Resolution on Counter-Terrorism
24th Annual Meeting of the Asia-Pacific Parliamentary Forum (APPF)
Vancouver, Canada January 17-21, 2016
Resolution on Counter-Terrorism
APPF24/RES/24
(Sponsored by the Russian Federation, Malaysia, Indonesia, Mexico and Chile)
The 24th Annual Meeting of the Asia Pacific Parliamentary Forum;
Reaffirming the earlier Resolutions adopted by the Asia Pacific Parliamentary Forum regarding counter-terrorism, illegal drug trafficking and organized crime;
Recalling Resolution APPF22/RES01 on “Political and Security Matters in Asia Pacific” which was held in Puerto Vallarta Mexico on 12 to 16 January 2014;
Cognizant of the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy adopted on 8 September 2006 and striving for its comprehensive implementation in an integrated manner including in the Asia Pacific region;
Drawing attention to the threat known as Daesh, the sectarian conflict emanating in or from the Middle East that is on the growing scale that affect the global prosperity, peace and security;
Highlighting the fact that terrorism committed by Daesh undermines political stability and political security and that they are tearing the fabric of a just society;
Noting that acts of terrorism committed or inspired by Daesh and other terrorist organizations constitute a persistent threat to regional and international peace, security and growth and one that is becoming increasingly dispersed and equally complex;
Endorsing Resolution 60/1 of the 2005 General Assembly, Point 89, on the importance of assisting victims of terrorism and of providing them and their families with support to cope with their loss and their grief;
Following up resolution on the role of parliaments in combating all terrorist attacks perpetrated by organizations such as Daesh and Boko Haram against innocent civilians, in particular women and girls, adopted unanimously by the 132nd IPU Assembly in Hanoi, Vietnam on 31 March 2015;
Accept in principle that victims of terrorism can bring legal actions against state sponsored terrorism;
Condemning in the strongest terms all forms and manifestations of terrorism and emphasizing that no terrorist acts on ideological, religious, political, racial, ethnic or any other grounds can have any justification;
Reaffirming that terrorism cannot be associated with any religion, nationality, civilization or ethnic group;
Emphasizing the central role of the UN in the coordination of the multilateral counterterrorism cooperation that shall comply with international law, including the UN Charter, refugee law and humanitarian law, as well as rights and fundamental freedoms of man;
Referring to the adoption of the draft resolution on the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the fight against terrorism as presented by the Mexican State to the Third Committee of the General Assembly of the United Nations Organization, reiterating the commitment of the international community to respect international obligations in the matter while at the same time urging the safeguarding of the work of civil society and humanitarian organizations, guaranteeing the right to privacy and guaranteeing the full and effective participation of women in drawing up and examining measures to combat terrorism;
Noting that they were preceded by the terrorist acts in the Middle East and North Africa that arouse sincere resentment and require immediate measures aimed to curb terrorism;
Being aware that humanity has faced a global challenge that no country in the world would be capable to address alone;
Sharing the conviction that today this challenge shall receive a decisive response strictly within the framework of international law;
Recognizing that only by establishing efficient coordination of the currently separate counter-terrorism efforts, by eliminating all possibilities for terrorism financing (including by terminating purchase of stolen oil and ancient works of art and culture), only by ensuring the inevitability of criminal prosecution and punishment for all terrorists and their accomplices, we would be able to defeat this absolute evil;
Being convinced that the member parliaments can successfully promote the improvement of the national legislation in the area of terrorism prevention and fight against terrorism and other related crimes;
RESOLVES TO:
- Call upon APPF Member States to consistently implement the UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy and relevant Resolutions of the UN Security Council aimed to fight international terrorism, seek fastest completion of the approval of the proposed UN Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism;
- Call upon APPF Parliaments to strengthen the interparliamentary and international cooperation in order to improve the regulatory framework for preventing and countering terrorism effectively, fostering spaces, and the exchanging of opinions, information and technology related to the prevention and combat of terrorism;
- Call upon all members of the international community to create a broad coalition of states rejecting terrorism and violent extremism in a consistent manner, and willing to contribute to the win over common evil;
- Adopt necessary legislation, in accordance with international law, in order to criminalize terrorism and any assistance to it, to unify the conditions of interaction between special services and law enforcement agencies for prosecuting and punishing terrorists and their accomplices by utilizing the potential of parliamentary diplomacy for approving adequate decisions;
- Coordinate efforts of relevant organizations in order to prevent terrorist acts, detect terrorist networks and terrorist support channels, agree upon military operations to inflict maximum damage to terrorist groups at the places of their immediate location, create a single unified list of terrorist organizations, as well as the mechanism for its prompt update;
- Call upon all APPF Member States and encourage other non-member countries to detect and promptly eradicate any terrorism financing sources, including the proceeds of drug trafficking, trafficking in persons, sale of energy and other resources, as well as channels for weapon supply to terrorist organizations;
- Use parliamentary diplomacy to actively promote the international counter-terrorism agenda and the political discussion of counter-terrorism cooperation issues;
- Ensure the safeguarding of the cultural heritage based on the UN Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict adopted on May 14, 1954;
- Condemn misanthropic ideologies, including any justifications of terrorist methods used for the attainment of any goal involving civil society and religious communities for this purpose;
- Prevent the glorification of acts of violence, deter radicalization in all its forms, and state that there will be punishment for terrorist activities;
- Call on the parliaments of the APPF Member States and encourage other states, as well as international parliamentary organizations, to establish broad and efficient cooperation in the fight against international terrorism;
- Urge all APPF Member States to fully implement the Security Council Resolution 2178 which recognizes that a comprehensive approach is needed to defeat terrorism and threats from Daesh. The resolution requires national, regional, sub-regional and multilateral action, taking into account specific national situation and legislation;
- Necessitate high respect of the international law and cooperation between APPF Member States that works as mechanisms needed to maintain trust, peace, security and harmonious co-existence as a way in strengthening partnerships for security and growth;
- Emphasize the competency, defined in terms of expertise and skills, well-versed in communicating and sharing ideas or information, ability in developing strategies in defending common interest of APPF Member States and the rest of the world for all-encompassing strengthened partnerships for peace, prosperity, security and growth;
- Encourage APPF Member States to forge closer understanding and cooperation with religious leaders to oppose radicalism, and consider the potential risks of statements associating terrorism with religion;
- Encourage support for the victims of terrorism, attaining their social inclusion and reintegration into international society with an eye to the ensuing regional and global benefits.
