulsion”.