Compendium of Standards, Good Practices and Recommendations Chapter 4: National Protections for the Human Rights of Armed Forces Personnel Introduction: Issues at Stake This chapter concerns the constitutional provisions and national legislation governing the treatment and rights of armed forces personnel. The chapter examines the relevance of constitutional provisions to the armed forces and their accountability, before exploring the ways in which constitutions apply to the rights enjoyed by service personnel. The chapter also examines the role of national legislation in defining the rights of service personnel in line with the demands of military service. The chapter addresses the recognition of the human rights of armed forces members in domestic legislation, including civil and political rights (such as the right to vote and to participate in political affairs), privacy, freedom of expression and social and economic rights (such as social security, education and housing). Constitutional provisions The human rights protections granted to members of the armed forces exist within a broader context of the military’s position within a democratic state. Constitutions commonly deal with a variety of matters relevant to armed forces. Legal structure: Includes legislative mechanisms, principles governing non-legislative sources of power,108 procedures for passing emergency legislation, constitutional provisions for derogations from human rights and processes governing entering into international agreements for security co-operation. Accountability mechanisms: Concerns the allocation of authority for national defence, security and intelligence among state institutions, the prohibition on defence or security officials holding parliamentary or ministerial office, the powers of the legislature and the constitutional powers of the courts (e.g., constitutional review). Independent review: Pertains to the security of tenure for officials, constitutional guarantees for the independence of the judiciary and the position of military courts. Individual rights: Namely, the rights applicable to everyone and those, such as conscientious objection, that are specifically relevant to military service (see Box 8.2 in “Chapter 8: Conscientious Objection to Military Service”), and the restrictions on rights that 108 For example, in the United Kingdom, under the royal prerogative, ministers may take executive decisions on certain matters without parliamentary authority. See: United Kingdom House of Commons, “The Royal Prerogative”, Briefing Paper, 17 August 2017, https://researchbriefings.parliament.uk/ResearchBriefing/Summary/SN03861. 57