Eminent Jurists' Panel on Terrorism, Counter-Terrorism and Human Rights
About the Panel
“There is presently no part of the world that is immune from terrorism. The threats are real and call for a firm response from states. The response should, however, be proportional to the danger involved and carefully tailored to address it, bearing in mind that the danger includes not only the harm done by terrorism, but also the harm done to the fabric of our societies by disproportionate responses that undermine democracy itself.”
Arthur Chaskalson, ICJ President, South Africa
Opening speech, ICJ Biennial Conference, Berlin 2004
Why a panel on counter-terrorism and human rights?
With continuing widespread fear of terrorist attacks and a security-dominated agenda, governments are redefining and seeking to bypass well-established human rights and rule of law principles. Terrorism itself puts human rights in peril and states have a duty to protect people from terrorist acts. However, new, and old, counter-terrorism measures worldwide threaten the rule of law and human rights.
The legal and human rights community is struggling to meet this global challenge in an effective and coordinated way. Policy-makers dismiss general statements of human rights principles as unrealistic and the public in many countries seem ready to accept an erosion of rights. Some states have faced cycles of terrorism and counter-terrorism for decades, yet policy-makers are not listening to the lessons of history. Despite signs of an emerging rhetorical acceptance by democratic states that their fight against terrorism should not jeopardize democratic values, there is still little agreement on what this means in practice for the work of the police, the military, anti-terror units and the courts.
There is a need to move from principle to a more sophisticated and detailed exploration of the issues. What are the acceptable limits of counter-terrorism measures? What is the nature of today's security threats and how different are they to past threats? Do these threats justify changing existing rules of international human rights and humanitarian law? How should laws and policies change if they are both to confront terrorism effectively and respect human rights and the rule of law?
The legal community worldwide must now take a leadership role in articulating how the rule of law can be respected in addressing terrorism in its many complex global and local forms.
To meet this challenge,
the ICJ launched in October 2005 the Eminent Jurists’ Panel on Terrorism, Counter-terrorism and Human Rights. Consisting of a series of international hearings to be held in different countries and regions over 18 months, the panel is headed by highly respected judges and lawyers of world renown. Based on their findings, the Panel will make firm and realistic recommendations on how the international community can best respond to this global challenge.
Counter-terrorism measures: What Price?
“We speak about laws and policies. But should never forget that this is about people, about families. Terrorism creates victims. Counter-terrorism is creating new victims.”
Nicholas Howen, ICJ Secretary-General
ICJ Biennial Conference, Berlin 2004.
The impact of excessive counter-terrorism measures on basic human rights included:
- Prisoners tortured to extract information and torture “outsourced”
- Suspects transferred to countries where they are at risk of torture
- Indefinite or secret detentions, often without charge or trial
- Protective reach of the courts cut down, prisoners held without habeas corpus
- Fair trial guarantees ignored, rights of defence cut down and rights of appeal removed
- Criminalization of political and social dissent
- Freedom of expression threatened
- Invasion of privacy
- Erosion of democratic checks and balances
- Discrimination against minority communities
- Abuse of constitutions
- Vague definitions of terrorism misused
What Response?
“Our answer now must be a firm, well-thought-out and coherent response to current security concerns. A good start was made by the International Commission of Jurists, when, during its biennial conference at the end of August 2004, 160 international lawyers from around the world adopted a Declaration of Upholding Human Rights and the Rule of Law in Combating Terrorism.”
Mary Robinson, Connecting Human Rights, Human Development and Human Security, 10 September, 2004
The International Commission of Jurists followed up on its August, 2004 Berlin Declaration of Upholding Human Rights and the Rule of Law in Combating Terrorism by launching the Eminent Jurists’ Panel initiative in October, 2005.
For further information on the Panel please see below or contact Isabelle Heyer (heyer@icj.org).
The following documents are available:
 Brochure on the Eminent Jurists Panel (PDF format)
press release (PDF format)
Eminent Jurists Panel French (PDF format)
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