House of Commons | Session 2001-02 Internet Publications Other Bills before Parliament |
Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Bill This is the text of the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Bill, as introduced in the House of Commons on 12th November 2001. | |||||||
Explanatory Notes to the Bill, prepared by the Home Office, Her Majesty's Treasury, the Department of Trade and Industry, the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, will be published as Bill 49-EN. Mr Secretary Blunkett has made the following statement under section 19(1)(a) of the Human Rights Act 1998: In my view the provisions of the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Bill are compatible with the Convention rights. | |||||||
Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Bill | |||||||
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© Parliamentary copyright 2001 | Prepared 13 November 2001 |
Press statement Anti-terror bill is payback tool for vindictive GMA | ||
September 20, 2005 After killing the impeachment process, Congress is now set to continue the “slaughter” of our human rights as it resumes deliberations on the terror bills. After infringing on our right to know the truth about and seek justice on the ‘lapses in judgement’ of the Arroyo administration, Congress is now bent on curtailing further, if not totally emasculating, our right to free speech and petition the government for redress of grievance. The Alliance of Progressive Labor reiterates its stiff opposition to the enactment of the anti-terrorism bill. We reject the notion that in order to attain peace and security, a draconian measure should be put in place, at the expense of workers and citizens everywhere! This bill offers nothing new, except the imposition of stiffer and graver penalties against crimes that are already punishable under the Revised Penal Code. What is fearsome, however, is that terrorism, under this bill has been shrouded in a cloud of ambiguity, which would make the country a virtual police state! It would empower the executive with greater authority to target opponents and those critical of the administration and single them out for retribution under this law. The crime of terrorism has been obfuscated to the extent that even the indiscernible act of “contemplating” is even punished! This bill will inflict serious damage to trade unionism, as it poses several propositions that threaten the legitimate right of workers to organize and collectively bargain with capitalists for just and fair wages and social benefits. It will be a tool, with fear as its ammo, to crack down on unions and labor leaders, and to clamp down on their right to conduct legitimate strikes and other peaceful assemblies as enshrined in the constitution. This bill panders to the growing unilateralism of the US around the world, an ally whose approval this desperate President is seeking to secure, so it could perpetuate itself even more. At the global stage, not even the UN has been able to come up with a reliable definition of what exactly constitutes terrorism, and here we have a government with a serious legitimacy issue hounding it, asking Congress to railroad a dubious bill. The Alliance of Progressive Labor maintains that peace and security can only come with good governance, where the people are aptly accorded full employment, food security, and social justice, which sadly the Arroyo government has failed to do. We do not condone acts that sow fear and terror among the population, but we do not believe that the bill addresses the fundamental issues that give rise to extremist violence and alienation from government efforts towards peace and justice. We reiterate that GMA herself is the biggest threat to national security at this point. For refusing to subject herself to scrutiny and holding on to a position she does not deserve, opposition against her government will continue, and there will be no stability in the country as long as she continues to act as President. The APL demands that this alleged anti-terror bill be sent to the garbage bin where it properly belongs. This is the last thing that workers need at this point, and certainly not something that workers will benefit from in the long run. http://www.apl.org.ph/ps/2005/20050920_atb.htm |
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