Terrorism, Rights and the Rule of Law

The impact of terrorism on the rule of law

The rule of law is becoming a victim of the struggle against terrorism. Many countries are reviewing their security procedures and questioning whether due process rights hinder them in the war on terror. There is increasing emphasis on preventive detention or strategies of disablement that cut into the liberties of suspects who may not have committed a crime.

The focus on Ireland

The focus of this book is the Republic of Ireland, where the risk of political violence has constantly threatened the Irish state. To ensure its survival, the state has resorted to emergency laws that weaken due process rights. The effects of counter-terrorism campaigns upon the rule of law governing criminal justice in Ireland are a central feature of this book.

Globalization and new justice networks

Globalization has supported this crossover, as organized crime seems immune to conventional policing tactics. But globalization fragments the authority of the state by introducing a new justice network. New regulatory agencies are entrusted with powers to control novel risks and social movements adopt a human rights discourse to contest state power and emergency laws.

Consequences and debates

The result of this conflux of actors and risks is a negotiation of the model of justice that citizens can expect. Terrorism, Rights and the Rule of Law contributes to current debates about civil liberties in the war on terror, how counter-terrorism can contaminate criminal justice, and how globalization challenges a state-centred view of criminal justice.

It will be of key interest to students of criminology, law, human rights and sociology, as well as legal and other practitioners and policy-makers.