9.11.2017 A & Ors v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2004] EWCA Civ 1123 (11 August 2004) "Freedom from executive detention is arguably the most fundamental and probably the oldest, most hardly won and the most universally recognised of human rights…" In England this freedom has enjoyed the historic protection of the common law, notably through the writ of habeas corpus. It has also been recognised and guaranteed by Article 5 of the European Convention on Human Rights ("ECHR"). I need cite only these excerpts: "1. Everyone has the right to liberty and security of person. No one shall be deprived of his liberty save in the following cases and in accordance with a procedure prescribed by law: (a) the lawful detention of a person after conviction by a competent court; … (f) the lawful arrest or detention of a person to prevent his effecting an unauthorised entry into the country or of a person against whom action is being taken with a view to deportation or extradition. … 4. Everyone who is deprived of his liberty by arrest or detention shall be entitled to take proceedings by which the lawfulness of his detention shall be decided speedily by a court and his release ordered if the detention is not lawful. 5. Everyone who has been the victim of arrest or detention in contravention of the provisions of this Article shall have an enforceable right to compensation." 153. But these appeals are also about the grave and present threat posed by international terrorists to the security of the United Kingdom and the safety of its people following the sickening massacre of many hundreds of innocent persons in New York City on 11 September 2001. In the Schedule to the Human Rights Act 1998 (Designated Derogation) Order 2001 ("the Derogation Order"), to which I must return, this is stated: "The threat from international terrorism is a continuing one. In its resolution 1373 (2001), the Security Council, acting under Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter, required all States to take measures to prevent the commission of terrorist attacks, including by denying safe haven to those who finance, plan, support or commit terrorist attacks. There exists a terrorist threat to the United Kingdom from persons suspected of involvement in international terrorism. In particular, there are foreign nationals present in the United Kingdom who are suspected of being concerned in the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of international terrorism, of being members of organisations or groups which are so concerned or of having links with members of such organisations or groups, and who are a threat to the national security of the United Kingdom." And towards the end of its open generic judgment in these cases, the Special Immigration Appeals Commission ("SIAC") made these observations: "302… [T]here is a network, largely of North African extremists, in this country which makes up a number of groups or cells with overlapping members or supporters. They usually have origins in groups which had or may still have a national agenda, but whether that originating group does or does not have a national agenda, whether or not it has direct Al Qa'eda links, whether or not the factions are at war in the country of origin, such as the GIA and GSPC in Algeria, those individuals now work together here. They co-operate in order to pursue at least in part an anti-West terrorist agenda. Those less formal groups are connected back to Al Qa'eda, either through the group from which they came which is part of what can be described as the Al Qa'eda network, or through other extremist individuals http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/2004/1123.html 31/113