National Security Law

Ponderación entre el Derecho de Acceso a la Información Pública y el Resguardo de la Seguridad de la Nación

by Pablo Contreras

Publicado en LETELIER, Raúl y RAJEVIC, Enrique (coords.): Transparencia en la Administración Pública (Santiago de Chile, Legal Publishing, 2010).

El paper desarrolla los problemas de la ponderación del derecho de acceso a la información pública en relación a la... more El paper desarrolla los problemas de la ponderación del derecho de acceso a la información pública en relación a la protección de la seguridad de la nación.
Primero describe la naturaleza de derecho fundamental del acceso a la información pública y el carácter de bien público constitucionalmente protegido de la seguridad de la nación.
Luego analiza los niveles de ponderación entre ambos principios en disputa.

The Other Side of COIN: The Combatant/civilian Distinction, Terrorism and the Structure of War Law

by Heidi Matthews

Jose Padilla: Enemy combatant or common criminal

by Samantha Pitts-Kiefer

Enemy Combatant or Common Criminal?, 48 VILL

by Samantha Pitts-Kiefer

The Measures of Prevention of International Terrorism and Criminal Trafficking (English_Abstract)

by Lorenzo Pasculli

Abstract (in english) of the research project for my Ph.D. thesis. Do not cite and/or distribute without permission.

The unprecedented and unpredictable forms which shape crime in the global context has proven the insufficiency of... more The unprecedented and unpredictable forms which shape crime in the global context has proven the insufficiency of merely retributive and deterrence-based approaches. At the same time, the often destructive harmfulness of global crime urge to (try to) prevent it, rather than just (try to) repress it.

In order to pursue such preventive aims, both the single States and the international and supranational organizations are taking several measures of prevention, which often constrain some fundamental liberties and rights.

It is time to draw a system – both on a comparative and on an international/supranational level – of the measures of prevention of all those crimes that, for different reasons, are characterized by an international or transnational dimension, in order to organize under clear and univocal legal categories all the different measures and criticize such system in the light of the essential constitutional and criminal law principles and traditions shared by every Nation and the human rights and liberties stated and protected by international and supranational law.

We will eventually try to understand if (and how) it could be possible to improve such system in order to make it more effective but, at the same time, more respectful of the maximum standards of protection of the aforementioned fundamental rights, liberties and guarantees.

Etat d'urgence vs. Démocratie Le rôle de la Cour suprême israélienne dans le maintien d'une démocratie en guerre.

by Sharon Weinblum

Fortress of Fear and Borders of Control: How the US Media Constructs Mexican Immigrants As a National Security Threat

by Chris Crews

Freedom of Panorama: A Comparative Look at International Restrictions on Public Photography

by Bryce Clayton Newell

44 Creighton Law Review 405 (2011)

Laws related to "freedom of panorama", or the right to take and use photographs of public spaces, attempt to... more Laws related to "freedom of panorama", or the right to take and use photographs of public spaces, attempt to balance various property rights with the importance of allowing reasonable freedom for photography in public places. It is typically addressed through copyright, although other laws related to trademark or national security may also restrict public photography. This freedom is more limited in the United States than in many other countries. This paper seeks to explore the balance struck in U.S. law by contrasting it with the approach taken in other jurisdictions, such as the United Kingdom, Brazil, and the European Union. Because public photography has become such a ubiquitous aspect of our participant digital society and many of the uses put to public photography arguably meet the fair use or de minimis use tests, Congress ought to provide clear statutory guidance allowing (at least) these non-commercial fair uses of copyrighted material visible and permanently situated in public places.

Mere Membership of a Banned Organisation Cannot Carry Criminal Liability

by Atli Stannard

Published in the Journal of Commonwealth Criminal Law (2011)

This case note examines the cases of Arup Bhuyan v. State of Assam [2011] INSC 100 (February 3, 2011) and Sri Indra... more This case note examines the cases of Arup Bhuyan v. State of Assam [2011] INSC 100 (February 3, 2011) and Sri Indra Das v. State of Assam [2011] INSC 125 (February 10, 2011), in the Supreme Court of India. It compares these with prior Indian cases, State of Kerala v. Raneef [2011] 1 S.C.A.L.E. 8 (Supreme Court of India, January 3, 2011), and contrasts them with the approach taken in Kartar Singh v. State of Punjab [1994] (3) S.C.C. 569 (Supreme Court of India). It briefly compares the Indian case law to the English and Welsh approach developed in R. v. Ahmed (Rangzieb) [2011] EWCA Crim. 184 (February 25, 2011).

