Toward New International Standards on Emergencies: Extreme Emergencies and the New Negation of Fundamental Rights

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to discuss what could soon become the new international standards on emergencies. The terrorist attacks on 11 September 2001 in the United States paved the way for the legalisation of practices and facts that until then were the trademark of totalitarian societies. While traditional emergencies such as a state of exception and a state of emergency are the object of strict regulations under domestic and international law, especially in terms of human rights protection, extreme emergencies account for a situation where owing to terrorism threats (real or alleged) fundamental rights, including non-derogable rights can now be brought to a standstill. At the heart of my paper, lies an assessment of contemporary legal systems that have reacted to terrorist threats with emergency measures that differ in nature from more traditional emergency powers, with the latter being more ‘legalistic’ and respectful of human rights guarantees.