Upholding human rights in the fight against terrorism

"In the light of recent terrorist attacks in the OSCE region and elsewhere, there is a lot of pressure on policy-makers to be seen to be taking firm action against terrorism," says Susie Alegre, one of the trainers and an ODIHR adviser on anti-terrorism issues.

"In such a climate there is a risk that fundamental freedoms and human rights could be sacrificed in the name of protecting the public," she adds.

Linking counter-terrorism and human rights

"Policy-makers need to understand how the international frameworks on counter-terrorism and on human rights intersect, and how basic principles such as the obligation to protect citizens can be applied while keeping responses proportionate and non-discriminatory."

One important area is the justice system, where questions over access to counsel, the admissibility of evidence, extradition, sentencing, and protection of the right to life arise. Some of these issues are being debated at the national and international level, or are the subject of test cases.

For example, existing Council of Europe guidelines on human rights and the fight against terrorism allow for some restrictions on terrorist suspects' access to a lawyer. This reflects the current situation in many OSCE participating States, including France, Spain and the UK.

"There are legitimate concerns about security and the protection of sensitive information, but these need to be balanced against a detainee's right to access to legal counsel," says Alegre. "Ensuring access to a lawyer is also one way of preventing torture during detention, which is of particular concern in terrorism cases."

Test cases on contentious issues

Extradition and the question of diplomatic assurances that deportees will not be tortured in the country of destination is another contentious issue. There are similar concerns over the use of evidence that may have been extracted under torture during detention in a third country. Test cases on these issues are currently being brought through national courts and before the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.

The ODIHR training emphasizes the absolute prohibition on torture and ill treatment - including in relation to asylum-seeking, rendition, expulsion and extradition - and the implications of this for counter-terrorism work.

Other human rights issues that arise in counter-terrorism include the freedom of association, assembly, religion and expression. One of the more controversial issues is the banning of organizations.

Although measures are necessary, for instance, to ensure that organizations are not used to finance terrorism, there are questions over how groups can appeal against bans at the international level, especially when there is no consensus between states over which groups pose a threat.

Avoiding counter-productive measures

It is also important that any such bans are proportionate, and do not unduly restrict political opposition or civil society groups. Clamping down on these groups can actually be counter-productive in the fight against terrorism by closing outlets for legitimate protest and pushing individuals towards more extremist positions.

The ODIHR training sessions, which are aimed at officials involved in developing anti-terrorist strategies such as civil servants, police and members of the security services, raise awareness of these and other human rights principles and looks at how they can be applied in practice.

"It is important to ensure that developing law and practice complies with human rights. We not only look at how human rights violations can be avoided in counter-terrorism work, but we also show how the promotion of human rights, especially in relation to allowing the development of civil society, can act as a tool for preventing terrorism," says Alegre.

Studying real-life scenarios

Participants are presented with real-life scenarios, taken from cases that have been brought before the European Court of Human Rights or other high-level tribunals. They discuss the issues involved before being told the actual outcome of the case.

The first national pilot session was held in Kyrgyzstan in November, and a regional one will be held in Vienna in early December, involving representatives from Austria and neighbouring countries. Further training sessions will be held next year.