|
The fight against terrorismKey points· Since 1949, the Council of Europe has been dedicated to upholding human rights, the rule of law and pluralist democracy. It is now determined to combat terrorism, which is an affront to these three fundamental values. An Anti-terrorism Coordinator has been appointed to coordinate the Organisation’s activities.· The Council of Europe is committed to facilitating the implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolutions 1373(2001) and 1624 (2005) and of the UN global counter-terrorism Strategy. It does this by providing a forum for discussing and adopting regional standards and best practice, and by helping its member states to improve their counter-terrorism capabilities.· The new Council of Europe Convention on the Prevention of Terrorism entered into force on 1 June 2007.· Cyberterrorism has become in recent years a serious threat, since many essential aspects of today’s society are completely dependent upon the functioning of computer systems and the Internet. Summary The Council of Europe has worked on terrorism since the 1970s, but its efforts were stepped up following the unprecedented attacks in the United States in 2001. The Council of Europe’s activities in the fight against terrorism are built on three cornerstones: strengthening legal action; - safeguarding fundamental values; and addressing the causes of terrorism.The presence of terrorist organisations on, and use of, the Internet for various purposes, including the dissemination of propaganda related to ideology and activities, and as a means of promoting radicalisation within target communities, is challenging the fight against terrorism in a new way. Questions and AnswersWhat are the main Council of Europe instruments against terrorism? The Council of Europe has three main international treaties to combat terrorism: The Convention on the Prevention of Terrorism The Council of Europe adopted this convention in 2005 to increase the effectiveness of existing international texts on the fight against terrorism and to strengthen member states’ efforts to prevent terrorism. It sets out two ways to achieve this: - by identifying certain acts that may lead to terrorist offences being carried out - such as public provocation, recruitment and training - as criminal offences; - by reinforcing co-operation on prevention both internally (through national prevention policies) and internationally (including via the modification of existing extradition and mutual assistance arrangements). The convention contains a provision on the protection and compensation of victims of terrorism. A consultation process is also planned to ensure effective implementation and follow-up. The Revised European Convention on the Suppression of Terrorism This convention is designed to facilitate the extradition of terrorists. It lists offences that signatory countries undertake not to treat as political offences, offences connected with political offences, or offences inspired by political motives. These are acts of particular gravity, including the hijacking of aircraft, the kidnapping and taking of hostages and the use of bombs, grenades, rockets, letter or parcel bombs (if their use endangers people). The list was extended by an amending protocol to include all offences covered by UN anti-terrorist conventions. The convention requires signatory countries not to consider any act of violence against the life, physical integrity or liberty of a person as a political offence. It is expressly stated that nothing in the convention should be interpreted as obliging a signatory country to extradite a person who might then be prosecuted or punished solely on the grounds of race, religion, nationality or political opinion. The amending protocol added the possibility of refusing to extradite offenders to countries where they risk the death penalty, torture or life imprisonment without parole. This is the first international treaty covering both the prevention of terrorism and the control of money laundering and the financing of terrorism. The text addresses the fact that quick access to financial data or information on assets held by criminal organisations, including terrorist groups, is the key to successful preventive and repressive measures, and, ultimately, is the best way to stop them. The convention includes a mechanism to ensure its proper implementation by signatory countries. The three treaties are tailored to the specific circumstances in Europe, but can also serve as precursors to similar efforts at the global level. For instance, the Council of Europe Convention on the Prevention of Terrorism, which was adopted in May 2005, was followed by the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 1624 in September of the same year. What is CODEXTER? The Committee of Experts on Terrorism (CODEXTER) is an intergovernmental committee which is the main co-ordinator of the Council of Europe’s activities against terrorism. It is responsible for monitoring the signatures and ratifications of the treaties described above and for promoting their early entry into force. What are CODEXTER's main achievements? CODEXTER prepared the Council of Europe Convention on the Prevention of Terrorism, which was opened for signature at the Third Summit of Council of Europe Heads