The only document submitted to the European Council 1-2 March 2012, according to the relevant EUCO web page, is the annotated draft agenda (English version, dated 23 January 2012). The latest EUCO background note is for the meeting 30 January 2012.
For the public, the preparatory work by the General Affairs Council (GAC) remains hidden. Hidden or scattered is how the rest of the input from the Council configurations and others can be described as well, despite many resolutions and letters specifically addressed to EUCO.
EUCO synthesis
Few have either the time or the inclination to go out on a wild-goose chase on the broken paper trail. However, many would profit from some sort of pre-view beyond the recycled agenda items.
What should you choose, if you have time for one document only?
The following paper from the Danish presidency of the Council of the European Union fits the bill, because it brings together a number of inputs in summary fashion:
Implementation of the European Semester - Synthesis report; Brussels, 22 February 2012, Council document 6662/12 (21 pages)
In addition to the Annual Growth Survey (AGS) from the Commission, which kicked off the European Semester 2012, and the recent resolutions by the European Parliament, various Council configurations have made contributions: Economic and Financial Affairs (ECOFIN); Employment, social policy, health and consumer affairs (EPSCO); Competitiveness; Transport, Telecommunications and Energy (TTE); Environment; as well as Education, youth, culture and sport.
Even if links to the sources are not provided, the references are mostly specific enough to enable fairly easy search for those who want to dig deeper.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union institutions and the eurozone coteries shape our future. At the same time we see an emerging European online public sphere. Grahnlaw, Grahnblawg (in Swedish) and Eurooppaoikeus (in Finnish) are among the more than 900 euroblogs aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
Wednesday, 29 February 2012
European Council versus sewing circle governance
Oblivious of its two years as the most important official institution of the EU, the European Council (EUCO) convenes 1-2 March 2012 at the same level of governance as a sewing circle (thematic page).
In order to prolong this sad state of affairs, the preparatory General Affairs Council (GAC) left us with these recycled generalities (page 8):
In short, there is no documentation of the input to the coordinating General Affairs Council and there is no meaningful public output from the GAC, which sits on the draft conclusions.
The European Council continues to act like a club of ladies meeting for tea, gossip and sewing, with the tiny difference that the EUCO happens to be the supremo among official instutions for 502 million EU citizens.
Here, at least, the Lisbon Treaty would allow the GAC and EUCO more than perennial underachievement with regard to the openness (transparency) mandated by Article 1 TEU.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union institutions and the eurozone coteries shape our future. At the same time we see an emerging European online public sphere. Grahnlaw, Grahnblawg (in Swedish) and Eurooppaoikeus (in Finnish) and more than 900 other euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
In order to prolong this sad state of affairs, the preparatory General Affairs Council (GAC) left us with these recycled generalities (page 8):
PREPARATION OF THE MARCH EUROPEAN COUNCIL***
The Council examined draft conclusions for the European Council meeting to be held on 1 and 2 March.
The European Council is due to focus on:
• Economic policy:
– assessing progress made in implementing country-specific recommendations under the EU's European Semester and commitments under the Euro Plus Pact;
– giving guidance to member states, on the basis of the Commission's annual growth survey, for the preparation of their national reform programmes (structural reforms) and stability or convergence programmes (fiscal policies);
– highlighting labour market reforms and employment and competitiveness issues; and
– providing guidance to the Commission and the Council on the implementation of flagship initiatives for jobs and growth.
• International summits: preparations for a G-8 summit on 19-20 May, a G-20 summit on 18-19 June and a UN "Rio+20" conference on sustainable development on 20-22 June;
• Foreign policy, including the southern neighbourhood (one year after the start of the Arab
Spring) and Syria;
• Other issues, including EU enlargement (Serbia) and accession of Bulgaria and Romania to the Schengen area.
The Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance in the Economic and Monetary Union ("fiscal compact") will be signed in the margins of the meeting.
The draft conclusions will be reviewed in the light of the Council's discussion. An annotated draft agenda was discussed by the Council on 27 January (5354/12).
