Biological Warfare and Bioterrorism – Global Perspective and Need for Reforms in Legislation

Abstract

The covid-19 Pandemic has shown us the major flaws in our country’s health sector, especially during the 2^nd wave, recent parliamentary panel found the possibility of weaponizing the novel coronavirus by terrorist entities and governments to their enemies. the Department of Health and Family has presented that an all-encompassing methodology is required for protection from biological weapons, and the government needs to incorporate a methodology for deterrence, and counteraction against any biological weapons.

Contagious biological components such as weaponized rapidly contagious viruses and non-contagious toxins such as sarin and nerve gas are the two types of biological weapons that can be classified at our ease, both of these types of biological weapons have their adverse effects on society. stringent national and international laws are needed to counter the threat of bio-terrorism.

The convention on the prohibition of the development, production, stockpiling, and use of chemical weapons shortly the chemical weapons convention, which was signed in 1993, belongs to the category of international law which is a multilateral treaty that bans chemical weapons and also requires the proper disposing within the stipulated time.

The use of biological weapons was banned in the Geneva protocol in 1925 but many countries still developed and stockpiled them, a dedicated charter and convention were created for the ban of biological weapons, and in 1972 the biological weapons convention was successfully signed even in midst of the cold war between Russia and America.

Understanding the various international laws on bioterrorism and the history behind the framing of those laws are essential to understand the bioterrorism concept as a whole.

Keywords: COVID-19, Biological Weapons Convention, Biological Weapons, Chemical Weapons, Geneva Protocol.