Applying Siracusa: A Call for a General Comment on Public Health Emergencies.
Nina Sun
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic is a public health emergency--as of Apr 23, 2020 there were over 2 7 million cases, with over 190,000 deaths globally Under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, states may restrict certain rights during public emergencies that threaten the life of the nation to the extent that they are required by the exigencies of the situation COVID-19 can be a fatal disease without known methods of prevention and treatment Given this situation, the question is not if, but how states may restrict rights to try to control the pandemic The Siracusa Principles are a foundation on which to build The principles outline the limits on rights restrictions that states may take during emergencies Under Siracusa, restrictions are only justified when they support a legitimate aim and are: provided for by law, strictly necessary, proportionate, of limited duration, and subject to review against abusive applications