In short, there is no documentation of the input to the coordinating General Affairs Council and there is no meaningful public output from the GAC, which sits on the draft conclusions.
The European Council continues to act like a club of ladies meeting for tea, gossip and sewing, with the tiny difference that the EUCO happens to be the supremo among official instutions for 502 million EU citizens.
Here, at least, the Lisbon Treaty would allow the GAC and EUCO more than perennial underachievement with regard to the openness (transparency) mandated by Article 1 TEU.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union institutions and the eurozone coteries shape our future. At the same time we see an emerging European online public sphere. Grahnlaw, Grahnblawg (in Swedish) and Eurooppaoikeus (in Finnish) and more than 900 other euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
Monday, 27 February 2012
Political crisis at the bottom of euro troubles – solutions?
The first four instalments were Transparency during the eurozone crises and Euro crises: European Council eviscerated? and Eurozone governance: Fundamental flaws but better presentation and Euro crises exposed and added to EU lack of legitimacy and democracy. The articles were based on my speech at the 22 February 2012 Attac seminar about the implications of the new fiscal discipline in the EU. These blog entries contain some modifications, updates and documentary references, which complement the oral presentation.
Here I continue the discussion with facts and opinion beyond the short address.
”Comprehensive solutions”
After umpteen ”comprehensive solutions”, the limits at EU and eurozone level are finally sinking in (although the solutions deemed possible and necessary are likely to drive us to distraction or despair).
In The European Council in 2011, the tone of EUCO and Euro Summit president Herman Van Rompuy was quite sober. In the General Report on the Activities of the European Union 2011, even Commission president José Manuel Barroso had toned down his often flowery rhetoric.
”Victories” had turned sour often enough for a mood of quiet determination to become appropriate.
Breathtaking, still...
Still, what the cascade of conclaves, summits and institutions has churned out during a short period is breathtaking by EU standards, and ordinary citizens of the union have most certainly been left out of breath by:
The European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) of the euro countries (beefed up), the European Financial Stabilisation Mechanism of the EU, the permanent European Stability Mechanism (ESM) already beefed up, the integrated planning tool the European Semester, with the Annual Growth Survey (AGS), the Euro Plus Pact (23 countries), the six-pack legislation, the Green Paper on eurobonds (sorry, stability bonds), the two-pack proposals, the TSCG or ”fiscal compact” to be signed, the Commission's first Alert Mechanism Report, as well as the rescue packages for Ireland and Portugal, and now twice into the seemingly bottomless pit of Greece, firefighting in Spain and Italy etc.
Fast and unprecedented by EU standards, but we are still far from where we should be.
Without the operations of the much vilified European Central Bank (in conjunction with other central banks in the world), meltdown would probably have occurred in the eurozone in December or a little later, with disastrous consequences for Europe and the global economy.
We have seen emergency solutions to the financial and economic ills, but not acknowledgement of the root cause, the political crisis at the bottom of this.
The crucial issues of legitimacy, democracy, sufficient powers, accountability and transparency have been almost totally absent from the discourse of the national and EU leaders, and these challenges have figured only marginally in the wider public debate.
Essentially, our leaders communicate their desire for nicer interior design of the prison they have built for themselves and their hope that the crises will somehow go away.
Are we getting what we deserve to get? Or, should we upgrade our thinking and that of our leaders?
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union institutions and the eurozone coteries shape our future. At the same time we see an emerging European online public sphere. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: Referring the anti-piracy treaty #ACTA to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) marks a lull in the proceedings, but not an end to the political battle. A few moments ago, the online petition launched by @Avaaz for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject ACTA had already been signed by 2,444,822 netizens, but more are welcome until the official burial.
Here I continue the discussion with facts and opinion beyond the short address.
”Comprehensive solutions”
After umpteen ”comprehensive solutions”, the limits at EU and eurozone level are finally sinking in (although the solutions deemed possible and necessary are likely to drive us to distraction or despair).
In The European Council in 2011, the tone of EUCO and Euro Summit president Herman Van Rompuy was quite sober. In the General Report on the Activities of the European Union 2011, even Commission president José Manuel Barroso had toned down his often flowery rhetoric.
