An overview of the Security Services Act : tensions & intentions

Abstract

The maintenance of national security is a function of government. The Security Services Act 1 was adopted to provide the tools to protect Malta's national security and economic well being, and to prevent and detect serious crime. It provides for the setting-up and functioning of the Security Service, which was given unparalleled powers, often restrictive of certain human rights. The aim of this thesis is to examine the application of the recurring themes of constitutionalism to the realm of security and intelligence. National Security frequently raises debate on a host of related, intertwined issues. These include policy-making and implementation; involved institutions; discretionary powers; democratic-control mechanisms; impact assessments in the realm of human rights and freedoms and redress avenues for the aggrieved. The need for effective tools in the quest to protect and enhance national security is undisputed. This exigency must however be reconciled with the State's other commitments, particularly to those that relate to democracy and the protection of human rights. Democracy requires that in preserving itself, the State does not loose those attributes that make it worth preserving. This point is considered in greater detail in Chapter 1, with an in depth examination of the right to privacy as protected by the European Convention and developed by the European Court of Human Rights. The legal basis of the Security Service, as well as the origin and sources of the relative Act are discussed in Chapter 2. The long recognised need for regulation in this area and the scattered powers that existed locally prior to the Act's enactment are also examined. Special attention is given to the British legislation that served as the main sources for our Act. A historical outline of the regulation of the Services in Britain introduces discussion on the opportunity of British law as a source in this context