Anti-terrorism legislation are laws aimed at fighting terrorism. They usually, if not always, follow specific bombings or assassinations. Anti-terrorism legislation usually includes specific amendments allowing the state to bypass its own legislation when fighting terrorism-related crimes, under alleged grounds of necessity.
Because of this suspension of regular procedure, such legislation is sometimes criticized as a form of lois scélérates which may unjustly repress all kinds of popular protests. Critics often allege that anti-terrorism legislation endangers democracy by creating a state of exception that allows authoritarian style of government.
Although some legal scholars have long expressed concern that the wording of anti-terrorism laws would allow them to be used against non-violent direct action protestors, the proscription of UK-based direct action group Palestine Action was described by one expert as "unprecedented". In some countries, direct action is expressly excluded from the definition of terrorism.
International conventions related to terrorism and counter-terrorism cases Terrorism has been on the international agenda since 1934, when the League of Nations, predecessor of the United Nations, began the elaboration of a convention for the prevention and punishment of terrorism.See Lyal S. Sunga, The Emerging System of International Criminal Law: Developments in Codification and Implementation (Brill Publishers, 1997) pp. 191-203. Although the convention was eventually adopted in 1937, it never came into force.
Today, there are 15 counter-terrorism international conventions in force. They were developed under the auspices of the United Nations and its specialized agencies and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Moreover, on 8 September 2006, the UN General Assembly adopted a "Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy".International instruments to counter terrorism, United Nations
Conventions open to all states 1963 Convention on Offences and Certain Other Acts Committed On Board Aircraft (Tokyo Convention) 1970 Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Seizure of Aircraft (Hague Convention) 1971 Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Safety of Civil Aviation (Sabotage Convention or Montreal Convention) 1973 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes Against Internationally Protected Persons (Diplomatic Agents Convention) 1979 International Convention against the Taking of Hostages (Hostages Convention) 1980 Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material (Nuclear Materials Convention) 1988 Protocol for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts of Violence at Airports Serving International Civil Aviation (Airport Protocol) 1988 Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Safety of Maritime Navigation (Maritime Convention) 1988 Protocol for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Safety of Fixed Platforms Located on the Continental Shelf (Fixed Platform Protocol) 1991 Convention on the Marking of Plastic Explosives for the Purpose of Detection (Plastic Explosives Convention) 1997 International Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombings (Terrorist Bombing Convention) 1999 International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism (Terrorist Financing Convention) 2005 International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism (Nuclear Terrorism Convention) 2010 Convention on the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Relating to International Civil Aviation (Beijing Convention) 2010 Protocol Supplementary to the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Seizure of Aircraft (Beijing Protocol) A 16th international convention, a proposed Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism, is currently under negotiations.
Security Council Resolutions UN Security Council Resolution 731 (January 21, 1992) UN Security Council Resolution 748 (March 31, 1992) UN Security Council Resolution 883 (November 11, 1993) September 28, 2001 United Nations Security Council Resolution 1373 adopted under Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter, which makes it legally binding to member states. Among other provisions, it favored the exchange of intelligence between member states and legislative reforms. It established the United Nations Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC) to monitor state compliance with its provisions. Later resolutions concerning the same matter were UNSC resolutions 1390, 1456, 1535 (which restructured the CTC), 1566, and 1624.
Regional conventions Europe 1977 European Convention on the Suppression of Terrorism (Strasbourg, January 1977) 2003 Protocol (Strasbourg, May 2003) 2005 Council of Europe Convention on the Prevention of Terrorism
Commonwealth of Independent States Treaty on Cooperation among States Members of the Commonwealth of Independent States in Combating Terrorism (Minsk, June 1999)
The Americas Organisation of American States Convention to Prevent and Punish Acts of Terrorism Taking the Form of Crimes Against Persons and Related Extortion that are of International Significance (Washington, D.C. February 1971) Inter-American Convention Against Terrorism AG/RES. 1840 (XXXII-O/02) (Bridgetown, June 2002)
Africa Organisation of African Union Convention on the Prevention and Combating of Terrorism (Algiers July 1999) and the Protocol to that Convention, Addis Ababa July 2004) [as of 30 August 2005 the Protocol was not yet in force]
Asia SAARC Regional Convention on Suppression of Terrorism (Kathmandu, November 1987) Additional Protocol to the convention, Islamabad, January 2004 [As of 30 August 2005 not yet in force]. The ASEAN Convention On Counter Terrorism, Cebu, Philippines, 13 January 2007 [In force from 27 May 2011, on 22 January 2013 all ASEAN members signed the ACCT]
South Korea Act on prohibition against the financing of terrorism (February 29, 2008)
→(rev)Act on prohibition against the financing of terrorism and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (March 29, 2016)
Act on anti-terrorism for the protection of citizens and public security (March 3, 2016)
League of Arab States Arab Convention on the Suppression of Terrorism (Cairo, April 1998)
Organization of the Islamic Conference Convention of the Organization of the Islamic Conference on Combating International Terrorism (Ouagadougou, July 1999)
Anti-terrorist legislation in the European Union European Union EU Framework Decision on Terrorism EU Directive 2017/541 on combating terrorism
European Court of Human Rights cases related to anti-terrorist legislation Anna Maroufidou v. Sweden - 1981 Brogan and others v. the UK - 11209/84;11234/84;11266/84;... ECHR 24 (29 November 1988)
Belgium Belgium Anti-Terrorism Act 2003
France France has passed a variety of anti-terrorist laws, the first of which being the 19th-century lois scélérates restricting freedom of expression. Today, magistrates in the Justice Ministry anti-terrorism unit have authority to detain people suspected of "conspiracy in relation to terrorism" while evidence is gathered against them.