”Victories” had turned sour often enough for a mood of quiet determination to become appropriate.
Breathtaking, still...
Still, what the cascade of conclaves, summits and institutions has churned out during a short period is breathtaking by EU standards, and ordinary citizens of the union have most certainly been left out of breath by:
The European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) of the euro countries (beefed up), the European Financial Stabilisation Mechanism of the EU, the permanent European Stability Mechanism (ESM) already beefed up, the integrated planning tool the European Semester, with the Annual Growth Survey (AGS), the Euro Plus Pact (23 countries), the six-pack legislation, the Green Paper on eurobonds (sorry, stability bonds), the two-pack proposals, the TSCG or ”fiscal compact” to be signed, the Commission's first Alert Mechanism Report, as well as the rescue packages for Ireland and Portugal, and now twice into the seemingly bottomless pit of Greece, firefighting in Spain and Italy etc.
Fast and unprecedented by EU standards, but we are still far from where we should be.
Without the operations of the much vilified European Central Bank (in conjunction with other central banks in the world), meltdown would probably have occurred in the eurozone in December or a little later, with disastrous consequences for Europe and the global economy.
We have seen emergency solutions to the financial and economic ills, but not acknowledgement of the root cause, the political crisis at the bottom of this.
The crucial issues of legitimacy, democracy, sufficient powers, accountability and transparency have been almost totally absent from the discourse of the national and EU leaders, and these challenges have figured only marginally in the wider public debate.
Essentially, our leaders communicate their desire for nicer interior design of the prison they have built for themselves and their hope that the crises will somehow go away.
Are we getting what we deserve to get? Or, should we upgrade our thinking and that of our leaders?
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union institutions and the eurozone coteries shape our future. At the same time we see an emerging European online public sphere. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: Referring the anti-piracy treaty #ACTA to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) marks a lull in the proceedings, but not an end to the political battle. A few moments ago, the online petition launched by @Avaaz for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject ACTA had already been signed by 2,444,822 netizens, but more are welcome until the official burial.
Sunday, 26 February 2012
Euro crises exposed and added to EU lack of legitimacy and democracy
The discussion began in the entries Transparency during the eurozone crises and Euro crises: European Council eviscerated? and Eurozone governance: Fundamental flaws but better presentation. This is the fourth instalment based on my speech at the 22 February 2012 Attac seminar about the implications of the new fiscal discipline in the EU. This text contains some modifications, updates and documentary references, which complement the oral presentation.
Democracy
The preceding discussion about openness (transparency) brings us to the the need for democracy.
Let me start with the good news.
In addition to EU citizenship and the principle of equality of citizens (Article 9 TEU), Article 10(1) of the Treaty on European Union tells us:
Even the second paragraph – Article 10(2) – looks promising:
However, the European Union is essentially ”owned” by the member states, represented in the two most important institutions, the European Council and the Council, by their governments. The member states hold the treaty making powers (and fairly little radical change can be accomplished without bumping into the walls of the absurdly detailed treaties).
New competences (powers) require treaty change, almost a mission impossible with unanimous decisions and national ratifications by every member.
The member states control expenditure through the long term budget (officially the multiannual financial framework MFF), so the European Parliament is allowed to play along with regard to the annual budget within the framework.
The member states limit the EU's opportunities to tax and to borrow for its policies.
Most importantly, the citizens are not able to vote in, or out, those who govern the union.
In short, the European Union could not become a member of the EU, because it is not a functioning democracy, although it has democratic elements or ornaments.
A democratic union
In my view, it would be better for the security and prosperity European citizens in a globalising world to have a fully democratic union, with accountable government, robust structures and needed powers, starting with foreign and security policy and a common defence, plus a real federal budget.
It is not for the Basic Law to prescribe the contents of the policies to shape, but to offer the ground rules for democratic government and to guarantee fundamental rights.
The arrangement with multiple unanimity rules, 27 national governments dealing with each other in diplomatic mode and as many national parliaments more or less diligently scrutinising what they are up to, was artificial.
