On the ratification of the Agreement between the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Republic of North Macedonia on the transfer of Convicted Persons

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The Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan dated May 11, 2021 No. 38-VII SAM.

To ratify the Agreement between the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Republic of North Macedonia on the transfer of Convicted Persons, signed in Skopje on August 22, 2019.

President of the Republic of Kazakhstan

K. TOKAEV

Unofficial translation

Agreement between the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Republic of North Macedonia on the transfer of convicted persons

The Republic of Kazakhstan and the Republic of North Macedonia, hereinafter referred to as the Parties,

based on mutual respect for sovereignty and equality,

Wishing to strengthen legal cooperation between the two countries,

in order to facilitate the reintegration of convicted persons into society in order to serve their sentences in the State of which they are citizens,

We have agreed on the following:

ARTICLE 1 DEFINITIONS

In order to implement this Agreement, the following definitions are used:

(a) "Sentencing Party" means a Party that transfers or has transferred a convicted person from its territory;

(b) "Party to the execution of the sentence" means a Party that accepts or has accepted a convicted person into its territory;

(c) "Convicted person" means a person sentenced to imprisonment for a fixed term or for life in accordance with a verdict passed by a court of one of the Parties.;

(d) "Sentence" means any punishment or measure involving imprisonment by court order for a fixed or indefinite period for the commission of a criminal offence;

f) "Judicial decision" means the decision or ruling of the sentencing court.

ARTICLE 2 GENERAL PROVISIONS

1. The Parties undertake to cooperate to the maximum extent possible in the transfer of convicted persons in accordance with the provisions of this Treaty.

2. The Parties may, in accordance with the provisions of this Treaty, transfer convicted persons to each other for the execution of sentences imposed by the Sentencing Party against persons in the territory of the Executing Party.

3. A transfer request may be made either by the Sentencing Party or by the Executing Party.

ARTICLE 3 CENTRAL AUTHORITIES

1. For the purposes of this Agreement, the Parties shall interact with each other directly through the central authorities designated for this purpose.

2. The central bodies specified in paragraph 1 of this Article are the Prosecutor General's Office for the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Ministry of Justice for the Republic of North Macedonia.

3. Each Party shall inform the other Party of any changes related to the central authorities or the transfer of their functions to other bodies through diplomatic channels.

ARTICLE 4 CONDITIONS FOR TRANSFER

1. A convicted person may be transferred in accordance with this Agreement only under the following conditions:

a) the convicted person is a citizen of the Executing Party;

b) the person has been convicted of an act that, according to the laws of the Executing Party, is also a crime.;

(c) At the time when the transfer request is received, the judgment rendered against the convicted person is final and the period of time to be served by the convicted person is at least six months.;

(d) There is written consent for the transfer of the convicted person or his legal representative due to the age, physical or mental condition of the convicted person; and

e) both Parties agree to the transfer.

2. In exceptional cases, the Parties may agree to transfer, even if the period of time to be served by the convicted person is less than that specified in subparagraph (c) of paragraph 1 of this article.

ARTICLE 5 REFUSAL OF TRANSFER

1. The transfer of a convicted person may be refused if:

a) one Party decides that the transfer will harm its sovereignty, security, public order or contradict the fundamental principles of national legislation;

(b) The convicted person has been sentenced for a crime infringing on State security.;

c) the convicted person is involved in legal proceedings in the territory of the Sentencing Party.

2. Each Party may decide at its discretion whether or not it agrees to the transfer requested by the other Party, regardless of the circumstances provided for in paragraph 1 of this article.

ARTICLE 6 NOTIFICATION OF THE CONVICTED PERSON

1. Each Party in its territory must notify the convicted persons to whom this Treaty applies that they may be transferred in accordance with the provisions of this Treaty.

2. If the convicted person or his legal representative has informed the Sentencing Party of his desire to be transferred in accordance with this Agreement, this Party shall inform the Sentencing Party as soon as practicable after the court decision has become final.

3. This information specifies:

a) the surname, date and place of birth of the convicted person;

b) the nationality of the convicted person;

(d) A statement of the facts on which the verdict was based;

f) the nature, duration and date of the beginning of the sentence.

4. If the convicted person or his legal representative has expressed his wish to the Executing Party, the Sentencing Party shall transmit to the executing Party, at its request, the information referred to in paragraph 3 of this article.

5. Each Party must notify persons convicted in its territory in writing of the decisions taken by the Sentencing Party or the Executing Party upon the transfer request, in accordance with article 7 of this Treaty.

