Update: On Thursday, Paraguay's Congress voted to end CONMEBOL immunity in light of the ongoing FIFA corruption scandal. Ending CONMEBOL immunity makes obvious sense, but it still doesn't explain why CONMEBOL had immunity for 18 years.So here's a weird thing that exists in the world: the offices of CONMEBOL, South America's soccer confederation headquartered in Paraguay, enjoys judicial immunity thanks to a law passed in 1997. We know this because as part of the Justice Department's corruption case against assorted current and former FIFA executives, former CONMEBOL president Nicolas Leoz faces extradition but has not been extradited for his role in the mess.Eugenio Figueredo of Uruguay, who succeeded Leoz as president, was one of seven FIFA officials arrested in Zurich last Wednesday. Leoz was president until 2013 when he resigned due to health concerns while embroiled in—please, I beg of you to wait for it—a corruption scandal!Reuters has some background on the shield law, which has come under fire in the last week in Paraguay:How insane is this?! A football confederation, enjoying diplomatic immunity. How does something like this even come up? A theory:[Two CONMEBOL guys kicking around a soccer ball in the office]Guy 1: You know what we need?Guy 2: Diplomatic immunity?Guy 1: Yes! That is exactly what I was going to say! How did you kn—Guy 2: How did I know you were going to say that? I didn't, man. It just popped in my head.Guy 1: I think we really need to do this, now. It's a s—Guy 2: It's a sign.Guys 1 and 2, together: Holy shit![They both run to Paraguayan Congress and pass the law. They then sprint back to CONMEBOL HQ and post this, which is the actual law.]
LRT. HQ of CONMEBOL (South America confederation) protected by special legislation. Like their own little country. Cops can't enter.
— Gabriele Marcotti (@Marcotti) June 2, 2015
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In 2012, Leoz bragged about this immunity law, which grants legal immunity to the premises and the documents therein, saying the CONMEBOL offices were like the Vatican. Leoz, via Paraguay.com: "You can not enter the police, not a criminal judge, no one remains in force as Law 1.070 But we never asked for anything.""At the time of its approval as law there were other circumstances," Blas Llano, head of congress, said in his address tabling the motion. "The idea was to make Paraguay the (CONMEBOL's) permanent home and for the place to become a tourist attraction.
"But those circumstances have changed with the investigations that are public knowledge and deserve to be revoked," added Llano, a senator in the opposition Liberal Party.
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