A state of emergency is a situation in which a government is empowered to put through policies that it would normally not be permitted to do, for the safety and protection of its citizens. A government can declare such a state before, during, or after a natural disaster, civil unrest, armed conflict, medical pandemic or epidemic or other biosecurity risk.
Relationship with international law
Under international law, rights and freedoms may be suspended during a state of emergency, depending on the severity of the emergency and a government's policies.
Use and viewpoints
Democracies use states of emergency to manage a range of situations from extreme weather events to public order situations. Dictatorial regimes often declare a state of emergency that is prolonged indefinitely for the life of the regime, or for extended periods of time, so that derogations can be used to override human rights of their citizens, usually protected by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). In some situations, martial law is also declared, allowing the military greater authority to act. In other situations, an emergency is not declared, and de facto measures are taken, or the government adopts a decree-law. Nicole Questiaux (France) and Leandro Despouy (Argentina), two consecutive United Nations Special Rapporteurs, have recommended to the international community to adopt the following "principles" to be observed during a state or de facto situation of emergency: Principles of Legality, Proclamation, Notification, Time Limitation, Exceptional Threat, Proportionality, Non-Discrimination, Compatibility, Concordance and Complementarity of the Various Norms of International Law (cf. "Question of Human Rights and State of Emergency", E/CN.4/Sub.2/1997/19, at Chapter II; see also état d'exception).
Article 4 to the ICCPR permits states to derogate from certain rights guaranteed by the ICCPR in "time of public emergency". Any measures derogating from obligations under the Covenant, however, must be to only the extent required by the exigencies of the situation, and must be announced by the State Party to the Secretary-General of the United Nations. The European Convention on Human Rights and American Convention on Human Rights have similar derogatory provisions. No derogation is permitted to the International Labour Conventions.
Some, such as political theorist and Nazi Party member Carl Schmitt, have argued that the power to decide whether to initiate a state of emergency defines sovereignty itself. In State of Exception (2005), Giorgio Agamben criticized this idea, arguing that the mechanism of the state of emergency deprives certain people of their civil and political rights, producing his interpretation of homo sacer.
The state of emergency can be used to overthrow an existing regime's constitution. One example was the August 1991 attempted coup in the Soviet Union (USSR) where the coup leaders invoked a state of emergency; the failure of the coup led to the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
Derogations by states having ratified or acceded to binding international agreements such as the ICCPR, the American and European Conventions on Human Rights and the International Labor Conventions are monitored by independent expert committees, regional Courts and other State Parties.
Law in selected countries
Albania
The Constitution of Albania grants only the Parliament of Albania the power to declare a state of emergency, based on the advice of the government. The state of emergency can last for up to 60 days, and may be extended by the parliament for no more than 90 days.
Argentina
The Constitution of Argentina, which has been amended several times, has always allowed for a state of emergency (literally estado de sitio, "state of siege") to be declared if the constitution or the authorities it creates are endangered by internal unrest or foreign attack. This provision was much abused during dictatorships, with long-lasting states of siege giving the government a free hand to suppress opposition. The American Convention on Human Rights (Pacto de San José de Costa Rica), adopted in 1969 but ratified by Argentina only in 1984 immediately after the end of the National Reorganization Process, restricts abuse of the state of emergency by requiring any signatory nation declaring such a state to inform the other signatories of its circumstances and duration, and what rights are affected.
Australia
State-of-emergency legislation varies by state in Australia. Concerning emergency management, regions (usually on a local government area basis) that have been affected by a natural disaster are the responsibility of the state, until that state declares a State of Emergency, where access to the Federal Emergency Fund becomes available to help respond to and recover from natural disasters. A State of Emergency does not apply to the whole state, but rather districts or shires, where essential services may have been disrupted.
On 18 March 2020, a nationwide human biosecurity emergency was declared in Australia owing to the risks to human health posed by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, after the National Security Committee met the previous day. The Biosecurity Act 2015 specifies that the governor-general of Australia may declare such an emergency if the Health Minister is satisfied that "a listed human disease is posing a severe and immediate threat, or is causing harm, to human health on a nationally significant scale". This gives the Minister sweeping powers, including imposing restrictions or preventing the movement of people and goods between specified places, and evacuations. The Biosecurity (Human Biosecurity Emergency) (Human Coronavirus with Pandemic Potential) Declaration 2020 was declared by the Governor-General, David Hurley, under Section 475 of the Act.
New South Wales
In New South Wales, the NSW Premier can, pursuant to the State Emergency and Rescue Management Act 1989, declare a state of emergency due to an actual or imminent occurrence (such as fire, flood, storm, earthquake, explosion, terrorist act, accident, epidemic or warlike action) which endangers, or threatens to endanger, the safety or health of persons or animals in the State, or destroys or damages, or threatens to destroy or damage, property in the State, or causes a failure of, or a significant disruption to, an essential service or infrastructure. The Premier declared a state of emergency on 11 November 2019 in response to the 2019–2020 New South Wales bushfires. It was the fifth time that a state of emergency had been declared in that state since 2006, and it lasted for seven days. Subsequent declarations were made on 19 December for a further seven days, and again on 2 January 2020. In NSW, the 2019–2020 bushfire season resulted in 26 deaths, destroyed 2,448 homes, and burnt 5.5 million hectares (14 million acres).
