A/HRC/34/30 in relation to a given country, cannot be considered a mere alien, such as the national of a country who has been stripped of his or her nationality in violation of international law. The Committee also considers that there are few, if any, circumstances in which the deprivation of the right to enter one’s own country could be considered reasonable. 42 In that regard, one contribution to the present report suggested that counter-terrorism provisions that would have a profound impact on freedom of movement should always require prior judicial review and that new counter-terrorism laws should have a limited duration, for instance by including a sunset clause.43 3. Impact on due process, including the right to a fair trial 29. Respect for due process rights of individuals accused of terrorist-related activities — including recognition of the right of an individual to know the reasons why he or she has been detained; the right of the family of a detainee to know where he or she is being held; and the right of a detainee to have access to a lawyer and to challenge the lawfulness of his or her detention — is critical for ensuring that counter-terrorism measures are effective and respect the rule of law. In many jurisdictions, however, respect for these rights is neither fully acknowledged nor respected in practice. 30. One contribution to the present report highlighted anti-terrorist legislation in one State that allowed an investigatory body to hold individuals incommunicado for up to 90 days and to detain them for up to one year without judicial review. The contributor expressed concern that a specialized counter-terrorism court in that State accepted confessions obtained by torture as admissible evidence to convict individuals, as well as testimony or evidence without the presence of the defendant or the defendant’s lawyer. 44 31. Another contribution referred to the jurisprudence of the Human Rights Committee, which found that imposing a death sentence at a trial that failed to meet the legal standards of fairness breached not only article 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, but also article 6 on the right to life. 45 Special procedure mandate holders, also, have stressed that executions carried out without adherence to the strictest guarantees of fair trial and due processes are unlawful and tantamount to an arbitrary execution. They noted that many States in which the death penalty has been implemented for terrorism-related offences lack a system that guarantees the right to a fair trial for the accused. 46 4. Impact on the right to privacy 32. Digital communications technologies can be, and have been, used by individuals for criminal objectives, including recruitment for and the financing and commission of terrorist acts. As such, the lawful, targeted surveillance of digital communication by a State may constitute a necessary and effective measure for intelligence and/or law enforcement entities when conducted in compliance with international and domestic law, including respect for the right to privacy as reflected in international human rights instruments. 47 33. Governments frequently justify expansive digital communications surveillance programmes, however, on the grounds of the risks posed by terrorism. In this regard, the High Commissioner for Human Rights, special procedure mandate holders and treaty 42 43 44 45 46 47 See the Committee’s general comment no. 27 (1999) on freedom of movement, paras. 20-21. See contribution from the Netherlands Institute for Human Rights. See contribution from Americans for Democracy and Human Rights in Bahrain. See contribution from World Coalition Against the Death Penalty; and communication No. 250/1987, Reid v. Jamaica, Views adopted on 20 July 1990. See www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=20659&LangID=E. See A/HRC/27/37, in particular, para. 24. 9