The repeated financial, economic and sovereign debt crises since 2008 have exposed fundamental flaws.
The informal coteries and intergovernmental agreements have worsened the situation.
The current system is neither legitimate nor effective.
In interdependent 21st century Europe the question should be the sovereignty of the people, not the sovereignty of states.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union institutions and the eurozone coteries shape our future. At the same time we see an emerging European online public sphere. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: Referring the anti-piracy treaty #ACTA to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) marks a lull in the proceedings, but not an end to the political battle. A few moments ago, the online petition launched by @Avaaz for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject ACTA had already been signed by 2,436,282 netizens, but more are welcome until the official burial.
Democracy
The preceding discussion about openness (transparency) brings us to the the need for democracy.
Let me start with the good news.
In addition to EU citizenship and the principle of equality of citizens (Article 9 TEU), Article 10(1) of the Treaty on European Union tells us:
The functioning of the Union shall be founded on representative democracy.
Even the second paragraph – Article 10(2) – looks promising:
Citizens are directly represented at Union level in the European Parliament.
However, the European Union is essentially ”owned” by the member states, represented in the two most important institutions, the European Council and the Council, by their governments. The member states hold the treaty making powers (and fairly little radical change can be accomplished without bumping into the walls of the absurdly detailed treaties).
New competences (powers) require treaty change, almost a mission impossible with unanimous decisions and national ratifications by every member.
The member states control expenditure through the long term budget (officially the multiannual financial framework MFF), so the European Parliament is allowed to play along with regard to the annual budget within the framework.
The member states limit the EU's opportunities to tax and to borrow for its policies.
Most importantly, the citizens are not able to vote in, or out, those who govern the union.
In short, the European Union could not become a member of the EU, because it is not a functioning democracy, although it has democratic elements or ornaments.
A democratic union
In my view, it would be better for the security and prosperity European citizens in a globalising world to have a fully democratic union, with accountable government, robust structures and needed powers, starting with foreign and security policy and a common defence, plus a real federal budget.
It is not for the Basic Law to prescribe the contents of the policies to shape, but to offer the ground rules for democratic government and to guarantee fundamental rights.
The arrangement with multiple unanimity rules, 27 national governments dealing with each other in diplomatic mode and as many national parliaments more or less diligently scrutinising what they are up to, was artificial.
The repeated financial, economic and sovereign debt crises since 2008 have exposed fundamental flaws.
The informal coteries and intergovernmental agreements have worsened the situation.
The current system is neither legitimate nor effective.
In interdependent 21st century Europe the question should be the sovereignty of the people, not the sovereignty of states.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union institutions and the eurozone coteries shape our future. At the same time we see an emerging European online public sphere. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: Referring the anti-piracy treaty #ACTA to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) marks a lull in the proceedings, but not an end to the political battle. A few moments ago, the online petition launched by @Avaaz for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject ACTA had already been signed by 2,436,282 netizens, but more are welcome until the official burial.
Saturday, 25 February 2012
Eurozone governance: Fundamental flaws but better presentation
This blog post continues the discussion in the entries Transparency during the eurozone crises and Euro crises: European Council eviscerated?, based on my speech at the 22 February 2012 Attac seminar about the implications of the new fiscal discipline in the EU. This text contains some modifications, updates and documentary references, complementing the oral presentation.
I am appalled by the crucial role two coteries, the Eurogroup and the new Euro Summit - both meeting informally – play in European economic policy making. I am disappointed in the way the coordinating General Affairs Council (GAC) and the European Council (EUCO) have failed to grow up, despite the possibilities offered by the Lisbon Treaty.
However, every cloud has a silver lining, or there are pockets of excellence everywhere.
Council press office
Since our discussion with the Council press office last November, some things have improved from the citizen's point of view.
Let us follow the paper trail of the Eurogroup and the official institutions to make our case.
The Council press office has recently added a web page called Eurozone Governance, accessible from the Council's front page, as well as the home page of the European Council. This is an improvement, and the contents have been upgraded. We could even say that the presentation has improved a lot (web page Documents).
