The author of the Communication, Mr. Harward, was a British citizen imprisoned in Norway. He was arrested in Spain based on extradition request on suspicion of drug trafficking. Applying to the Committee Mr. Harward claimed to be a victim of various violations of Article 14 of the Covenant by Norway, inadequacy of defense, inability to cross-examine the witness, lack of possibility to seek appeal.
The Committee found no violation of the Covenant based on the information that all relevant documents of the criminal charge of the Author was represented by the lawyer of his choice, who had access to the entire files of the charge and had assistance of the interpreter during the meetings with the Author. Moreover, neither the Author, nor his council requested the postponement of the trial in order to prepare the defense.
Citation: Harward v. Norway (UN Human Rights Committee, 18 August 1994) UN Doc CCPR/C/51/D451/1991