VIOLATION OF FUNDAMENTAL LIBERTIES IN COUNTER-TERRORISM MEASURES: A HUMAN RIGHTS APPROACH


Book Description

This book examines the impact of counter-terrorism measures on specific elements of international human rights that are at the greatest risk of abuse in light of contemporary counter-terrorism measures, including the right to life; the right to free from torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; the right to a fair trial; the right to privacy; and the right to liberty and security. Besides, for enrichment of discussions a number of cases have reviewed.




Terrorism and the Limitation of Rights


Book Description

Taking as a starting point the widely accepted view that states confronted with terrorism must find a proper equilibrium between their respective obligations of preserving fundamental rights and fighting terrorism effectively, this book seeks to demonstrate how the design and enforcement of a human rights instrument may influence the result of that exercise. An attempt is made to answer the question how a legal order's approach to the limitation of rights may shape decision-making trade-offs between the demands of liberty and the need to guarantee individual and collective security. In doing so, special attention is given to the difference between the adjudicative methods of balancing and categorisation. The book challenges the conventional wisdom that individual rights, in times of crisis, are better served by the application of categorical rather than flexible models of limitation. In addition, the work considers the impact of a variety of other factors, including the discrepancies in enforcing an international convention as opposed to a national constitution and the use of emergency provisions permitting derogations from human rights obligations in time of war or a public emergency. The research questions are addressed through a comparative study of the terrorism-related restrictions on five fundamental rights protected under the European Convention on Human Rights and the United States Constitution: the right to freedom of expression, the right to freedom of association, the right to personal liberty, the right to privacy, and the right to a fair trial. The book offers both a theoretical account of the paradoxical relationship between terrorism and human rights and a comprehensive comparative survey of the major decisions of the highest courts on both sides of the Atlantic.




Terrorism, Security, and Human Rights


Book Description

"Scholars and policymakers disagree on the most effective way to counter transnational terrorism, generating debate on a range of questions: Do military interventions increase or decrease the recruitment capability of transnational terrorists? Should we privilege diplomacy over military force in the campaign against terror? Can counterterrorist measures be applied without violating human rights? More fundamentally, is it possible to effectively wage a war against terrorism? Grappling with these questions, Mahmood Monshipouri reviews alternative strategies for combating terrorism and makes the case for the continued relevance of international law and diplomacy as measures for severing its roots in the Middle East and elsewhere. Monshipouri underlines the need to redefine security to include the protection of human rights. In that context, he examines the limits of the use of force, torture, and externally imposed democratization and focuses on the conditions under which alternative counterterrorism tools can be viable. While acknowledging that there is no easy remedy to the tensions between security needs and human rights, he makes a compelling argument that the pursuit of a security template that sacrifices civil liberties is not only morally debilitating, but also politically imprudent"--Provided by publisher.




Counter-Terrorism and Human Rights in the Case Law of the European Court of Human Rights


Book Description

Terrorism has become one of the major threats facing both states and the international community, in particular after the terrorist attacks in the United States, Madrid and London, which revealed a whole new scale and dimension of the phenomenon. An effective response is absolutely necessary; this response, however, cannot undermine democracy, human rights, the rule of law or the supreme values inherent to these principles.There is no universally agreed definition of "terrorism", nor is there an international Jurisdiction before which the perpetrators of terrorist crimes can be brought to account. The European Court of Human Rights is the first international Jurisdiction to deal with such a phenomenon. For many decades and through more than four hundred cases, it has elaborated a clear, integrated and articulated body of case law on responses to terrorism from a human rights and rule of law perspective. Thus, this is a handbook on counter-terrorism with a special focus on due respect for human rights and rule of law.This book compiles the doctrine laid down by the European Court of Human Rights in this field with a view to facilitating the task of adjudicators, legal officers, lawyers, international IGOs, NGOs, policy makers, researchers, victims and all those committed to fighting this scourge. The book presents a careful analysis of this body of case law and the general principles applicable to the fight against terrorism resulting from each particular case. It also includes a compendium of the main cases dealt with by the Strasbourg Court in this field and will prove to be a most useful guiding tool in the sensitive area of counter-terrorism and human rights.