After the fact, we learn i.a. that the EU finance ministers have agreed to shore up IMF resources by €150 billion (19 December 2011), the text of the Treaty on stability, coordination and governance in the economic and monetary union (TSCG) – also known as the ”fiscal compact” or the ”stability union” - and the text of the Treaty establishing the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) between the euro countries.
Nowadays, there are also articles about the main issues, with helpful links, so the materials are available in one place, in a much more user friendly manner.
The frequency of press releases has also gone up, and the various conclusions, as well as explanatory and official statements have also been posted.
Democratic debate
If presentation has improved, what am I carping about?
Despite better presentation, the fundamental flaws of structure and procedures remain.
The essence of democratic debate is seeing citizens and media as potential sources of input, not just a nuisance or subjects to be informed about the outcomes.
This is where the Eurogroup and the European Council fail miserably, and the Council configurations largely.
Thus, the Euro Summit which combines traits of the Eurogroup and the European Council is hardly a dream prospect with regard to openness.
Ahead of the Eurogroup Monday evening, we had a short statement (14 February 2012) from the president Jean-Claude Juncker announcing the chief reasons for the postponement of the ordinary meeting. The Eurogroup statement (21 February 2012) on the second bailout package for Greece offers the public highlights about the sacrifices of the euro area taxpayers, the private bondholders and the Greek people, but it does not contain any links to the underlaying documents and assessments. We are supposed to take the decisions on trust.
But this is the crux: They don't really have a mandate from me.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union institutions and the eurozone coteries shape our future. At the same time we see an emerging European online public sphere. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: Referring the anti-piracy treaty #ACTA to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) marks a lull in the proceedings, but not an end to the political battle. A few moments ago, the online petition launched by @Avaaz for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject ACTA had already been signed by 2,427,532 netizens, but more are welcome until the official burial.
Today, Saturday 25 February 2012, European citizens join forces through more than 150 demonstrations for open and democratic legislation and Internet freedoms. In Finland Stop ACTA Helsinki convenes in front of the Central Railway Station at 14:00 hours.
I am appalled by the crucial role two coteries, the Eurogroup and the new Euro Summit - both meeting informally – play in European economic policy making. I am disappointed in the way the coordinating General Affairs Council (GAC) and the European Council (EUCO) have failed to grow up, despite the possibilities offered by the Lisbon Treaty.
However, every cloud has a silver lining, or there are pockets of excellence everywhere.
Council press office
Since our discussion with the Council press office last November, some things have improved from the citizen's point of view.
Let us follow the paper trail of the Eurogroup and the official institutions to make our case.
The Council press office has recently added a web page called Eurozone Governance, accessible from the Council's front page, as well as the home page of the European Council. This is an improvement, and the contents have been upgraded. We could even say that the presentation has improved a lot (web page Documents).
After the fact, we learn i.a. that the EU finance ministers have agreed to shore up IMF resources by €150 billion (19 December 2011), the text of the Treaty on stability, coordination and governance in the economic and monetary union (TSCG) – also known as the ”fiscal compact” or the ”stability union” - and the text of the Treaty establishing the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) between the euro countries.
Nowadays, there are also articles about the main issues, with helpful links, so the materials are available in one place, in a much more user friendly manner.
The frequency of press releases has also gone up, and the various conclusions, as well as explanatory and official statements have also been posted.
Democratic debate
If presentation has improved, what am I carping about?
Despite better presentation, the fundamental flaws of structure and procedures remain.
The essence of democratic debate is seeing citizens and media as potential sources of input, not just a nuisance or subjects to be informed about the outcomes.
This is where the Eurogroup and the European Council fail miserably, and the Council configurations largely.
Thus, the Euro Summit which combines traits of the Eurogroup and the European Council is hardly a dream prospect with regard to openness.
Ahead of the Eurogroup Monday evening, we had a short statement (14 February 2012) from the president Jean-Claude Juncker announcing the chief reasons for the postponement of the ordinary meeting. The Eurogroup statement (21 February 2012) on the second bailout package for Greece offers the public highlights about the sacrifices of the euro area taxpayers, the private bondholders and the Greek people, but it does not contain any links to the underlaying documents and assessments. We are supposed to take the decisions on trust.
