Paris/Berlin, 23 July 2024 - The Montreuil Administrative Court has handed down an unprecedented and worrying ruling, against which our organisations have decided to appeal before the highest administrative Court in France. On July 19, the court rejected a request by Amnesty International France, the European Center for Human and Constitutional Rights (ECCHR) and Disclose for access to customs documents on exports of war materials to Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates. In a procedure initiated in July 2020, the NGOs requested access to customs documents reporting exports of war materiel from France to these three countries, which may have used this equipment to commit war crimes or crimes against humanity in Yemen.
Following a lengthy procedure initiated four years ago by our associations, the court also refused an unprecedented referral to the constitutional court requested by our associations. The referral challenges the conformity with the French constitution of the current policy around arms-sales. Invoking multiple secrets, the French Ministry systematically refuses access to information of public interest. Faced with such ongoing organised opacity, our three organisations have now decided to appeal to the Conseil d’Etat, the highest administrative Court in France.
The ruling by the administrative court once again demonstrates the difficulty to ensure any public or judicial scrutiny of France’s compliance with the requirements of the Arms Trade Treaty and of European law, which prohibit the export of war materiel to armed forces engaged in possible war crimes, crimes against humanity and serious violations of international humanitarian law.
Given the seriousness of the issues at stake, the judge provided a surprisingly short rationale. It did not even consider the possibility of communicating redacted versions of the documents containing potentially sensitive information, or of referring the matter to the Commission du Secret de la Défense Nationale, suggestions put forward by Amnesty International France, ECCHR and Disclose. Instead, the judge invoked a series of secrets to justify the dismissal of our requests: National defence secrets, secrets relating to the conduct of France's foreign policy, the trade secrets of arms companies, and the professional secrecy owed by customs agents. The judge considers that the multiple secrets invoked by the French ministry are justified by the "constitutional requirements inherent in safeguarding the fundamental interests of the Nation, which include the independence of the Nation and the integrity of its territory”.
However, importantly, the court also recognized that our organisations »participate in the public debate by producing information on human rights violations that may result from the use of weapons of war«.
Opacity of a major democratic issue
The silence of the customs administration, at all costs, in response to requests for information from our NGOs, combined with the refusal of the administrative justice system to question the disproportionate and systematic use of secrecy, fuels the opacity of a major democratic issue: To guarantee that arms transfers are carried out in compliance with international law, without the risk that they may be used to commit or facilitate serious human rights violations.
Given the considerable risk that French-manufactured weapons have been or could be used to commit serious violations of international humanitarian law against civilian populations in Yemen, the lack of transparency poses a major obstacle to parliamentary, judicial and democratic control over French arms exports. Without access to accurate and reliable information, it is impossible to monitor France's compliance with its international human rights commitments.
Background
Despite overwhelming evidence of attacks committed by the Saudi-led Coalition in Yemen against civilian populations and infrastructure since 2015, France has continued to deliver weapons and to provide maintenance and training to these countries. The Arms Trade Treaty - as well as European and French law - strictly prohibit such exports where there is a risk that they will facilitate the commission of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Despite this, between 2015 and 2022 France delivered more than €21 billion of war materiel to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Following a refusal by the French customs and an unfavourable opinion from the National Commission on Access to Administrative Documents (CADA), the three organizations filed a petition with the Paris Administrative Court in September 2021, as well as a question prioritaire de constitutionnalité in May 2024. Both were rejected en bloc by the Administrative Court on July 19, 2024.
French arms manufacturers Thalès, Dassault and MBDA - are under judicial inquiry following a criminal complaint filed in 2022 for complicity in crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in Yemen.