ARTICLE 7 REQUESTS AND RESPONSES

1. Transfer requests and responses are made in writing.

2. A request for the transfer of persons may be made by either Party. The requested Party must promptly notify the requesting Party of its decision whether or not it agrees to the requested transfer.

ARTICLE 8 PROVISION OF DOCUMENTS

1. In the event of a request from one Party for transfer and if it is not refused by the other Party, the Sentencing Party shall provide the following documents or information to the Executing Party:

a) a certified copy of the court decision that has entered into force, including the relevant provisions of the law on which it is based;

b) information indicating the type and duration of the punishment, as well as the date of its calculation;

(c) Information on the terms of the parts of the sentence served and to be served, including the terms of pre-trial detention, release from punishment and information on the amendment of the sentence and other information relevant to the execution of the sentence;

(d) Written consent to the transfer, as provided for in subparagraph (d) of paragraph 1 of Article 4 of this Treaty.;

e) information about the convicted person's health status;

f) information describing the person's behavior during the serving of the sentence, information about his treatment at the Sentencing Site, and any recommendations for his further treatment at the Sentencing Site.

2. The executing Party provides the Sentencing Party with the following documents:

a) documents confirming that the convicted person is a citizen of the Executing Party;

(b) An extract from the relevant legislation of the Executing Party, which provides that the acts or omissions for which the sentence was passed on the Sentencing Party constitute an offence under the legislation of the Executing Party or constitute a criminal offence if committed on its territory.;

(c) Information on the procedure for the execution of the sentence imposed by the Sentencing Party, according to the national legislation of the Executing Party.

ARTICLE 9 THE CONSENT OF THE CONVICTED PERSON AND HIS CONFIRMATION

1. The sentencing party must ensure that the convicted person or his legal representative voluntarily agrees to the transfer with full awareness of its legal consequences and confirms this in a statement of consent to the transfer.

2. At the request of the Executing Party, the Sentencing Party must provide the Executing Party with an opportunity through an authorized person to verify that the convicted person has expressed his consent to transfer in accordance with the requirements of paragraph 1 of this article.

ARTICLE 10 TRANSFER OF A CONVICTED PERSON

If agreement is reached on the transfer, the Parties must determine the time, place and procedure for the transfer through consultations.

ARTICLE 11 CONSEQUENCES OF TRANSFER FOR THE SENTENCING PARTY

1. The transfer of the convicted person to the authorities of the Execution Party leads to the termination of the execution of the sentence on the Sentencing Side.

2. The sentencing Party may not continue the execution of the sentence if the Sentencing Party considers the execution of the sentence completed.

ARTICLE 12 CONSEQUENCES OF TRANSFER FOR THE EXECUTING PARTY

1. The execution party:

(a) Continues to enforce the sentence directly or by issuing a judicial or administrative order in accordance with the conditions set out in article 13 of this Treaty; or

b) replaces, by applying a judicial or administrative procedure, the sentence of that Party, thereby imposing, instead of the punishment determined by the Sentencing Party, the punishment provided for by the law of the Executing Party for the same crime, in accordance with the conditions set out in article 14 of this Treaty.

2. In the case of a request, the Executing Party shall inform the Sentencing Party prior to the transfer of the convicted person about which of these procedures it will follow.

3. The execution of the sentence is regulated by the legislation of the Executing Party and only this Party is competent to make all relevant decisions.

ARTICLE 13 CONTINUATION OF THE EXECUTION OF THE SENTENCE

1. If the execution of the sentence continues, the Execution Party is bound to the content and duration of the punishment determined by the Sentencing Party.

2. However, if this punishment is incompatible in its content or duration with the legislation of the Executing Party or if required by its legislation, that Party may, by means of a judicial or administrative order, bring this punishment into line with the punishment or measure provided for by its legislation for a similar crime. In its content, this punishment or measure, as far as possible, should correspond to the punishment or measure imposed by the sentence to be executed. In terms of their content or duration, they should not aggravate the punishment imposed on the Sentencing Party or exceed the maximum punishment provided for by the legislation of the Executing Party.

ARTICLE 14 RECOGNITION OF THE SENTENCE

1. In case of recognition of the verdict, the procedures provided for by the legislation of the Executing Party are applied. Upon recognition of the verdict, the Execution Party:

a) is related to the presentation of facts to the extent that they directly or indirectly follow from a judicial decision rendered at the sentencing Party;

b) may not replace a custodial sentence with a monetary penalty;

d) does not increase the punishment of the convicted person and should not apply the minimum punishment that may be provided for by the legislation of the Executing Party for a similar crime.