But this is the crux: They don't really have a mandate from me.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union institutions and the eurozone coteries shape our future. At the same time we see an emerging European online public sphere. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: Referring the anti-piracy treaty #ACTA to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) marks a lull in the proceedings, but not an end to the political battle. A few moments ago, the online petition launched by @Avaaz for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject ACTA had already been signed by 2,427,532 netizens, but more are welcome until the official burial.
Today, Saturday 25 February 2012, European citizens join forces through more than 150 demonstrations for open and democratic legislation and Internet freedoms. In Finland Stop ACTA Helsinki convenes in front of the Central Railway Station at 14:00 hours.
Euro crises: European Council eviscerated?
The European Council was inaugurated as the supremo among the official EU institutions just two years ago, by the Lisbon Treaty. A cascade of meetings, both official ones and inofficial summits, has followed during the financial, sovereign debt and economic crises.
It may sound paradoxical, but my feeling is that the European Council has been gutted by the euro area crises and by design.
This blog post continues the discussion in the entry Transparency during the eurozone crises, based on my presentation at the 22 February 2012 Attac seminar, but with some modifications, updates and documentary references.
Eviscerated European Council?
Already, the latest statements from the informal summits for the EU as a whole, such as 26 October 2011, and the formal European Council conclusions, 23 october 2011 (EUCO 52/1/11) and 9 December 2011 (EUCO 139/1/11), look pretty anaemic.
It is as if the European Council had been eviscerated, emptied of content of late.
The spring meeting has traditionally been dedicated to all aspects of economic issues, but we have to wait to see what EUCO produces in terms of substance 1-2 March 2012 in the light of the EUCO annotated draft agenda (Council document 5354/12).
Summit or EU institution?
The first two years of the European Council as an official EU institution could be marked down as a lost opportunity with regard to openness and closeness to the citizen of the European Union.
In the beginning, EUCO president Herman Van Rompuy underlined that the European Council was an official institution, but in practice it continued to act as an international summit between leaders, without adopting practices of openness and good governance.
By this I mean in particular the preparatory phase from the Council configurations through the coordinating General Affairs Council (GAC), which has proved a real disappointment.
In order to illustrate the point, I ask you to look at the draft agenda of the GAC and the background note ahead of the 28 February 2012 meeting. Do we see clear proposals going in and can we expect the GAC to make public propositions to EUCO for public debate ahead of conclusions?
For comparison, we also have the customary annotated agenda from the government of Sweden: Allänna rådets möte den 28 februari 2012 – Kommenterad dagordning. Thin, is how I see it, instead of a clear paper trail from proposal to discussion, with public debate in between.
***
Perhaps some of us find it comforting to see that we citizens are in such noble company – at least in part with the heads of state or government of the non-euro states – watching more of real policy making disappear into the even bigger black hole of beefed-up Eurogroup support and the permanent Euro Summit.
Perhaps some of us are comfortable with the GAC and EUCO continuing to labour in the mode of diplomatic conferences, instead of as accountable and transparent institutions of European government and governance.
Perhaps we should not be. Yesterday, the Swedish economist Anders Bäckstrand wrote on Europaportalen that the euro crisis has started a process towards a more distinctly political Europe, but political legitimacy is necessary for this to succeed.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union institutions and the eurozone coteries shape our future. At the same time we see a European public sphere emerging. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: Referring the anti-piracy treaty #ACTA to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) marks a lull in the proceedings, but not an end to the political battle. A few moments ago, the online petition launched by @Avaaz for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject ACTA had already been signed by 2,427,119 netizens, but more are welcome until the official burial.
Today, Saturday 25 February 2012, European netizens join forces through more than 150 demonstrations for open and democratic legislation and Internet freedoms. In Finland Stop ACTA Helsinki convenes in front of the Central Railway Station at 14:00 hours.
It may sound paradoxical, but my feeling is that the European Council has been gutted by the euro area crises and by design.
