Tilburg researchers present new guidelines for aid and assistance to victims of terrorism
25 Apr 2008
In the aftermath of a terrorist attack, it is not just the dead and wounded and their families and friends who are victims, but also the members of the society which was targeted. European governments must take measures to assist this group of victims.
This is the view of researchers at Tilburg University and the Catholic University of Leuven, who proposed new European standards for aid and assistance to victims of terrorism.
Declaration
The researchers' recommendations bridge the gap left by current European legislation. They have been laid down in a Declaration on Assistance to Victims of Terrorism. The declaration was discussed and drawn up during the Standards for Victims of Terrorism conference held at Tilburg University on 10 and 11 March. Representatives from, among other organizations, the United Nations, the Council of Europe, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and Victim Support Europe were given the opportunity to comment on the declaration.
Stefano Signore, member of the Private Office of Vice-President Franco Frattini of the European Commission, attended the presentation, which took place on the fourth European Day for the Victims of Terrorism. The European Union will ultimately decide whether to submit these recommendations for decision-making.
Current flaws
The experiences of victims and families of the 9/11 attacks in the United States and later those in London and Madrid clearly demonstrate that they are not automatically entitled to justice. Current guidelines take no account of the specific context of terrorism and its manifold effects on victims and their families and on the general public.
The researchers believe it is important to recognize that victims of a terrorist attack represent a large group of people. For example, a substantial group of people in the United States who watched the 9/11 attacks on television later displayed symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. The anger felt by these 'tertiary' victims could be channelled into revenge attacks.
Recommendations
Governments need to take this into account by, for instance, not making any announcements about the terrorist threat which have not first been properly thought through. Furthermore, the media must be aware that media attention to victims can be experienced as overwhelming and burdensome by many people.
Moreover, the (criminal) justice system needs to be better prepared for a large-scale terrorist attack. Current facilities for e.g. victim support and compensation are not designed to cope with large groups of victims, who often come from different international backgrounds. Many insurance policies explicitly exclude terrorism.
The preparatory research for the recommendations was conducted by INTERVICT, Tilburg University's International Victimology Research Institute, the Catholic University of Leuven's Institute of Criminology, the British Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence (CSTPV), the European Forum for Restorative Justice and Victim Support Netherlands.