A Policy Working Group of the United Nations on Terrorism constituted by the Secretary-General Kofi Annan in October 2001 submitted its report on August 6, 2002. The Group suggested, among others, a direct role for the world body in counter-terrorism and priority areas for the purpose. Following is the full text of the report:
Identical letters dated 1 August 2002 from the Secretary-General addressed to the President of the General Assembly and President of the Security Council
I have the honour to transmit to you the report prepared by the Policy Working Group on the United Nations and Terrorism, a group which I established in October 2001 to identify the implications and broad policy dimensions of terrorism for the United Nations and to formulate recommendations to me.
The Policy Working Group's report aims to prioritize the Organization's activities regarding terrorism, and includes a set of specific recommendations on how the United Nations system might function more coherently and effectively in this very complex field. I am currently considering the Group's recommendations.
I should be grateful if the present letter and report could be circulated as a document of the General Assembly and of the Security Council.
Summary
The Policy Working Group considered that the United Nations should concentrate its direct role in counter-terrorism on the areas in which the Organization has a comparative advantage. In general terms, the United Nations should uphold, bolster and reassert the leading principles and purposes of the United Nations Charier, the core of which are undermined and threatened by terrorism. The Organization's activities should be part of a tripartite strategy supporting global efforts to:
In efforts at dissuasion, the Organisation has made and ought to continue to make its contribution through norm setting, human rights and communications. The United Nations has a primary role in preparing for the adoption and effective implementation of legal instruments. It should institute a periodic review of the existing treaty regime, and must underscore the linkages between instruments of international criminal law and counter-terrorism conventions.
At the same time, the United Nations must ensure that the protection of human rights is conceived as an essential concern. Terrorism often thrives where human rights are violated, which adds to the need to strengthen action to combat violations of human rights. Terrorism itself should also be understood as an assault on basic rights. In all cases, the fight against terrorism must be respectful of international human rights obligations.
In its public pronouncements, the United Nations should project a clear and principled message, underscoring the unacceptability of terrorism, highlighting the Organization's role in addressing and preventing it, and ensuring that the fight against terrorism does not obscure the core work of the United Nations. These messages must be targeted to key audiences - particularly to achieve a greater impact in dissuading would-be supporters of terrorist acts. The work of the Department of Public Information and the United Nations information centres must be enhanced to this end.
The unique mandate of the Counter-Terrorism Committee places it at the centre of United Nations activities to deny opportunities for the commission of acts of terrorism. The United Nations system as a whole must ensure its readiness to support the Committee's efforts to achieve the implementation of measures to counter terrorism. One specific area in which United Nations agencies can provide assistance in this process is through the development of model legislation for Member States' compliance with international instruments and pertinent resolutions.
Given concerns that terrorists may seek access to stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction or related technologies, United Nations activities in the Field of disarmament must gain renewed relevance. In addition to reinforcing its work in this arena and to enhancing its capacity to assist the Counter-Terrorism Committee, when needed, the Department of Disarmament Affairs should draw public attention to the threat posed by the potential use of weapons of mass destruction in terrorist acts.
Preventive action, especially measures to strengthen the capacity of States, can help to create inhospitable environments for terrorism. This may be achieved through effective post-conflict peace-building and by ensuring that peacekeeping mandates arc sensitive to issues related to terrorism.
In order to render international efforts to counter terrorism effective, cooperation between the United Nations and other international actors must be made more systematic, ensuring an appropriate division of labour based on comparative advantage. Specifically, the next high-level meeting between the United Nations and regional organizations in 2003 should establish terrorism as an agenda item, with the goal of developing an international action plan.
Similarly, the United Nations family must ensure a higher degree of internal coordination and coherence. This effort will require periodic reviews by the Executive Committee on Peace and Security of United Nations work on terrorism and even the strengthening of some offices, notably the Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention of the United Nations Secretariat. The United Nations System Chief Executives Board for Coordination should review system-wide activity in order to ensure that coordination is taking place.
I. Introduction
The subgroups were composed of members of the Policy Working Group, United Nations officials and outside experts. The subgroups made every effort to include diverse perspectives on the problem. Each subgroup prepared a detailed report. Their principal purpose was to develop the background information and policy recommendations that form the basis of the present report.
General considerations
II. Dissuasion
A. International legal instruments
B. Human rights
"While we certainly need vigilance to prevent acts of terrorism, and firmness in condemning and punishing them, it will be self-defeating if we sacrifice other key priorities — such as human rights — in the process."
