Commentary Schedule 1 – Convention Offences Part 2 Section 21 – Grounds of proscription
99.Section 3 of the TACT gives the Secretary of State power to add an organisation to the list of proscribed organisations in Schedule 2 of that Act if he believes that the organisation is concerned in terrorism. The term “concerned in terrorism” is defined in section 3(5), and includes that the organisation promotes or encourages terrorism (section 3(5)(c)). Organisation is defined in section 121 of the TACT as including any association or combination of persons. A number of the offences in the TACT are dependent on an organisation being proscribed, for example, the offences in section 11 (membership of a proscribed organisation) and section 12 (support for a proscribed organisation). Also some of the powers in the TACT can be exercised on the basis that an organisation is proscribed, for example, the resources of a proscribed organisation can be seized as terrorist cash under Part 3 of the TACT (see in particular section 25).
100.Section 21 widens the grounds of proscription. It provides that a group may be considered to promote or encourage terrorism under section 3(5)(c) if its activities include the unlawful glorification of terrorism or its activities are carried out in a manner that ensures that it is associated with statements containing unlawful glorification of terrorism. Glorification of conduct is unlawful if persons who may become aware of it could reasonably be expected to infer that the conduct is glorified as conduct that should be emulated in existing circumstances. As in Part 1 of the Act conduct and conduct that is illustrative of a type of conduct are both covered. Glorification and statement are both defined in similar terms to Part 1 of the Act. Glorification is defined to include praise and celebration. Statement is defined to include a communication without words consisting of sounds, images or both.