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Migration Jurisprudence from the South › South Africa

Mohamed v. President of the Republic of South Africa

Constitutional Court of South Africa · South Africa · 2001-05-28 · National court

Citation: [2001] ZACC 18
Type of case: Constitutional and human rights
Outcome: Decided for the migrant side

Question

Could South Africa hand a man over to the United States to face a possible death sentence without assurances?

What the court decided

No. Removing him without an assurance that the death penalty would not be imposed breached his rights to life, dignity and freedom from cruel punishment.

In plain language

A Tanzanian man was quickly sent from South Africa to the United States to stand trial for an embassy bombing. The Constitutional Court said this was unlawful without a promise that he would not be executed.

Dalam bahasa sederhana

Seorang pria Tanzania segera dikirim dari Afrika Selatan ke Amerika Serikat untuk diadili atas pengeboman kedutaan. MK menyatakan ini tidak sah tanpa janji ia tidak akan dihukum mati.

Pertanyaan: Bisakah Afrika Selatan menyerahkan seseorang kepada Amerika Serikat untuk menghadapi kemungkinan hukuman mati tanpa jaminan?

What happened afterwards

  • 1999-10: Handed over.
  • 2001-05-28: Judgment sent to the US trial court.
  • 2001: Sentenced to life imprisonment, not death.

Sources

Open this decision in the interactive collection (compare, filter, Indonesian view, downloads).

Cite as: Institute for Migrant Rights (2026), Migration Jurisprudence from the South, version 0.1, https://theimr.org/court-decisions/d/za-mohamed-2001/. This page summarizes a court decision for research and advocacy; it is not legal advice.

For researchers

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