Editor's Note: China is set to make Hong Kong national security laws as a related decision was adopted at the national legislature on May 28. Countries across the globe make every effort to safeguard national security and ensure the fundamental basis for their stability and development. Xinhua releases a series of articles about the common practice adopted by the major countries to strengthen national security through legislation and law enforcement.
by Ahmed Shafiq
CAIRO, May 28 (Xinhua) -- Egypt has witnessed a noticeable decline in terrorist activities thanks to national security and anti-terror legislations in recent years, an Egyptian legislator has said.
"Egypt suffered much from terrorism and there were terrorist groups operating in the country ... eliminating terrorism and disorder requires strong laws and perfect measures and that is what Egypt has been doing recently," Egyptian Parliament Member Samir Ghattas told Xinhua.
"The rules for formulating a comprehensive strategy to combat terrorism and maintain national security require, along with very important and vital elements, the adoption of legal legislations, said Ghattas, who is also president of the Cairo-based Middle East Forum for Strategic Studies.
The Egyptian parliament approved the anti-terrorism law in 2015 and agreed to amend it several times in the next five years, with the latest update in February.
"The new law No. 15 of 2020 includes major amendments on the definitions of funds, the financing of terrorism and the amendment of the Law of Terrorist Entities," the legislator said.
In light of the astonishing development of terrorist entities using information and Internet technologies for advocacy, recruiting, and instructing, Ghattas said the Egyptian parliament ratified a 45-article "Anti-Cyber and Information Technology Crimes" law in 2018.
"This law is meant to prevent and deprive terrorist groups, entities and individuals from converting these technologies to tools that can serve the terrorist goals," he said.
"It was necessary to issue this law to complete the main components of the comprehensive strategy to combat terrorism and ensure national security," he added.
According to the Institute for Economics and Peace 2019 Global Terrorism Index, Egypt droped out of the top 10 countries affected by terrorism as the country has witnessed a remarkable decline in terrorist activities.
He affirmed that such laws can also deter those who are considering joining or intend to join terrorist groups, and those who support them, in accordance with explicit legal sanctions.
Anti-terror and national security laws must be reviewed and evaluated periodically to keep pace with the development of terrorist methods, Ghattas also said.
In addition to ratifying the country's Anti-Terror Law, the Egyptian parliament has also approved amendments to the Emergency Law after COVID-19 broke out, which has granted more power to the president during a major public health emergency, Ghattas added. Enditem
