Special Reference to the Victims of Terrorism

Abstract

The answer of international law to terrorism has been, for a long time, very weak. Consequently, until recently, neither interest nor attention has been paid by the international community to victims of terrorism. Proof of this is the fact that until the 1993 Vienna World Conference on Human Rights the relationship between terrorism and human rights did not attract the attention of the United Nations. Since 1994, the UN General Assembly’s resolutions concerning terrorism appear under the title “human rights and terrorism.” At the same time, the resolutions adopted on the matter are characterized by the affirmation “that the most essential and basic human right is the right to life”, as well as General Assembly’s concern “at the gross violations of human rights perpetrated by terrorist groups.” They also declare the General Assembly’s solidarity with victims of terrorism and request the Secretary-General of the UN to seek the views of Member States on the possible establishment of a United Nations voluntary fund for victims of terrorism as well as the ways and means to rehabilitate the victims of terrorism and to reintegrate them into society.