The United Nations rights chief on Friday slammed Britain’s ban on activist group Palestine Action as a “disturbing” misuse of UK counter-terrorism legislation and urged the government to rescind its move.
“The decision appears disproportionate and unnecessary,” Volker Turk said in a statement.
The ban, introduced under Britain’s Terrorism Act 2000, took effect earlier this month after activists from the group broke into an air force base in southern England.
Two aircraft were sprayed with red paint, causing an estimated £7.0 million ($9.55 million) in damage.
Turk’s statement said the ban raised “serious concerns that counter-terrorism laws are being applied to conduct that is not terrorist in nature, and risks hindering the legitimate exercise of fundamental freedoms across the UK”.
He stressed: “According to international standards, terrorist acts should be confined to criminal acts intended to cause death or serious injury or to the taking of hostages, for purpose of intimidating a population or to compel a government to take a certain action or not.”
But the ban among other things makes it a criminal offence to be a member of Palestine Action, to express support for the group or wear items of clothing that would arouse “reasonable suspicion” that the person is a member or supporter of the group, Turk pointed out.
Peaceful protest
UK police have arrested at least 200 people during protests, many of them peaceful, over the ban since it took effect, the UN rights office said.
Palestine Action itself has condemned its outlawing — which makes it a criminal offence to belong to or support the group, punishable by up to 14 years in prison — as an attack on free speech.
The UN high commissioner for human rights agreed.
The ban, Turk said, “limits the rights of many people involved with and supportive of Palestine Action who have not themselves engaged in any underlying criminal activity but rather exercised their rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association”.
“As such, it appears to constitute an impermissible restriction on those rights that is at odds with the UK’s obligations under international human rights law.”
The rights chief warned that the government’s decision “also conflates protected expression and other conduct with acts of terrorism and so could readily lead to further chilling effect on the lawful exercise of these rights by many people”.
“I urge the UK government to rescind its decision to proscribe Palestine Action and to halt investigations and further proceedings against protesters who have been arrested on the basis of this proscription,” he said.
“I also call on the UK government to review and revise its counter-terrorism legislation, including its definition of terrorist acts, to bring it fully in line with international human rights norms and standards.”
