The Diplomatic and Consular Premises Act 1987 is an

Act of Parliament Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the Legislature, legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of ...

passed by the

United Kingdom Parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative supremacy ...

which allows the UK government to determine what land is considered to be diplomatic or consular premises. The act was a result of a government review of the law related to the

inviolability of diplomatic premises Diplomatic law is that area of international law that governs permanent and temporary diplomacy, diplomatic missions. A fundamental concept of diplomatic law is that of diplomatic immunity, which derives from state immunity. Key elements of diploma ...

following the 1984 Libyan Embassy Siege. The law has only been used once, for the

Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand t ...

n embassy in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, which had been occupied by squatters. The embassy had been used by the Government of Cambodia before it was overthrown by

Pol Pot Pol Pot; (born Saloth Sâr;; 19 May 1925 – 15 April 1998) was a Cambodian revolutionary, dictator, and politician who ruled Cambodia as Prime Minister of Democratic Kampuchea between 1976 and 1979. Ideologically a Marxist–Leninist a ...

in 1975. While that government was recognised by Britain, no diplomatic mission was established before Cambodia was invaded by Vietnam in 1978, and the building came into the care of the British Foreign Office. The squatters moved in while the embassy was vacant in 1976, and in 1988 they would have gained title to the building following twelve years of continuous occupation. Hence an order was made, the Diplomatic and Consular Premises (Cambodia) Order 1988, to de-recognise the diplomatic premises so that legal action could be taken to remove the squatters. In 2012 the UK government said it was considering using the law after

Julian Assange Julian Paul Assange ( ; Hawkins; born 3 July 1971) is an Australian editor, publisher, and activist who founded WikiLeaks in 2006. WikiLeaks came to international attention in 2010 when it published a series of leaks provided by U.S. Army inte ...

, the founder of

WikiLeaks WikiLeaks () is an international Nonprofit organization, non-profit organisation that published news leaks and classified media provided by anonymous Source (journalism), sources. Julian Assange, an Australian Internet activism, Internet acti ...

, sought refuge in the

Ecuadorian embassy in London The Embassy of Ecuador in London is the diplomatic mission of Ecuador in the United Kingdom. It is headed by the ambassador of Ecuador to the United Kingdom. It is located in the Knightsbridge area of London, in the Royal Borough of Kensington a ...

, to avoid being extradited to Sweden where he faced allegations of

sexual assault Sexual assault is an act in which one intentionally sexually touches another person without that person's consent, or coerces or physically forces a person to engage in a sexual act against their will. It is a form of sexual violence, which ...

References

See also