UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk cautioned on Thursday that the UK government’s decision to list the activist group Palestine Action under terrorist legislation may contravene international standards.
Türk noted that under international standards, acts of terrorism should be limited to “criminal acts intended to cause death or serious injury” with the goal of “intimidating a population” or the government towards a particular act or omission. Under section 2(b) of the UK Terrorism Act 2000, a terrorist act can include “serious damage to property,” which Türk found too broad compared to international standards.
Türk went on to elaborate that:
The decision appears disproportionate and unnecessary. It limits the rights of many people involved with and supportive of Palestine Action who have not themselves engaged in any underlying criminal activity but rather exercised their rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association.
UN experts previously warned the UK government against the “unjustified labelling” of Palestine Action as a terrorist organization, particularly because a ban leads to the criminalization of any membership or support with Palestine Action. In mid-July, UK police arrested protestors who were upset about the classification of Palestine Action as a terrorist organization. 42 protestors at a sit-in in central London were arrested, while 13 protestors outside of the BBC Cymru Wales headquarters were also arrested.
The UK parliament voted to proscribe Palestine Action as a terrorist organization earlier this month. Ms. Yvette Cooper, the secretary of state for the Home Department, issued a draft proscription stating, among other reasons, that the organization had a “long history of unacceptable criminal damage.”
The decision to ban Palestine Action comes after several recent acts by the group, including how the activists from the organization allegedly broke into a military base in Brize Norton in late June and spray-painted two military planes.
No comments:
Post a Comment