Criticising the new anti-terror laws passed by Parliament in the wake of November 26 Mumbai attacks, Amnesty International on Friday said such measures undermine the rule of law and respect for human rights.
In a statement, the Amnesty urged President of India to reject the new amendments to anti-terror laws which has provision for detaining suspects up to six months without bail.
The organisation called upon the President, Indian authorities and lawmakers to urgently review the new amendments to the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, and provisions of the new legislation aiming to set up a National Investigation Agency, exclusively meant to probe acts of terrorism in the country.
"While we utterly condemn the attacks and recognise that the Indian authorities have a right and duty to take effective measures to ensure the security of the population, security concerns should never be used to jeopardise people's human rights," Asia Pacific Programme Deputy Director at Amnesty International, Madhu Malhotra said.
The experience of other countries which have also rushed to pass sweeping anti-terror legislation in response to terrorist attacks has shown that such measures undermine the rule of law and respect for human rights internationally and do not enhance security, she said. |