Chapter 9

Right to the Truth and Victims of Terrorism as a Vulnerable Group

Belen Urena Carazo

Abstract

Victims of terrorism are particularly vulnerable because this type of crime is one of the violent crimes that constitutes a fundamental violation of human rights. Thus, we could classify this special group as a vulnerable group that, as such, deserves special protection within the legal sphere. So, in our opinion, one of the procedural rights that should make up the legal status of victims of terrorism is “the right to the truth of the facts”, in which the moral aspect is so important. That is why the reconstruction of the truth of the facts serves as the basis for proper reparation of the damage suffered by the victims and, therefore, for dispensing justice, one of the higher values in our legal system, which is effectively attained in judicial proceedings when a just ruling is issued, with the judge being the main guarantor thereof. Therefore we analyse what constitutes “the right to the truth” at the procedural level, specifically, that is construed as the right of the parties to know the truth of the facts in judicial proceedings and the judge's corresponding duty to direct the proceedings towards discovering the truth.

Total Pages: 147-163 (17)

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