2. If the recognition procedure takes place after the transfer of the convicted person, the Executing Party shall keep him in custody or otherwise ensure his presence at the Executing Party until the end of this procedure.

ARTICLE 15 RETENTION OF JURISDICTION

1. The sentencing party has the right to retain jurisdiction to amend or overturn the verdict rendered by its court.

2. The Party executing the sentence must change or cancel the execution of the sentence in the event of receiving from the Sentencing Party an amended or cancelled sentence in accordance with this article, passed by the court of the Sentencing Party.

ARTICLE 16 PARDON, AMNESTY, COMMUTATION OF PUNISHMENT

Each Party has the right, in accordance with its national legislation, to apply an act of pardon, amnesty or commute the sentence against the transferred convicted person, immediately notifying the other Party.

ARTICLE 17 INFORMING ABOUT THE EXECUTION OF THE SENTENCE

The executing Party must inform the Sentencing Party about the execution of the sentence in the following cases:

a) if the execution of the sentence is completed;

b) if the convicted person absconded from custody or died before the end of the term of his sentence;

c) if the Sentencing Party requests a special report.

ARTICLE 18 TRANSIT

1. In the event that one Party, cooperating with a third country, transits convicted persons through the territory of the other Party, the first Party must send a request to the latter Party for permission for such transits.

2. In the case of using air transport and when landing on the territory of the other Party is not planned, such a permit is not required.

3. The Requested Party must, if this is not contrary to its national legislation, grant the transit request of the Requesting Party.

4. A Party may not allow transit transportation:

(a) If the convicted person is a national of the Requested Party; or

(b) If the offence for which the penalty is imposed is not an offence under its national legislation.

ARTICLE 19 LANGUAGES

To achieve the objectives of this Agreement, all documents must be written in the official languages of the Parties and provided with an English translation.

ARTICLE 20 VALIDITY OF DOCUMENTS

For the purposes of this Agreement, any documents sent by the central authority of one Party, signed and stamped, must be used on the territory of the other Party without legalization.

ARTICLE 21 EXPENSES

1. The Parties shall bear the costs related to the execution of this Agreement in accordance with their legislation and this Agreement.

2. The execution party shall bear the costs:

(a) Related to the transportation of the convicted person, other than expenses incurred solely in the territory of the Sentencing Party; and

b) related to the continuation of the execution of the sentence after the transfer.

3. The costs associated with transit transportation shall be borne by the Party requesting permission for transit transportation.

ARTICLE 22 SETTLEMENT OF DISPUTES AND DISAGREEMENTS

1. Disputes and disagreements that may arise during the implementation of the provisions of this Agreement shall be resolved by the central authorities of the Parties through consultations.

2. If such disputes and disagreements are not resolved between the central authorities of the Parties, they are subject to resolution through diplomatic channels.

ARTICLE 23 ENTRY INTO FORCE AND TERMINATION OF THE TREATY

1. This Treaty is subject to ratification and shall enter into force 30 days after the date of the exchange of instruments of ratification.

2. Each Party may terminate this Agreement at any time by notifying the other Party in writing. In this case, this Agreement shall terminate upon the expiration of one hundred and eighty (180) days from the date of receipt of the notification of the intention to terminate it.

3. By agreement of the Parties, amendments and additions may be made to this Agreement, which are an integral part of it and are formalized in the form of separate protocols that enter into force in accordance with the procedure provided for in paragraph 1 of this article.

4. This Agreement also applies to the transfer of convicted persons who were sentenced before its entry into force.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned, being duly authorized thereto, have signed this Agreement.

DONE in Skopje on August 22, 2019, in two copies, each in the Kazakh, Macedonian and English languages, all texts being authentic.

In case of disagreement in the interpretation of the provisions of this Agreement, the Parties shall refer to the English text.

FOR THE REPUBLIC OF KAZAKHSTAN

FOR THE REPUBLIC OF NORTH MACEDONIA

2019 zhylgy 22 tamizda Skopiede kazak, makedon zhane agylshyn tilderinde kol koylgan Kazakhstan Republikasi men Soltustik Macedonia Republikasi arasindagi sottalgan adamdards beru turaly shart matinin orys tilindegi matinge dalme-daldigin Thawed.

I confirm the authenticity of the text of the Agreement between the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Republic of North Macedonia on the transfer of Convicted Persons, signed in Skopje on August 22, 2019 in Kazakh, Macedonian and English, with the text in Russian.

Head of the Department of International Cooperation of the Prosecutor General's Office of the Republic of Kazakhstan

G. Koigeldiev

President

Republic of Kazakhstan

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