Political Science

The United States Patriot Act of 2001 was a swift reaction to the horrifying attack by terrorists on the World Trade Center and other targets since it practically caught the American nation and the entire world flat-footed.  The USA PATRIOT Act or Public Law 107-56 (2001) was enacted on October 26, 2001, which was a little over a month after the now infamous  911  attack on September 11, 2001. The law practically grants vast powers to government authorities to infringe on the rights of citizens and even immigrants. The said law authorizes government agents to conduct searches on telephones, e-mails, and bank records of individuals suspected of being members or contacts of terrorist groups. It also allows indefinite detention of immigrants, all without court orders (USA PATRIOT Act of 2001).
    As it was a rushed response to the September 11 incident, the law contained serious flaws or actual violations of international human rights law the First and Fourth Amendments to the American Constitution which protect civil rights. As a consequence, the same was challenged before federal courts and many provisions thereof were declared unconstitutional. In short, courts ruled by finding some provisions of the law unconstitutional (Center for Constitutional Rights, n.d.).
    For instance, the court of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act or FISA rejected the Department of Justices claim that the Patriot Act allows the government to get a surveillance order with criminal investigation as the main purpose. The said court disapproved the apparent information-sharing policy where prosecutors are still permitted to consult with intelligence operatives but the latter are prevented from the prosecution process (The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press,  2005).      Even with its so-called sunset provisions, the Congress, in turn, was compelled to amend several provisions because of the various protests of human rights groups. As it is today, the law remains an instrument to abuse peoples rights, although it is now less harsh than the original version. It admittedly is a strong deterrent to people interested in committing acts of terrorism. However, it must be noted that even with the law, terrorism has remained a global problem, hence casting doubts on the effectiveness of the USA PATRIOT Act.