This blog post continues the discussion in the entry Transparency during the eurozone crises, based on my presentation at the 22 February 2012 Attac seminar, but with some modifications, updates and documentary references.
Eviscerated European Council?
Already, the latest statements from the informal summits for the EU as a whole, such as 26 October 2011, and the formal European Council conclusions, 23 october 2011 (EUCO 52/1/11) and 9 December 2011 (EUCO 139/1/11), look pretty anaemic.
It is as if the European Council had been eviscerated, emptied of content of late.
The spring meeting has traditionally been dedicated to all aspects of economic issues, but we have to wait to see what EUCO produces in terms of substance 1-2 March 2012 in the light of the EUCO annotated draft agenda (Council document 5354/12).
Summit or EU institution?
The first two years of the European Council as an official EU institution could be marked down as a lost opportunity with regard to openness and closeness to the citizen of the European Union.
In the beginning, EUCO president Herman Van Rompuy underlined that the European Council was an official institution, but in practice it continued to act as an international summit between leaders, without adopting practices of openness and good governance.
By this I mean in particular the preparatory phase from the Council configurations through the coordinating General Affairs Council (GAC), which has proved a real disappointment.
In order to illustrate the point, I ask you to look at the draft agenda of the GAC and the background note ahead of the 28 February 2012 meeting. Do we see clear proposals going in and can we expect the GAC to make public propositions to EUCO for public debate ahead of conclusions?
For comparison, we also have the customary annotated agenda from the government of Sweden: Allänna rådets möte den 28 februari 2012 – Kommenterad dagordning. Thin, is how I see it, instead of a clear paper trail from proposal to discussion, with public debate in between.
***
Perhaps some of us find it comforting to see that we citizens are in such noble company – at least in part with the heads of state or government of the non-euro states – watching more of real policy making disappear into the even bigger black hole of beefed-up Eurogroup support and the permanent Euro Summit.
Perhaps some of us are comfortable with the GAC and EUCO continuing to labour in the mode of diplomatic conferences, instead of as accountable and transparent institutions of European government and governance.
Perhaps we should not be. Yesterday, the Swedish economist Anders Bäckstrand wrote on Europaportalen that the euro crisis has started a process towards a more distinctly political Europe, but political legitimacy is necessary for this to succeed.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union institutions and the eurozone coteries shape our future. At the same time we see a European public sphere emerging. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: Referring the anti-piracy treaty #ACTA to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) marks a lull in the proceedings, but not an end to the political battle. A few moments ago, the online petition launched by @Avaaz for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject ACTA had already been signed by 2,427,119 netizens, but more are welcome until the official burial.
Today, Saturday 25 February 2012, European netizens join forces through more than 150 demonstrations for open and democratic legislation and Internet freedoms. In Finland Stop ACTA Helsinki convenes in front of the Central Railway Station at 14:00 hours.
Friday, 24 February 2012
Transparency during the eurozone crises
On 22 February 2012 Attac Finland and Attac Parliament organised a seminar about the new budgetary discipline in the EU and its implications for socio-economic developments and democracy.
The discussion was kicked off by foreign minister Erkki Tuomioja, who is also the chair of Attac Parliament, and by professor Heikki Patomäki, who is one of the three chairpersons of Attac Finland. Between professor Magnus Ryner, who is a political economist, and the researcher Kenneth Haar, who represents the Corporate Europe Observatory, I made a presentation titled The New Stability Union: Implications for Transparency and Democracy, offering my views from the perspective of an EU citizen.
This blog post and a string of later ones are based on my speech, which I began by asking:
Where are we going in terms of transparency and democracy?
My short answer is: from bad to worse, at least in the short term.
However, some of you might want to know why and how.
Transparency
I'll begin by looking at transparency, or openness, in the European Union, in general, with regard to economic policy and concerning the new stability union, the so called fiscal compact.
The Treaty of Lisbon entered into force on 1 December 2009, so we have seen the new EU ground rules in action for a little more than two years.