The Ghost in the Global War on Terror: Critical Perspectives and Dangerous Implications for National Security and the Law

by Nick J. Sciullo

3 Drexel L. Rev. 561 (2011)

Threshold Constraints and Laws of War

by James Fallows Tierney

Working Paper

The laws of armed conflict forge a balance between deontological humanitarian concerns on one hand, and... more The laws of armed conflict forge a balance between deontological humanitarian concerns on one hand, and consequentialist military-advantage concerns on the other hand. Yet the literature provides inadequate theoretical foundations for the balances these rules make at a structural level. In this paper, I explain how the standard humanitarian account and the first-wave economic account cannot alone explain the diversity of rules and principles observed in the formal doctrine and in state practice.

States’ revealed preference for norms fleshing out those “minimum standards” can not be brushed aside as mere “behavioral regularities.” Many of these minimum standards are the result of purely instrumental coordination, since all belligerents are better off with full compliance under conditions of transparency and effective enforcement. But recognizing that states sometimes act for non-instrumental reasons supplements rather than falsifies claims that states act rationally under other circumstances. By adopting and deploying recent advances in law and economics that seek to bridge the gap between consequentialist and deontological moral theories, I show how the complex system of the laws of war are the product of both kinds of concerns.

This working paper applies the threshold constraint framework to an emerging class of problems in the laws of armed conflict related to cyberwarfare. Uncertainty, risk-shifting, threshold-constraint concerns, and cost-reduction preferences play important roles in shaping law-of-armed-conflict rules, which in turn constrain and channel the tactical options states can select in carrying out armed conflict. These concerns also have institutional-design effects when states are uncertain about how technological progress will change battlefield conduct. This draft ends by explaining and understanding how states might seek to change those rules in light of anticipated (and even unknown) changes in battlefield technology.

Converging Technologies: The Future of the Global Information Society

by Christopher Altman

First Committee chair report to the UN General Assembly, RSA Information Security Award for Outstanding Achievement (2004).

"Christopher Altman, Chairman of the UNISCA First Committee on Disarmament and International Security, was recently selected as recipient of the RSA Information Security Award for Outstanding Achievement in Government Policy for his report to the General Assembly, "Converging Technologies: The Future of the Global Information Society."

"The RSA Conference and Awards is the world's most prestigious international information security conference for organizations that deploy, develop or investigate security or cryptography."

"Previous RSA Keynote speakers and Awards Recipients include Bill Gates, Microsoft Corporation, US Congressman Tom Davis, and Richard Clarke, former White House Security Advisor. "

The complex web of the global information grid will undergo explosive changes over coming decades. As advances in... more The complex web of the global information grid will undergo explosive changes over coming decades. As advances in science and technology converge, a myriad array of discoveries in biotechnology, nanotechnology and information technology will produce unpredictable effects that must be accounted for in any estimate of what the world will look like in this future. A strategically important feature of this world will be the emerging trend of information warfare. Though still immature at present day, this trend will become increasingly dominant in the years to come. The information warfare of tomorrow will be radically different from its prototype today. No longer will it be confined to the mainframes of the Internet or to corporate databases: the battleground of the future will draw into its scope the scientific advances being made today in bio and nano technologies. The divisions between man and machine will blur. When networked technologies are ubiquitous, a state-sponsored attack on electronic networks can have far-reaching, and devastating, physical consequences.

Legality of Targeted Killings by Drone Attacks in Pakistan

by Akbar Nasir Khan

http://www.pakistanconflictmonitor.org/2011/02/legality-of-targeted-killings-by-drone-attacks-in-pakistan.html
Published in February 2011

War on terror has called into question many legal paradigms in public international law. To probe into any other... more War on terror has called into question many legal paradigms in public international law. To probe into any other aspect of the US policy of target killings by drone attacks in Pakistan, exploring the legal basis of this logic is very critical. In following section I will discuss the position taken by U.S. and counter arguments to that position in the light of ILOAC, domestic U.S. law and public international law. Lawyers have often struggled to find some rationale of drones in International law of Armed Conflict (ILOAC) and International Human Rights law. However, use of drones is not covered by any so far. ICRC has not come up with clear explanation due to changing nature of the warfare.

Radicalization and State Response in Pakistan

by Akbar Nasir Khan

The Friday Times Weekly Newspaper
January 21-27, 2011 - Vol. XXII, No. 49

Many international observers in the media have raised concerns that Pakistani state agencies are radicalised. The... more Many international observers in the media have raised concerns that Pakistani state agencies are radicalised. The accuracy of their judgement can be challenged but it is hard to dispute that there is a real danger that state agencies are vulnerable to radicalisation in the present social context. The murder of the Governor of Punjab by a member of the Elite Police Force can be cited as a case in point. Is this a result of Talibanisation or is this an individual incident without any connection to the overall trend of radicalisation in society? Without spending enough time to diagnose the problem, pundits are jumping to provide the solution. The state’s response will be limited to easily available cosmetic solutions rather than addressing the deep-rooted problem, i.e. the social environment for violence and radicalisation.