Ireland Offences against the State Acts 1939–1998 via the Special Criminal Court Criminal Justice (Terrorist Offences) Act 2005
Italy
Italy passed various anti-terrorist laws during the "Years of Lead" (anni di piombo) in the 1970s.
The Reale Act was adopted on 22 May 1975. It allowed the police to carry out searches and arrest persons without being mandated by an investigative judge. Interrogation could take place without the presence of a lawyer. Critics underlined that this contradicted article 3 of the Constitution on equality before the law.
Preventive detention was fixed before 1970 to two years, for a possible sentence going between 20 years to perpetuity, while it was limited to one year for charges of crimes leading to a sentence of less than 20 years. It passed to four years after 1970. A decree-law of 11 April 1974 authorized a four-year detention until the first judgment, six years until the appeal, and eight years until the definitive judgment. In case of indictment for "acts of terrorism," the preventive detention was extended to twelve years.
The Cossiga decree-law was passed on 15 December 1979. It prolonged the length of preventive detention relative to terrorism suspicions and allowed wiretaps. Critics have pointed out that this violated articles 15 and 27 of the Constitution. The Cossiga decree-law also created the status of pentito (officially "collaborators of justice"): those accused of terrorism crimes and who accepted of confessing them and of informing the authorities about their accomplices could be liberated.
Law n°191 of May 21, 1978, called "Moro law", and law n°15 of February 6, 1980, were ratifications by the assembly of decrees of emergency enacted by the executive power, respectively on March 28, 1978, and on December 15, 1979.
United Kingdom
Prevention of Terrorism Acts (Northern Ireland), 1974–89 Terrorism Act 2000 Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 (the Racial and Religious Hatred Act was supposed to be part of it as provisions, but it was dropped) The Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005 was intended to deal with the Law Lords' ruling of 16 December 2004, that the detention without trial of nine foreigners at HM Prison Belmarsh under Part IV of the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 was unlawful, being incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights. It was given Royal assent on 11 March 2005. The Act allows the Home Secretary to impose "control orders" on people they suspect of involvement in terrorism, which in some cases may derogate (opt out) from human rights laws. In April 2006, a High Court judge issued a declaration that section 3 of the Act was incompatible with the right to a fair trial under article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights. The Act was described by Mr Justice Sullivan as an 'affront to justice'. Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, JUSTICE and Liberty have opposed it. Criticism of the Act included complaints about the range of restrictions that could be imposed, the use of closed proceedings and special advocates to hear secret evidence against the detainee, and the possibility that evidence against detainees may include evidence obtained in other countries by torture. The Terrorism Act 2006 increased the limit of pre-charge detention for terrorist suspects to 28 days after a rebellion by Labour MPs. Originally, the Government, and Prime Minister Tony Blair, had pushed for a 90-day detention period, but this was reduced to 28 days after a vote in the House of Commons. Home Office Minister Damian Green announced on 20 January 2011 that the period would revert to 14 days as the order extending the period to 28 days would be allowed to lapse at midnight on 24 January. The Counter-Terrorism Act 2008, a section of which would have controversially increased the limit of pre-charge detention for terrorism suspects for 42 days. This measure was dropped from the bill after it failed to win approval in the House of Lords. Terrorist Asset-Freezing (Temporary Provisions) Act 2010, which led to the Terrorist Asset-Freezing etc. Act 2010 Terrorism Prevention and Investigation Measures Act 2011 received royal assent on 14 December that year. Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015
UK anti-terrorism legislation is subject to regular review by the Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation.
Anti-terrorism legislation in common law countries (other than the UK) Australia Australian anti-terrorism legislation, 2004 Australian Anti-Terrorism Act 2005
The Civil Rights Network opposes such legislation. Elizabeth Evatt, a federal judge, has criticized John Howard's 2005 anti-terrorism bill, particularly provisions relating to control orders and preventive detention, saying that "These laws are striking at the most fundamental freedoms in our democracy in a most draconian way."
Bangladesh