of State and Government in Warsaw on 16 May 2005. The convention has served as a precursor for anti-terrorist measures at the global level and was referred to by Martin Sheinin, UN Special Rapporteur on the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, as “a sound response which would respect human rights”(E/CN.4/2006/98, para. 56 (c)). This was also stated in the Report of the UN Counter-Terrorism Committee to the Security Council on the implementation of Resolution 1624 in 2005. CODEXTER has also prepared a number of recommendations in this field and is in the process of producing a series of country profiles on counter-terrorism capacity, which consist of short reports on the legal and institutional capacity of the Council of Europe's member states to fight terrorism. The committee has also published a number of books in the Council of Europe's Terrorism and Law series: - Cyberterrorism – the use of the Internet for terrorist purposes (2008) - Victims - Support and assistance (2nd edition) (2008) - The fight against terrorism - Council of Europe standards (4th edition) (2007) - Terrorism: Protection of witnesses and collaborators of justice (2005) - Terrorism: special investigation techniques (2005) - Human rights and the fight against terrorism - The Council of Europe Guidelines (2005) - Incitement to terrorism (2004). Why is it important to address the conditions which help spread terrorism, and why now? 2997 people died in New York and Washington in September 2001; 50 people died in Istanbul in November 2003; 191 people died in Madrid in March 2004; over 330 died in Beslan in September 2004; and over 50 people died in London in July 2005, to cite but a few of the attacks carried out in recent years. Many more hundreds of people were injured in these attacks, which also resulted in an atmosphere of fear and chaos. The most serious attacks perpetrated on the European continent have been committed not by external enemies but by individuals who live, work and raise their families in Europe. While seeking to intercept and prosecute terrorists and terrorist networks, governments must therefore also look closely at their societies and try to understand why it is that these few individuals or groups turn to extremism and terrorism. This question has been incorporated by the United Nations into Section 1 of the Plan of Action on “Measures to address the conditions conducive to the spread of terrorism” in its Global Counter-terrorism Strategy (September 2006), and was also included in Article 3 of the Council of Europe Convention on the Prevention of Terrorism. The Council of Europe has constantly underlined the need for a multidisciplinary and comprehensive approach to the fight against terrorism: the third of the Council of Europe's three cornerstones is addressing the causes of terrorism and a number of the Council of Europe's intergovernmental committees have included the fight against terrorism in their activities. Is cyberterrorism a myth or a reality? What are the preventive measures? The Internet has proven an overwhelmingly beneficial development for modern society precisely for the way in which it has revolutionised the dissemination of ideas and information, and the formation of networks. This potential for information and communication can also be misued by terrorist organisations and their supporters. To confront these challenges, there is a need to deter the production of extremist materials, promote self-regulation of on-line communities and seek to advance a positive counter-narrative to extremist messages. Considering the numerous challenges for law enforcement and prosecutors in investigating and prosecuting terrorists’ use of the Internet, the Council of Europe aims at enhancing efficient co-operation, including the active use of existing tools, networks, and relevant legal instruments for international cooperation; enhanced early dialogue among counterparts in distinct jurisdictions; and more active involvement of technical experts. While terrorist organisations appear to be motivated to launch cyber attacks against their enemies, at the present time their ability to affect large-scale disruption or destruction via cyber means appears to be limited. However the ability of such organisations to perpetrate cyber attacks is likely to increase, and the international community must continue to develop both protective measures as well as the capabilities and mechanisms to ensure resilience in the face of an attack. At a joint conference of the Council of Europe and the Organisation of American States (16-17 April 2009, Spain), it has been recommended that States establish and develop a national Computer Security Incident Response Team (CSIRT), to serve as a focal point for the exchange of information regarding cyber incidents affecting critical information infrastructure, and to coordinate incident response and mitigation among affected stakeholders. Furthermore, the transnational nature of cyber threats requires that there be effective regional and international networks to promote cooperation and information-sharing among these national CSIRTs. More information: www.coe.int/gmt. ContactEstelle Steiner, Press officer Tel. +33 (0)3 88 41 33 35 Mobile +33 (0)6 08 46 01 57 Email [email protected] Updated: August 2009 |