Victoria
In Victoria, the Victorian Premier can declare a state of emergency under the Public Safety Preservation Act 1958 if there is a threat to employment, safety or public order. A declared state of emergency allows the Premier to immediately make any desired regulations to secure public order and safety. The declaration expires after 30 days, and a resolution of either the upper or lower House of Parliament may revoke it earlier. However, these regulations expire if Parliament does not agree to continue them within seven days.
The Premier (or a delegate) may operate or prohibit operation of any essential service, such as transport, fuel, power, water or gas, under the Essential Services Act 1958.
If there is an emergency which the Premier, after considering the advice of the relevant Minister and the Emergency Management Commissioner, is satisfied constitutes or is likely to constitute a significant and widespread danger to life or property in Victoria, the Premier, pursuant to the Emergency Management Act 1986, may declare a state of disaster to exist in the whole or in any part or parts of the State. The state of disaster addresses matters beyond public health issues; it is intended to deal with emergencies such as natural disasters, explosions, terrorism or sieges, and it can also be used to deal with 'a plague or an epidemic'.
The Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008 gives the Chief Health Officer extensive powers to take action 'to investigate, eliminate or reduce public health risks', including power to detain, restrict the movement of or prevent entry of any person in the emergency area, "and to give any other direction that the authorized officer considers is reasonably necessary to protect public health."
Brazil
The current constitution of Brazil allows the president to declare two states, to "preserve or establish peace and order, threatened by grave and imminent institutional instability or severe natural disasters". The first, and less severe state is the state of defense (estado de defesa), while a more severe form is the state of siege (estado de sítio).
Brunei
The 1959 constitution allows the Sultan of Brunei to declare a state of emergency at the national or local level. The sultan may extend the state of emergency after two years or cancel it altogether.
Under emergency rule, the sultan can proclaim royal decrees, known as Orders, which have the force of law and can affect wide-ranging domains such as censorship, freedom of movement, finance, and modification of legislation. These Orders are then subject to review by the Legislative Council, which may promulgate them into law as Acts through the normal legislative process. New Orders from the sultan typically override some Acts.
The current state of emergency in Brunei predates its history as an independent state. It was declared by Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien III on 12 December 1962 during the Brunei revolt against the then-British protectorate's planned inclusion in the Federation of Malaya. Because the rebellion came to be associated with derhaka (treachery against the Sultan) by the sultanate, it has not lifted the state of emergency nor has it reinstated the previously-elected Legislative Council, dissolved shortly after the proclamation of emergency rule. The state of emergency has also restricted many civil liberties.
Canada
The federal government of Canada can use the Emergencies Act to invoke a state of emergency. A national state of emergency automatically expires after 90 days, unless extended by the Governor-in-Council. There are different levels of emergencies: Public Welfare Emergency, Public Order Emergency, International Emergency, and War Emergency.
The Emergencies Act replaced the War Measures Act in 1988. The War Measures Act was invoked three times in Canadian history, most controversially by Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau during the 1970 October Crisis, and also by Prime Minister Robert Borden during World War I (from 1914 to 1920, against threat of Communism during the Revolutions of 1917–1923) and by Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King during World War II (from 1942 to 1945, against perceived threat from Japanese Canadians following Imperial Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor).
Under the current Emergency Act, a state of emergency can also be declared by provincial, territorial, and municipal governments. In addition Canada's federal government and any of its provincial governments can suspend, for five years at a time, Charter rights to fundamental freedoms in section 2, to legal rights in sections 7 through 14, and to equality rights in section 15 by legislation which invokes the notwithstanding clause, section 33, and therefore emergency powers can effectively be created even without using the Emergency Act.
The Emergencies Act was first invoked by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on 14 February 2022 in response to the Freedom Convoy 2022 protests that occupied the capital, Ottawa. The Canadian House of Commons voted to approve the invocation 185–151 with support from the Liberal Party and the New Democratic Party and opposition from the Conservative Party and the Bloc Québécois. Prime Minister Trudeau previously considered invoking it at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in April 2020, but faced unanimous disapproval from all thirteen provincial and territorial premiers at the Council of the Federation.
Egypt
States of emergency in Egypt are governed by Law 1958/162. The law grants greater powers to the police, suspends some constitutional rights and legalizes media censorship and state detention of individuals, who may be tried before military courts created under emergency rule.
Since the proclamation of the republican system in 1953, Egyptians have lived under four successive periods of emergency rule lasting more than a year: 1956–1964, 1967–1980, 1981–2012 and 2017–2021. The emergency law received widespread criticism during the presidency of Hosni Mubarak, when thousands of civilians were detained under the law according to human rights groups, with estimates of political prisoners running as high as 30,000.
