瑞士凍結前海地獨裁者幾百萬美元
Switzerland has used a new law to block millions of dollars held by former Haitian dictator Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier in Swiss bank accounts.
The law went into effect Tuesday. It was prompted at least in part by a legal battle over Mr. Duvalier's allegedly embezzled funds and is designed to make it easier for Swiss authorities to return illegally obtained funds to their country of origin.
The Swiss foreign ministry says the legislation governs the "freezing, forfeiture and restitution" of the assets of what it calls "politically exposed" people. It enables Swiss authorities to confiscate assets clearly of illicit origin even when the person holding them has not been convicted in criminal proceedings in the country seeking restitution.
Mr. Duvalier has about $6 million in Swiss bank accounts. The money was frozen after he was ousted in a uprising in 1986.
The former Haitian leader has been charged in Haiti with theft and misappropriation of funds during his 15-year rule. Haitian authorities filed the charges after Mr. Duvalier's unexpected return from exile last month. He is also being sued by several Haitians for torture and other crimes against humanity.
瑞士公司使用一條新法律凍結前海地獨裁者“娃娃醫生”杜瓦利埃在瑞士銀行帳戶中的幾百萬美元。
這條法律在星期二生效。制定這條法律的部分原因是針對杜瓦利埃涉嫌挪用公款而引起的一場法律訴訟。這條法律也使得瑞士當局更容易的把非法獲得的資金歸還給資金來源國。
瑞士外交部說，這條法律負責凍結，沒收和歸還所謂的“政治公衆人物”的資產。這條法律可以使得瑞士當局甚至可以在資產持有人在他們的國家尋求歸還資金的刑事訴訟中未被定罪的情況下，沒收明確的非法來源的資產。
杜瓦利埃在瑞士銀行帳戶中有大約600萬美元，這些錢在1986年人民起義推翻他以後被凍結。
這位前海地領導人在海地被指控在他的15年統治期間，偷竊和侵吞資金。海地當局在杜瓦利埃上個月突然結束流亡返回海地之後，對他提出了控訴。還有幾名海地人起訴他使用酷刑，並犯有其他反人類罪行。
