A Post on International Counter-terrorism Laws and Policies, assignment help

A Post on International Counter-terrorism Laws and Policies

This post reviews France counter-terrorism laws and policies and its influence on the US fight against terror. In the recent past, France and other European countries have witnessed a rise in terrorist activities. With this backdrop in mind, this post examines the counter-terrorism strategies put in place by France in the fight against terror.

According to Cahn (2009), The Act of 9 September 1986 is a keystone legislation in the fight against terror in France (p.468). The Act anchors the French counter-terrorism laws and policies on three major points. One, specific legislations are stipulating terrorist offenses in detail to avoid ambiguity. Two, procedural legislations allowing the use of specialized techniques in terror investigations. Third, the establishment of a specialized investigative and intelligence services (p. 471).

In his study, Bunt (as cited in French Counter-terrorism, 2005), the Terrorist Act in article 421-1 of the French criminal code provides a precise definition of an act of terror. The law allows for the conviction of either French nationals or residents who train abroad but have not committed acts of terror on French soil (p. 501). Also, the French legal system allows for unique techniques in terror investigations such as seizure and searches without prior consent, the payouts to informers, phone tapping and video surveillance of terror suspects. Furthermore, in contrast to the US policy on non-negotiation with terror suspects, French counter-terrorism laws allow for citizen exemption and reduction of sentences for cooperating terror suspects and convicts.

Despite a rigid counter-terrorism legislation and policies in France, the recent terror attacks in the country pointed to gaps in the country’s fight against terror. In his evaluation, Judge Mark Trevidic (as cited in Block 2005), highlights critical security flaws in France counter-terrorism laws and policies and the seemingly work overload on a few authorized security officials (p. 5).

According to a study by Garapon (2016), the aftermath of the recent 2015 terror attacks necessitated critical updates in the countries counter-terrorism strategies (p. 12). Among the upgrades, are tightened border controls? Furthermore, reviews in legislations updated policing powers allowing the policies to interrogate terror suspects without access to a lawyer for more than four hours. Also, the updates allow the police in using lethal force against suspects with a potential for initiating deadly attacks on French territory.

Also, in contrast to the US policies that guarantee fundamental human rights for terror suspects, French legislation authorizes the use of electronic eavesdropping technology by the police, which was initially only available to the intelligence community. However, according to Cahn, O. (2009), unlike in the US, prison facilities are authorized to search and install surveillance devices to counter radicalization in prisons. Thus, the US needs a review of its counter-terrorism policies towards strategies that prioritize the safety and well-being of the American citizen in contrast to policies that in effect aims at guaranteeing the rights of terror suspects like is the current case (p. 41).

References

Block, L. (2005). Evaluating the Effectiveness of French Counter-Terrorism. (2005). Retrieved from https://jamestown.org/program/evaluating-the-effec…

Cahn, O. (2009). The Fight against Terrorism and Human Rights: The French Perspective. A War on Terror? pp. 467-503. doi: 10.1007/978-0-387-89291-7_18

Garapon, A. (2016). The Oak and the Reed: Counter-Terrorism Mechanisms in France and the United States of America. Cardozo Law Review, 27, 5, pp. 2041-2078.

“Great post. You talked about the way France and its terrorism laws and polices need changing and are over burdened and the need for tighter boarder controls. Do you think that France should shut its boarders completely due to the high influx of Syrian refugees?

President Francois Hollande has committed France to taking 30,000 refugees over two years (Stone, 2016). It seems as though the French President is not listing to regarding the information on how they need to change.

Do you think taking in so many refugees is a bad idea? “

References

Stone, J. (2016, September 1). Syrian refugee crisis: How different countries have responded. Retrieved January 12, 2017, from http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/syri…

Respond to the two questions in the bold paragraph ABOVE base on the section above it… in APA format with At least two reference…..