COPENHAGEN, 4 February 2022 – Austrian parliamentarian Reinhold Lopatka, OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Vice-President and Chair of the Ad Hoc Committee on Countering Terrorism (CCT), participated today in the launch of the Model Legislative Provisions for Victims of Terrorism to protect the rights of victims of terrorism. The initiative, intended to improve national laws and procedures related to victims of terrorism, is organized by the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT) together with the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). The OSCE PA, through the CCT, contributed to the development of the Model Legislative Provisions through active engagement in a series of Online Thematic Expert Consultations held in 2020 and 2021.
In his remarks, Vice-President Lopatka stressed the role of parliaments and the need for international co-operation in coherently addressing the complex needs of the victims of terrorism and integrating provisions into comprehensive counter-terrorism policies and practices at the national level. “To achieve this a comprehensive multi-stakeholder, whole-of-society approach is crucial,” Lopatka said. “Not only should the authorities provide assistance and compensation to the victims themselves, but civil society and associations of victims should be involved in all efforts and given the respective space and support.”
He emphasized the importance of ensuring that the rights and needs of victims of terrorism are heard and respected. Understanding the experiences of terrorism victims is essential to raise awareness and build a comprehensive part of global terrorism prevention efforts, he said. Parliamentary tools and continuous discussions and exchanges with civil society and inter-parliamentary co-operation on a wide range of international security affairs, he said, are essential in this regard. Against this backdrop, promotion and protection of rights of victims of terrorism remains one of five key priorities in CCT's agenda.
The purpose of the Model Legislative Provisions being launched today 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.
Other participants in today’s event included Vladimir Voronkov, Under-Secretary-General of UNOCT; Ghada Fathi Waly, Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and Director-General of the United Nations Office at Vienna; and Martin Chungong, Secretary-General of the Inter-Parliamentary Union. More information on the Model Legislative Provisions is available here.