Ethiopia
Article 93 of the Constitution of Ethiopia provides for a six-month state of emergency under certain conditions.
Finland
The Finnish Government, in cooperation with the President of Finland, may declare a state of emergency in Finland, after which it is possible to apply the provisions of the Emergency Powers and Defence Act. A state of emergency may only be declared when all other legislative means have been exhausted.
According to an earlier law, passed in 1930, Finland could be declared a state of war if necessary. Under this law, Finland was declared a state of war on 30 November 1939, after the start of the Winter War, and the state of war continued until 26 September 1947.
The most recent state of emergency was declared during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, when the Marin cabinet invoked a state of emergency in Finland to alleviate the epidemic. These measures included, among other things, temporarily isolating the Uusimaa region from the rest of Finland.
France
Three main provisions concern various kinds of "state of emergency" in France: Article 16 of the Constitution of 1958 allows, in time of crisis, "extraordinary powers" to be used by the president. Article 36 of the same constitution regulates a "state of siege" (état de siège). Finally, the Act of 3 April 1955 allows the proclamation, by the Council of Ministers, of a "state of emergency" (état d'urgence). The distinction between article 16 and the 1955 Act concerns mainly the distribution of powers: whereas in article 16, the executive power overturns the regular procedures of the Republic, the 1955 Act permits a twelve-day state of emergency, after which a new law extending the emergency must be voted by the Parliament of France. These dispositions have been used at various times: three times during the Algerian War (in 1955, 1958 and 1961), in 1984 during violent pro-independence revolts in New Caledonia, during the 2005 riots, following the 2015 Paris terrorist attacks, and during the 2024 unrest in New Caledonia.
Germany
The Weimar Constitution (1919–1933) allowed states of emergency under Article 48 to deal with rebellions. Article 48 was often invoked during the 14-year life of the Weimar Republic, sometimes for no reason other than to allow the government to act when it was unable to obtain a parliamentary majority.
After 27 February 1933, Reichstag fire, an attack blamed on the communists, Adolf Hitler declared a state of emergency using Article 48, and then had President Paul von Hindenburg sign the Reichstag Fire Decree, which suspended some of the basic civil liberties provided by the Weimar Constitution (such as habeas corpus, freedom of expression, freedom of the speech, the freedom to assemble or the privacy of communications) for the whole duration of the Third Reich. On 23 March, the Reichstag enacted the Enabling Act of 1933 with the required two-thirds majority, which enabled Chancellor Adolf Hitler and his cabinet to enact laws without legislative participation. The Weimar Constitution was never actually repealed by Nazi Germany; it effectively became inoperable after the passage of the Enabling Act. These two laws effectively ended the Weimar democracy, and paved the way for the Nazification of society, termed Gleichschaltung, which instituted totalitarianism.
In the postwar Federal Republic of Germany the Emergency Acts state that some of the basic constitutional rights of the Basic Law may be limited in case of a State of Defence, a state of tension, or an internal state of emergency or disaster (catastrophe). These amendments to the constitution were passed on 30 May 1968, despite fierce opposition by the so-called extra-parliamentary opposition (see German student movement for details).
Hong Kong (China)
During a state of war or turmoil which threatens national security or unity, and which the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress believes is beyond the control of the local government, the Standing Committee can invoke Article 18 of the Hong Kong Basic Law and declare a "State of Emergency" in Hong Kong; thus, the Central People's Government can selectively implement national laws not normally allowed in Hong Kong. Deployment of troops from the People's Liberation Army Hong Kong Garrison under the "Law of the People's Republic of China on Garrisoning the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region" can happen.
The Chief Executive of Hong Kong along with the Executive Council can prohibit public gatherings, issue curfew orders, prohibit the movement of vessels or aircraft, delegate authority, and other listed powers, under "Cap. 245 Public Order Ordinance".
Although the People's Liberation Army Hong Kong Garrison may not interfere in internal Hong Kong affairs, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government may invoke Article 14 of the Hong Kong Basic Law and request permission of the Central People's Government to have the garrison assist in "maintenance of public order or disaster relief".
Since 1997, a State of Emergency has never been declared. However, emergency measures have been used to varying degrees over the years, both during British rule and after the establishment of the Special Administrative Region. A few notable mentions are as follows:
Seamen's strike of 1922 – Enactment of the Emergency Regulations Ordinance, 1922 within one day on 28 February 1922
Canton-Hong Kong strike 1925 – with involvement of police and soldiers from multiple nations
Anti-Japanese riot of 1931 – with involvement of Hong Kong Police and British Armed Forces
Hong Kong 1956 riots – with involvement of British Armed Forces and Hong Kong Police
Hong Kong 1966 riots – with involvement of British Armed Forces and Hong Kong Police