Sydney Central Local Court Magistrate Philip Stewart on Tuesday reserved his decision on whether Chilean Adriana Rivas is extraditable to Chile until October 29.
A decision on the case was expected before the move to reserve, which comes following .
Rivas is accused in her country of the aggravated kidnapping of Víctor Díaz, secretary-general of the Communist Party who disappeared in 1976 along with six other members of the movement.
Since her arrest on February 19, 2019, Rivas has made several unsuccessful attempts for provisional release ahead of the hearing, in the local court of New South Wales and the Federal Court of Australia.
The October hearing focuses on the evidence presented in response to the request made by Chile in 2014 for the extradition of Rivas, who is a former agent of the Chilean secret police DINA, and the former secretary to its head Manuel Contreras and Alejandro Burgos, Contreras' closest assistant.
Highlights:
- A decision on whether ex-Pinochet agent Adriana Rivas is extraditable to Chile has been moved to October 29.
- Sydney's Central Local Court has heard arguments as recent as August on the extradition of Rivas to Chile.
- Rivas, who has lived in Australia since 1978, was detained in Chile in 2006, but she did not fulfill her probation obligations and fled back to Australia in 2010.
- In 2013, an SBS Spanish investigation found her in Sydney, and Chile requested her extradition one year later.
- Rivas has been accused in Chile for the aggravated kidnapping of Víctor Díaz, general secretary of the Communist Party who disappeared in 1976 along with six other members of the formation.
Sydney-based Lawyer Adriana Navarro, who represents families of Chilean victims in Australia, told SBS Spanish that Magistrate Stewart's decision to reserve his ruling came as he is confronted by a "huge task".
"It involves reviewing and giving careful consideration to 20 volumes of material, that include both facts, evidence, as well as submissions," she said.
"Normally we get a submission and a response. But here, we have submissions, responses, and replies."
Navarro said the group she represents were initially "surprised" by Magistrate Stewart's move to reserve his decision, but "understood once he explained the reasons behind his decision".
"He explained to the room that this trial had taken a long time due to a series of requests from Rivas' team asking for delays," she said outside court.
"There were hearings in June, July, and August and there were several requests from [lawyer] Frank Santisi on Rivas' behalf, asking to present more proof and new evidence after the culmination of the first part of the hearing, and to present allegations in response to previous claims.
"The victims' families were naturally feeling some nervousness and anxiety, but they are experts and can teach seminars on waiting, as they have been waiting for more than 40 years ... so waiting one more month is not an issue."
Santisi, who has represented Rivas during the hearing process, said the magistrate's decision was a "very complex issue".
"It's an important decision so they need to take their time to ensure the matter is given due consideration."
What is she accused of?
Rivas is accused in Chile for taking part in the aggravated kidnappings of seven people, resulting in their death: Víctor Díaz, Fernando Ortiz, Fernando Navarro, Lincoyán Berríos, Horacio Cepeda, Héctor Véliz and Reinalda Pereira.
The disappearances occurred between 1974 and 1977. Pereira was pregnant.
The Chilean Supreme Court issued the extradition order in 2014.
Chilean prosecutors seeking her extradition claim Rivas worked for the Lautaro Brigade, a secret contingent that only became known in 2007.
Rivas was allegedly working for DINA, Pinochet’s secret police, under the command of Manuel Contreras. The brigade operated at the Simón Bolívar barracks.
Rivas denies all charges, stating that she only worked an administrative role at DINA. She is yet to be convicted of any crime.
Santisi told the Magistrate in June that the documents submitted by Chile do not specify or provide enough detail linking her with the crimes she allegedly committed while she was an intelligence agent working for DINA in the 1970s.
He also argued that DINA wasn’t a criminal organisation per se, and as such only some individuals involved in the agency would have committed crimes.
“No material has [been] presented that states whether she [was] in any position of decision power or responsibility,” Santisi said.
Adriana Rivas with Manuel Contreras, the head of DINA. Source: SBS
What will happen in the extradition process?
Magistrate Philip Stewart is set to hand down his decision in Sydney.
The battle for Rivas’ extradition may happen quickly or last for several years as both parties could potentially appeal the decision up to the High Court of Australia.
A spokesperson from the Attorney-General’s Department told SBS Spanish that either party to the proceeding may apply to the Federal Court for review of the magistrate’s decision within 15 days.
"If a magistrate determines under section 19 of the Act that a person is not eligible for surrender, the magistrate shall order that the person be released," the spokesperson said.
A previous extradition process, the case of Dragan Vasiljković, a former Serbian paramilitary leader who was extradited to Croatia in 2015, took nine years after his arrest in Perth.
"It is not known whether Adriana Rivas will give her consent to be extradited to Chile or will use all the review instances opened by the extradition law," Sydney-based Lawyer Adriana Navarro, who represents the families of Chilean victims in Australia, told SBS Spanish in February 2019.
Why is Adriana Rivas in Australia?
Rivas migrated to Australia from Chile in 1978 and settled in Sydney.
In 2006, while visiting her relatives in Chile, she was detained and later released on bail.
In 2010, she left Chile illegally with the help of friends and returned to Australia. She took residence in a low-income apartment block in the beachside suburb of Bondi.
From then on, she lived quietly in Sydney and worked as a babysitter and cleaner until her arrest.
The Rivas case, the tip of the iceberg
During the 1990s, the Chilean community in Australia informed the Australian immigration authorities on a number of other alleged former Pinochet government intelligence agents living in Australia or trying to reach the country.
A list of at least seven names was provided to the Australian authorities during the 1990s.
During this period and up to this day, many Chilean refugees in Australia want to know more about Australia's participation in the coup d’état led by General Pinochet.
Apart from answers, they seek a formal apology from the Australian government.
Many Chileans in Australia say they are disappointed because they feel that Australia's foreign policy towards the Chilean dictatorship was hypocritical.
An SBS Spanish investigation that included declassified intelligence documents revealed evidence suggesting that the Australian government helped bring the dictator to power, to then later condemn the coup.
SBS Spanish published the investigation documenting the participation of Australia’s ASIS spies to mark the 40th anniversary of Chile’s coup, on September 11, 2013.
A month after the coup, Australia recognised the de facto government of Chile, and the following year Australia opened its doors to the persecuted victims of the Pinochet regime.