Exceptional State, Pragmatic Bureaucracy, and Indefinite Detention: The Case of the Kingston Immigration Holding Centre

by Mike Larsen

authored with Justin Piché (second author), published in the Canadian Journal of Law and Society, 2009

The Kingston Immigration Holding Centre (KIHC) is a purpose-built prison for individuals subject to security... more The Kingston Immigration Holding Centre (KIHC) is a purpose-built prison for individuals subject to security certificates, located on the grounds of Millhaven Institution in Bath, Ontario. KIHC was created in 2006 in response to controversy over the use of provincial detention facilities for long-term security-certificate detention. While the security-certificate mechanism and its related processes have been the subject of a growing body of critical socio-legal scholarship, the juridico-political space of KIHC has yet to be described or problematized in depth. The present study addresses this gap by providing a detailed account of the history of the facility and an exploration of the interactions within the Canadian insecurity field that shaped its emergence, governing arrangement, and everyday operations. Given the paucity of publicly available official information about KIHC, our study draws extensively on material obtained through requests filed under the federal Access to Information Act. Building on the existing literature, we frame security-certificate detention as a form of normalized exceptionality made possible by counter-law and argue that it conforms to the juridico-political concept of the camp. We then proceed to describe how this particular camp came into being, with an emphasis on the role played by interactions between professionals and institutions within the Canadian security field. The inter-agency contractual arrangement between the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) and the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) that governs KIHC is outlined. We describe this arrangement as the product of the authority to detain indefinitely meeting the capacity to confine pragmatically, under the banner of national security, and consider its implications for CSC's correctional mandate. The KIHC facility emerges as an "ancillary exception," the institutional reflection of attempts to reform and normalize the security-certificate mechanism. We conclude by making a case for the abolition of KIHC.

BBC NEWS STORY: Pakistan considers Anti Taliban Militias

by Akbar Nasir Khan

Mianwali in Pakistan's western Punjab lies in the shadow of rugged mountains. On the other side of the range lies the... more Mianwali in Pakistan's western Punjab lies in the shadow of rugged mountains. On the other side of the range lies the North West Frontier Province where the army is engaged in a bloody offensive against the Taliban.

Giving them guns is a message of trust 
Akbar Nasir Khan
District police officer

Associated Press Story: Prosecution of Terrorists in Pakistan

by Akbar Nasir Khan

Story tells that there are no successful prosecutions of terrorist criminal cases in Pakistan. However, there are some... more Story tells that there are no successful prosecutions of terrorist criminal cases in Pakistan. However, there are some cases in Mianwali and D.I. KhAN which were dealt with successfully and accused were convicted in 2009-2010. International Crisis Group report, released on Dec 6, 200, about criminal justice system in Pakistan also corroborates findings of Sebestian Abbot of Associate Press who filed this story with lot of good efforts.

Strategic Response to Suicide Terrorism In Pakistan

by Akbar Nasir Khan

Published in December 2010

Suicide attacks are a terrorist tactic aimed to gain broader political objectives and have mostly taken place in armed... more Suicide attacks are a terrorist tactic aimed to gain broader political objectives and have mostly taken place in armed conflicts of non international character. Preventing Suicide attacks is considered to be impossible. I disagree with the notion because suicide attacks may have much higher chances of success but it is not impossible to check the phenomenon. There are many cases in which suicide attackers were identified, arrested or killed before they could reach their target and detonate the explosive material. However, prevention of such attack needs a strategic response rather a tactical detection only.

Analysing Suicide Attacks in Pakistan

by Akbar Nasir Khan

Published in December 2010 in Peace and Conflict Studies of PIPS

Suicide attacks are a terrorist tactic aimed at achieving broader political objectives. On September 11, 2001, there... more Suicide attacks are a terrorist tactic aimed at achieving broader political objectives. On September 11, 2001, there was a series of coordinated suicide attacks by terrorists in the United States which killed more than 3,000 civilians. The 9/11 attacks led to the US invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan. This focused the attention of many eminent scholars, prominent among them noted American political scientist Professor Robert A. Pape, on understanding the strategic logic of suicide terrorism. In this paper, I will argue that Professor Pape’s thesis about the genesis of suicide terrorism, which he developed through analysis of an extensive database of suicide attacks in many countries, is not valid in the case of Pakistan and there is a need to look for other explanations for suicide attacks in the country.