Model Legislative Provisions For Victims of Terrorism

The Model Legislative Provisions were developed starting in 2020 under the Inter-ParliamentaryUnion(IPU)-United Nations Joint Programme on Countering Terrorism and Violent Extremism, which supports parliamentary actions on counterterrorism and preventing violent extremism through a“whole-of-society” approach. The project was implemented by the IPU, UNOCT and UNODC, in close cooperation with United Nations entities, victims, civil society organizations and regional parliamentary organizations, such as the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean, the Parliamentary Assemblyof the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the Inter-Parliamentary Assembly of Member Nations of the Commonwealth of Independent States.

The purpose of the Model Legislative Provisions is to provide guidance on the implementation of laws and procedures to support adaptation in different countries, as well as provide suggestions for formulating provisions based on various legal systems, as necessary. They are also intended to systematize and promote the exchange of information between Member States regarding good practices supporting and protecting victims of terrorism. 

The Launch of the Model Legislative Provisions tooke place virtually on Friday 4 February 2022 and here is my statement on behalf of Associazione Leon Battista Alberti:

The European Union, during the last decade, has developed two main legislate tools: one for victims in general and one for the victims of terrorism: the Directive n. 29 in 2012 and Directive n. 541 in 2017.

The European Commission's recent reports on the implementation of these Directives show that further progress is needed to reach the full potential of these instruments. This is mostly because of their incomplete transposition at the nation level. Most Member States, in fact, have still not fully transposed the minimum standards agreed in the EU rules. So, there are several on-going infringement proceedings for incomplete transposition of the Victims' Rights Directives against most of the EU Member States.

In Italy most of the legal support to past and present victims of terrorism is carried out by the associations of victims. They are self-help groups that for decades have been advocating for recognition, dignity, memory and truth. The effort of the Italian associations or the single victims, has focused on the recognition of rights; the historical reconstruction of the facts of terrorism, that have fallen into oblivion; the education for legality and nonviolence, and more recently, the prevention of violent extremism.

However, victims' rights are a recent conquest of legal civilization, which still need to be finalized and implemented, especially in their practical application. We still see a deep-rooted legal culture that places the offender at the center of law and prosecution. For this reason, I strongly wish that the  Model Legislative Provisions by the UN Office of Counter-Terrorism, may be a fruitful initiative for strengthen the Victims of Terrorism rights all around the world.

Thanks for your kind attention.