A/HRC/16/51 and mutually reinforcing goals.12 This also reflects the flexibility of human rights law. Through the careful application of human rights law it is possible to respond effectively to the challenges involved in the countering of terrorism while complying with human rights.13 There is no need in this process for a balancing between human rights and security, as the proper balance can and must be found within human rights law itself. Law is the balance, not a weight to be measured. 13. To achieve complementarity and mutual reinforcement, the Special Rapporteur identifies 10 areas of best practice applicable to Member States’ legislative framework to combat terrorism. The first concerns consistency between counter-terrorism law – whether as separate pieces of legislation or as part of “ordinary” laws, such as the inclusion of terrorism offences within the criminal code of a country – and human rights and refugee law, as well as, when applicable, humanitarian law. Consistency is essential for both existing and future laws. In the case of proposed counter-terrorism law, many States include mechanisms for identifying whether proposed legislation, including on counter-terrorism, complies with human rights law.14 Because of the potentially profound implications of counter-terrorism legislation, it is also important that Governments seek to ensure the broadest possible political and popular support for counter-terrorism laws through an open and transparent process.15 In the event of incompatibility of extant counter-terrorism legislation with human rights law, including international human rights, the existence of mechanisms empowering the judiciary to strike down inconsistent legislation or to adopt an interpretation of the legislation that is consistent with human rights is essential.16 The effectiveness of such mechanisms will rely on the existence and maintenance of a competent, independent, impartial and transparent judiciary.17 14. To these ends, the Special Rapporteur formulates the template provisions below concerning the enactment, amendment and interpretation of counter-terrorism laws: Practice 1. Model provisions on consistency of counter-terrorism law with human rights and refugee law, and humanitarian law All legislation relating to the combating of terrorism is subject to the following guarantees and procedures: 12 13 14 15 16 17 - See A/60/825, para. 5; A/HRC/8/13; Statement by the President of the Security Council of 27 September 2010, op.cit. , eighth paragraph; the Internal Security Programme and National CounterTerrorism Strategy of Finland; Switzerland questionnaire response; and the Human Security Act 2007 of the Philippines, sect. 2. See “Human rights, terrorism and counter-terrorism”, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), fact sheet No. 32, 2008, p. 12; Handbook on Human Rights Compliance While Countering Terrorism, Center on Global Counterterrorism Cooperation; and the questionnaire responses submitted by Bahrain, Bolivia (Plurinational State of), Canada, Cuba, Finland, Greece, Guyana, Hungary, Jordan, Monaco, Morocco, Norway, Pakistan, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, the Russian Federation, Slovakia, the Sudan, Switzerland, the Syrian Arab Republic, Togo and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. See Canada, Department of Justice Act 1985, sect. 4.1; New Zealand, Bill of Rights Act 1990, sect. 7; and United Kingdom, Human Rights Act 1998, sect. 19; see also questionnaire responses submitted by Finland, Mauritius and Monaco. On the effectiveness of such mechanisms, see Alex Conte, Human Rights in the Prevention and Punishment of Terrorism, 2010, pp. 340-343. See A/HRC/4/26/Add.3, para. 65, A/HRC/6/17/Add.2, para. 20, and A/HRC/16/51/Add.3, para. 37. Canada, Constitution Act 1982, sect. 52 (questionnaire response). See International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, art. 14(1); International Commission of Jurists, Practitioner Guide No 1: International Principles on Independence and Accountability of Judges, Lawyers and Prosecutors, 2007; and questionnaire response submitted by Indonesia. 7