Commission caught up in the ACTA
The referal of ACTA to the European Court of Justice is a victory for concerned citizens, said Labour MEP for Munster Phil Prendergast, further to this week’s surprising announcement by Trade Commissioner de Gucht that the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) will be refered to the European Court of Justice for an assessment of its compatibility with fundamental EU freedoms.
Ms. Prendergast said: “This extraordinary u-turn by the European Commission, who had up until now dismissed legitimate concerns along with ill-informed rumours, demonstrates that engaged citizens and civil society groups can have a decisively positive impact in politics, especially when fundamental freedoms are at stake.
“I have tabled a number of parliamentary questions to the Commission and the Council agreements, seeking clarifications on precise points and intend to address more questions on other matters.
“I will also seek clarification from the Commission on the scope of the referral in order to better understand which matters of EU law will be under appreciation by the EU Court, and hope the Commission will not use the referral to shirk its oligation to provide us with substantive answers to those questions.
“What is more, a mere legal assessment of compatibility with EU law in terms of freedom of expression, information, data protection and intellectual property rights is not enough to dispel all concerns with ACTA.
“This treaty lumps together enforcement of anti-counterfeiting activity – which can be a matter of life and death when medicines are involved – and copyrights enforcement, including on the internet, which is dealt with by different EU laws, which currently are or will be under review in the near future.
“Also, in economic terms, ACTA is a questionable move for Europe. Its provisions on civil and criminal provisions, damage calculation and liability could lead to an innovation chill due to SME and start-up fears of back-breaking legal costs, not to mention preemptive self-censorship.
“Parliament has rejected harmonisation of criminal enforcement of copyrights matters more than once in the past, and a positive legal assessment by the ECJ cannot address this issue.
“While I wholeheartedly applaud this belated acknowledgement, by the Commission, that we need legal certainty before a European Parliament vote on ACTA, these other issues are just as important.
They are eminently political matters that should be decided by elected parliaments and not merely put to them for a yea or nay vote, as a fait accompli behind closed diplomatic doors.
Further information:
The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) is subject to consent by the European Parliament. The vote was initially foreseen for May but may be postponed due to broad opposition by MEPs concerned with the content of the treaty and the very narrow timeframe to fully appreciate its implications.
It is bound to be further postponed until the European Court of Justice receives and rules on the referral by the Commission, which was announced on Wednesday, 22 February.
The statement from the European Trade Commissioner, Karel de Gucht, announcing the decision to refer ACTA to the ECJ can be accessed on:
http://europa.eu/rapid/
The parliamentary questions tabled so far by Phil Prendergast MEP can be accessed on
http://acta.ffii.org/?p=1147
Phil Prendergast MEP’s previous statement on ACTA:
http://www.labour.ie/press/
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Specifically, the court will be asked to examine whether ACTA is “incompatible – in any way – with the EU’s fundamental rights and freedoms, such as freedom of expression and information or data protection and the right to property in case of intellectual property.”
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.
incompatible – in any way – with the EU’s fundamental rights and freedoms, such as freedom of expression and information or data protection and the right to property in case of intellectual property.”
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.
incompatible – in any way – with the EU’s fundamental rights and freedoms, such as freedom of expression and information or data protection and the right to property in case of intellectual property.”
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.
incompatible – in any way – with the EU’s fundamental rights and freedoms, such as freedom of expression and information or data protection and the right to property in case of intellectual property.”
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.
incompatible – in any way – with the EU’s fundamental rights and freedoms, such as freedom of expression and information or data protection and the right to property in case of intellectual property.”
Estimation of legal costs arising out of the potential enforcement of ACTA in this country was singularly missing from the public debate. This alone could have a determining influence on how the bill affects citizens, quite apart from the other sanctions and issues involved.