C. Behavioural norm setting
III. Denial
A. Counter-Terrorism Committee
C. Prevention and resolution of armed conflicts
IV. Cooperation
A. Non-United Nations multilateral initiatives
B. Coordination and coherence in the United Nations system
V. Recommendations
B. Weapons of mass destruction, other weapons and weapons technology
Dissuasion
Recommendation 1
The importance of signing, ratifying and effectively implementing the 12 United Nations counter-terrorism conventions and, in particular, the International Convention for the Suppression of the financing of Terrorisme of 1999, should be stressed to Member States. Both the Secretary-General and senior officials can convey this message in bilateral meetings and other forums. The basic premise of this message should be that counter-terrorism must be firmly grounded in international law.
Recommendation 2
The periodic review of the status of ratification and the action taken by States to implement the existing treaty regime on anti-terrorism should continue to be carried out every year by the Office of Legal Affairs, and, if requested by the General Assembly, analytical reviews of that regime should also be carried out,
Recommendation 3
In order to supplement anti-terrorist actions, an appeal should be made for the expeditious signature, ratification and entry into force of the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime,a and its three protocolsf.
Recommendation 4
All relevant parts of the United Nations system should emphasize that key human rights must always be protected and may never be derogated from. The independence of the judiciary and the existence of legal remedies are essential elements for the protection of fundamental human rights in all situations involving counter-terrorism measures.
Recommendation 5
The Department of Public Information should be requested, in consultation with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, to publish a digest of the core Jurisprudence of international and regional human rights bodies on the protection of human rights in the struggle against terrorism. Governments and human rights organizations could find such a compilation of direct use in the development of counter-terrorism policies.
Recommendation 6
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights should convene a consultation of international, regional and subregional organizations and non-governmental organizations on the protection of human rights in the struggle against terrorism. Smaller, regional gatherings should also be considered. The Office of the High Commissioner should also make maximum use of its field presences and its regional experts, as well as the findings of the human rights treaty bodies and special rapporteurs.
Recommendation 7
The United Nations system, under the leadership of the Secretary-General, should deliver a consistent, clear, principled message when addressing the issue of terrorism, as follows:
Recommendation 8
The Department of Public Information should initiate a review of how the United Nations can reach local populations that support terrorist aims, in a form that is designed to be "heard" by those communities. Country teams should be used to the greatest extent possible to determine the best means of conveying messages to target audiences.
Recommendation 9
Review and enhance the outreach of the United Nations information centres to civil society, including the growing number of institutes and think-tanks in Arabic-speaking countries.
Recommendation 10
The activities of the United Nations related to the fight against terrorism should be promoted through, inter alia:
Recommendation 11
Continue emphasizing the importance to the fight against terrorism of existing United Nations work in the areas of human rights, democratic capacity-building, and social and economic justice.
Recommendation 12
Ensure better internal communication within the United Nations system, so as to allow all departments, agencies and programmes to be well informed of the activities under way in this field of activity.
Denial
Recommendation 13
It should be ensured that expertise developed in the various United Nations system offices is made available to the Counter-Terrorism Committee. The Committee should be consulted about ways to enhance and make more sustainable the available Secretariat support for its work. Consideration should be given to convening a meeting of relevant United Nations actors and the Counter-Terrorism Committee in order to promote greater dialogue with the United Nations system. The symposium on the theme "Combating international terrorism: the contribution of the United Nations", held at Vienna on 3 and 4 June 2002, has provided a first phase for such a process.
Recommendation 14
To assist Member States and regional bodies in the implementation of Security Council resolution 1373 (2001), the Centre for International Crime Prevention of the Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention could develop model legislation and provide advice to ensure that existing taws designed to fight domestic terrorism are amended in order to ensure their effectiveness against terrorism. Since the Centre is currently considering how best to organize itself to carry out these tasks, the Group does not have a specific recommendation on how this should be done, other than to note that additional resources may be required.
Recommendation 15
States should be encouraged to view the implementation of Council resolution 1373 (2001) and. by extension, the mechanism of targeted sanctions, as an instrument of democratic governance and statecraft that would help States more effectively to control their borders, regulate trade and control the activities of illicit traffickers, terrorists, organized crime and other non-State actors.
