The United Nations and the Rights of Victims of Terrorism

Résumé 0

The purpose of the article is to review what kind of action the United Nations various bodies have undertaken to offer some fora to victims of terrorism as well as the type of assistance the organization can provide to them. Criminalizing terrorist act is one of the first form of assistance to victims. In addition, it should be noted that there are a few provisions concerning the seizure of the funds and the rights of the victims in the International Convention for the suppression of the Financing of Terrorism as well as in the international instruments based on the victim statute. Also, some provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as well of the International Convenant on Civil and Political Rights make some reference to the rights of victims of crime which should be applied to victims of terrorism. It is, indeed, in more specialized areas, such as the United Nations Programme on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice as well as the programmes on human rights and on the protection of victims of grave violations of international humanitarian law that the protection of victims of terrorism is more taken into consideration more specifically in UNGA Resolution 40/34 which adopted the UN Declaration of Basic Principles of Justice for Victims of Crime and abuse of Power.