Abuse


Book Description

This book addresses the problem of abuse - not what is commonly understood as 'abuse of human rights' where authorities violate fundamental rights by simply denying them. Rather, it refers to authorities and individuals claiming human (fundamental) rights and the rule of law in ways that violate the fundamental rights of other people. Most contributors to this volume agree that in certain instances fundamental rights are used improperly, with troubling consequences, and that making us aware of such improprieties is necessary for the most efficient and just operation of the constitutional system. Several methods how to approach the issue are covered in this book, ranging from the use of existing doctrinal categories (e.g. conflict of rights) to developing a doctrine of abuse of rights. They help in clarifying improper uses of rights and the rule of law in constitutional and international law. The thought-provoking essays in this book are a welcome contribution to the debate if and how to deal with the negative consequences of rights-based action.




Counter-Terrorism, Human Rights and the Rule of Law


Book Description

ŠA deep and thoughtful exploration of counter-terrorism written by leading commentators from around the globe. This book poses critical questions about the definition of terrorism, the role of human rights and the push by many governments for more secu




Terrorism and the Constitution


Book Description

Tracing the history of government intrusions on Constitutional rights in response to threats from abroad, Cole and Dempsey warn that a society in which civil liberties are sacrificed in the name of national security is in fact less secure than one in which they are upheld. A new chapter includes a discussion of domestic spying, preventive detention, the many court challenges to post-9/11 abuses, implementation of the PATRIOT ACT, and efforts to reestablish the checks and balances left behind in the rush to strengthen governmental powers.




The Right to Liberty and Security versus Counter-Terrorism under International Law


Book Description

Particularly in the aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attack, the threat of terrorism, however, defined, has been invoked as a common ‘justification’ in the pursuit of remodelling policies, laws, and institutions, both at the international and in the domestic politico-legal showground. The broader central theme that this book explores is the normative vibe under which the present-day counterterrorism discourse is construed and sculpted in the legislative and institutional structures of an authoritarian state where the political power and government institutions are functioning under a single-party-monopolised system. Presenting the Ethiopian legislative and institutional frameworks as a case study, the book critically reflects on the extent that the international legal and/or institutional counterterrorism response is sensitised in a manner lessening the risk of conflating authoritarian regime’s unbearable reactions to citizens’ legitimate demands and resistances against its repression vis-àvis that of its response to the common threat of international terrorism. In particular, the book ponders whether or not the range of the substantive and procedural aspects of the Ethiopian antiterrorism legislative and institutional frameworks are wrought to fit into the main objectives and standards that emanate from the pertinent international laws relating to terrorism and the international human rights law as well as the domestic constitutional law maxims.




Human Rights Violations Under the Guise of Counter-terrorism Measures


Book Description

Both security and human rights are important to all within the civilized world. Yet there are some serious tensions between the two political norms. For instance, it may not be easy for a state or the international community to reconcile well intentioned acts to maintain security and to preserve human rights. In the recent past, such a difficulty has been played out not only in the events, but also in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States. The result of the attacks, culminating in the massive loss of lives and property, has been in the adoption of various international treaties and domestic laws that have swiftly been enacted and deployed to counter terrorism, and the development of a concept of a state of "urgency" that appears to shadow the obligation to protect fundamental human rights, particularly the right to life under international law. This thesis thus focuses on the promotion and protection of fundamental human rights, particularly, the right to life with the subsequent declaration of the "war on terror" by the United States. The work targets the debate between security and human rights in the light of terrorism post 9/11, highlights the impact of choosing one ideal over another, and eventually rationing out a balance that would serve as a threshold for upholding standards in both security and human rights in the face of terrorism threats. Essentially, however, this thesis is hinged on the argument that to allow the ideal of security which apparently appears advantageous to a "continuing state of urgency" to overwhelmingly influence the implementation of counter-terrorism measures while paying no attention to the fundamental right to life would constitute a paradox in combating terrorism. I posit that the result of the above exercise, if chosen, implies more tragic consequences when implemented than the singular acts of terrorism in themselves.




Terrorism and the Constitution


Book Description

Tracing the history of government intrusions on Constitutional rights in response to threats from abroad, Cole and Dempsey warn that a society in which civil liberties are sacrificed in the name of national security is in fact less secure than one in which they are upheld. A new chapter includes a discussion of domestic spying, preventive detention, the many court challenges to post-9/11 abuses, implementation of the Patriot Act, and efforts to reestablish the checks and balances left behind in the rush to strengthen governmental powers.