The Rule of Law in the Age of Terrorism - An Audit

"I now want to explore the history of the present, or at least the last few years since 9/11. Timothy Garton Ash observed that at the end of the twentieth century the Cold War had ended and “Western values” of “freedom, human rights, democracy, and the rule of law” had triumphed. But he goes on to argue that the 21st century really began with September 11 and that terror has brought about a crisis for the free world.2 Other bombings by Islamic terrorist organisations in Bali, Madrid and London led to responses from Australia, Britain and the United States - exemplars of “Western values” - to trade those values at a heavy discount for security. On international markets - the United Nations, the law of war, human rights, torture, the Geneva conventions, and on domestic markets - the separation of powers, the rule of law, preventive detention, due process, freedom from warrantless access to financial records, search and
wiretapping - all sold at substantial discount." Source: David J. Neal, SC, "The Rule of Law in the Age of Terrorism - An Audit" (January 30, 2007). Center for the Study of Law and Society Jurisprudence and Social Policy Program. Papers Presented in the Center for the Study of Law and Society Bag Lunch Speaker Series. Paper 36.

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