Submission by Fair Trials to the United Nations Human Rights Council Universal Periodic Review: Spain

Fair Trials welcomes the opportunity to contribute to the third cycle of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Spain. Our submission focusses on the ways in which broad counterterrorism laws are adversely impacting on human rights in Spain. In particular, counterterrorism laws have led to violations of freedom of expression, and pre-trial detention practice results in violations of the right to liberty, especially when combined with counterterrorism law. The excessive discretion that criminal law leaves to judges fundamentally undermines the rule of law in Spain.