Recommendation 16
Together with the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, a dialogue should be maintained with the Counter-Terrorism Committee on the importance of ensuring respect for human rights during the implementation of legislation, policies and practices to combat terrorism,
Recommendation 17
A network involving the United Nations system and the Bretton Woods institutions should be created to help Member States (in particular those needing greater assistance) to implement the recommendations of the Counter-Terrorism Committee.
Recommendation 18
Consideration should be given to the establishment of a mechanism under the Department for Disarmament Affairs that would produce a biennial public report on the potential use of weapons of mass destruction in terrorist acts. This mechanism would make use of existing United Nations resources and specialized databases, as well as information received from Member States, and could serve as a barometer of terrorist danger, Furthermore, this mechanism could be available to assist the Committee, either directly, by providing analysis and advice, or indirectly, by recommending appropriate cooperation between the Security Council (or the Committee) and the relevant operational agencies, such as the International Atomic energy Agency or the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. The aforementioned report could be linked to the periodic review of legislation referred to in recommendation 2 above and, if deemed appropriate, submitted to the General Assembly so as to draw the attention of the membership to this important issue.
Recommendation 19
The development of the technical capabilities of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and the World Health Organization to provide assistance to States in the event of the threat or use of weapons of mass destruction, other weapons and technologies should be encouraged.
Recommendation 20
Arrangements through which specialized agencies or related organizations can provide assistance and advice to States on how to develop and maintain adequate civil defence capability against the use of weapons of mass destruction, other weapons or technologies should be facilitated.
Recommendation 21
Relevant United Nations offices should be tasked with producing proposals to reinforce ethical norms, and the creation of codes of conduct for scientists, through international and national scientific societies and institutions that teach sciences or engineering skills related to weapons technologies, should be encouraged. Such codes of conduct would aim to prevent the involvement of defence scientists or technical experts in terrorist activities and restrict public access to knowledge and expertise on the development, production, stockpiling and use of weapons of mass destruction or related technologies.
Recommendation 22
The importance of effective post-conflict peace building should be emphasized, not only to avert the resurgence of violent conflict, but also to prevent the development of situations of lawlessness in which terrorist groups may thrive. The United Nations Development Programme and the Department of Political Affairs, and together with the Centre for International Crime Prevention of the Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention, could set up a database of best practice in these fields, which could be developed and disseminated in order to help Member States in their fight against terrorism.
Recommendation 23
Measures should be taken to ensure that the mandates of peacekeeping operations are sensitive to terrorism-related issues, providing, for instance, that civilian police officers received appropriate training on measures to identify and counter terrorist groups.
Recommendation 24
The Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention and the Department for Disarmament Affairs should study the links between terrorism and organized crime, including drug trafficking, money-laundering, illicit trafficking of arms and corruption, which provide an environment that enables terrorist operations to expand.
Recommendation 25
Terrorism should be on the agenda for the next high-level meeting of the Secretary-General with regional organizations, scheduled to be held in 2003.
Recommendation 26
The above-mentioned meeting could develop an international action plan in which the United Nations would:
Recommendation 27
The Department of Political Affairs, as the focal point of the United Nations system on terrorism, should maintain contact with regional and international organizations in order to ensure that the United Nations is consistently represented at an appropriate level at international meetings on the subject.
Recommendation 28
Action should be taken to ensure that existing meetings for interaction with regional organizations include cooperation in the fight against terrorism as a priority issue in their agendas.
Recommendation 29
Measures should be taken to assign a clearer responsibility and to allocate the needed capacity for more effective liaison with Interpol and other police-related activities, in order to ensure that information flows through the United Nations system.
Recommendation 30
In order to clarify responsibilities, the Department of Political Affairs should be identified as the focal point of the United Nations system for political and strategic issues related to counter terrorism, while the Centre for International Crime Prevention of the Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention should take the lead in assisting Member States in implementing the relevant conventions and resolutions. The Office of Legal Affairs should continue to assist Member Slates in the elaboration i:r conventions against terrorism.
Recommendation 31
Improve coordination to avoid overlaps and gaps in counter-terrorism activities should be improved by:
NOTES
a General Assembly resolution 55/25, annex I.
b General Assembly resolution 2200 A (XXI), annex.
c See Report of the United Nations Conference on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All its Aspects, New York. 9-20 July 2001 (A/CONF. 192/15). Chap.IV
d General Assembly resolution 55/255, annex.
e General Assembly resolution 54/109, annex.
f General Assembly resolution 55/25, annexes II and III, and resolution 55/255, annex.
These are the 19 global or regional treaties directly pertaining to the subject of international terrorism: