FIRST SECTION

DECISION

Application no. 56428/00 by Kpadenou TOPOU against the Netherlands

The European Court of Human Rights (First Section) , sitting on 20 March 2001 as a Chamber composed of

Mrs E. Palm , President , Mrs W. Thomassen , Mr Gaukur Jörundsson , Mr R. Türmen , Mr C. Bîrsan , Mr J. Casadevall , Mr R. Maruste , judges ,

and Mr M. O’Boyle , Section Registrar ,

Having regard to the above application introduced on 31 January 2000 and registered on 11 April 2000,

Having regard to the applicant’s letter of 2 February 2001,

Having deliberated, decides as follows:

THE FACTS

The applicant is a Togolese national, born in 1958 and living in the Netherlands. He is represented before the Court by Ms E.H.F. van ‘t Hoff, a lawyer practising in The Hague.

The facts of the case, as submitted by the applicant , may be summarised as follows.

The applicant arrived in the Netherlands on 9 July 1995 and lodged a request for asylum or, alternatively, a residence permit for compelling reasons of a humanitarian nature. This request was rejected by the State Secretary of Justice ( Staatssecretaris van Justitie ) on 4 September 1995. On 15 December 1995 the acting President of the Hague Regional Court ( Arrondissementsrechtbank ) rejected the applicant’s objection ( bezwaar ) against the State Secretary’s decision.

The applicant filed a new request for asylum on 11 May 1997, arguing that there were new facts and circumstances which justified another examination of his claims. The State Secretary rejected this new request on 13 May 1997, and the subsequent objection lodged by the applicant on 14 January 1998. In a decision of 2 July 1999, transmitted to his representative on 2 August 1999, the Hague Regional Court rejected the applicant’s appeal against the decision of the State Secretary.

On 27 June 2000 the applicant filed a third request for asylum which was granted by the State Secretary on 12 October 2000.

COMPLAINTS

The applicant complained that his expulsion to Togo would expose him to a real and personal risk of being subjected to treatment contrary to Articles 2 and 3 of the Convention . He further submitted that in the asylum proceedings in the Netherlands he had not received a fair hearing contrary to Article 6 § 1 of the Convention.

THE LAW

The applicant complained that his expulsion to Togo would infringe his right to life as guaranteed by Article 2 of the Convention and would subject him to inhuman treatment contrary to Article 3 of the Convention. He also submitted that the proceedings in which his requests for asylum had been examined fell short of the requirements of Article 6 § 1 of the Convention.

On 2 February 2001 the applicant informed the Court that he wished to withdraw the present application in view of the fact that he had been recognised as a refugee by the authorities in the Netherlands.

Having regard to Article 37 § 1 (a) of the Convention, the Court notes that the applicant does not intend to pursue the application. Furthermore, in accordance with Article 37 § 1 in fine , the Court finds no special circumstances regarding respect for human rights as defined in the Convention and its Protocols which require the examination of the application to be continued.

For these reasons, the Court unanimously

Decides to strike the application out of its list of cases.

Michael O’Boyle Elisabeth Palm Registrar President