Review article
https://doi.org/10.31297/hkju.19.2.5
The Relation of Procedural Rights of Persons Connected with Terrorism in Sanctioning Procedures and Classified Data Gathered by the EU Member States
Stjepan Novak
orcid.org/0000-0002-6600-4974
; Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Croatia, Zagreb, Croatia
Abstract
The paper deals with the necessity of protecting procedural rights of persons or entities connected with terrorism in the course of international sanctions and legal sanctioning on one hand, and the requirement of protecting classified data of the EU member states on the other. When considering the rights of the defendant, one of the biggest issues is the lack of data stemming from the reluctance
of the member states to share information from their jurisdiction with either the sanctioned persons or the Court of the European Union. It has arisen from the effort of the member states to protect their classified data, some of which are seen as particularly sensitive from the national security aspect, by their national legal regulations. The most serious issue is distrust of the member states in the Court
of the EU, i.e. their doubt whether the EU justice system will be able to protect classified data appropriately. The Court of the European Union has tried to resolve these two conflicting tendencies, thus indirectly widening its jurisdictions to the areas previously reserved for the member states. It has regulated the handling of classified national security data in its practice and its internal regulations, for example in the Rules of Procedure of the General Court of the European
Union. In fact, the Court has conditioned the implementation of sanctions on the delivery of such data both to the Court and, although not in all instances, to the persons or entities whom the particular sanctions refer to. The problem could be solved by delivering an unclassified summary of the relevant data in order to provide an explanation as to why the competent body of a member state believes that a person or an entity should be covered with sanctions. Such a summary could be delivered to the Council of the EU, and if necessary, to the Court of the EU and the person or entity contesting the sanctions. Considering the principle of loyal cooperation stipulated in Article 4, Paragraph 3 of the TEU, this should suffice to the Court of the EU.
Keywords
procedural rights of persons connected with terrorism; classified data; national security; the Court of the European Union
Hrčak ID:
222092
URI
Publication date:
28.6.2019.
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