The start is quite promising. Right at the top, in Article 1 of the Treaty on European Union, we are told:
Let us now put ourselves in the role of the trusting citizen, who takes this promise of a maximum of openness and closeness at face value.
Instead of building theoretical castles, he or she takes a closer look at economic policy making and the birth of the stability union in the light of available public information.
During these last two years, no questions have been more central to the economic wellbeing of European citizens than the ongoing multiple crises in the eurozone, the efforts to contain the effects and to return to a path towards economic growth and new jobs.
For the sake of brevity, I am going back in history only to the December 2011 summits. The heads of state or government of the euro area countries issued a statement (9 December 2011), where they announced future action in two directions:
- a new fiscal compact and strengthened economic policy coordination;
- the development of stabilisation tools to face short term challenges.
The statement itself contained main points about the common understanding, but no exact documentary references.
How about the guarantees for openness during the operations to contain and to overcome the crises?
Eurogroup
The informal Eurogroup, where finance ministers meet ”to discuss questions related to the specific responsibilities they share with the single currency”, is at least referred to in a protocol (No 14) annexed to the Treaties.
Euro Summit
The eurozone summits have just been convened without any particular legal basis. The Euro Summit has now been institutionalised, turned into a permanent feature with at least biannual meetings and a permanent president.
The Euro Summit is currently based only on the conclusions of the eurozone heads of state or government themselves (Euro Summit statement 26 October 2011, paragraphs 30-33 and Annex 1), although the so called fiscal compact tries to catch up with reality (Article 12 TSCG).
Good governance and transparency?
We are looking at economic policy making for the euro area, which consists of 17 countries, with a total population of 332 million people (Eurostat) – bigger than the home of the US dollar, with 313 million (US Census Bureau).
What do we have? Now we have not only one, but two informal conclaves preparing and agreeing on crucial issues in the dark, before they give the public a rough outline of what has been agreed (if not formally decided).
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union institutions and the eurozone coteries shape our future. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: Referring the anti-piracy treaty #ACTA to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) marks a lull in the proceedings, but not an end to the political battle. A few moments ago, the petition launched by @Avaaz for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject ACTA had already been signed by 2,422,421 netizens, but more are welcome until the official burial.
Tomorrow, Saturday 25 February 2012, European netizens join forces through more than 150 demonstrations for open and democratic legislation and Internet freedoms. In Finland Stop ACTA Helsinki convenes in front of the Central Railway Station at 14:00 hours.
The discussion was kicked off by foreign minister Erkki Tuomioja, who is also the chair of Attac Parliament, and by professor Heikki Patomäki, who is one of the three chairpersons of Attac Finland. Between professor Magnus Ryner, who is a political economist, and the researcher Kenneth Haar, who represents the Corporate Europe Observatory, I made a presentation titled The New Stability Union: Implications for Transparency and Democracy, offering my views from the perspective of an EU citizen.
This blog post and a string of later ones are based on my speech, which I began by asking:
Where are we going in terms of transparency and democracy?
My short answer is: from bad to worse, at least in the short term.
However, some of you might want to know why and how.
Transparency
I'll begin by looking at transparency, or openness, in the European Union, in general, with regard to economic policy and concerning the new stability union, the so called fiscal compact.
The Treaty of Lisbon entered into force on 1 December 2009, so we have seen the new EU ground rules in action for a little more than two years.
The start is quite promising. Right at the top, in Article 1 of the Treaty on European Union, we are told:
This Treaty marks a new stage in the process of creating an ever closer union among the peoples of Europe, in which decisions are taken as openly as possible and as closely as possible to the citizen.
Let us now put ourselves in the role of the trusting citizen, who takes this promise of a maximum of openness and closeness at face value.
Instead of building theoretical castles, he or she takes a closer look at economic policy making and the birth of the stability union in the light of available public information.
During these last two years, no questions have been more central to the economic wellbeing of European citizens than the ongoing multiple crises in the eurozone, the efforts to contain the effects and to return to a path towards economic growth and new jobs.
For the sake of brevity, I am going back in history only to the December 2011 summits. The heads of state or government of the euro area countries issued a statement (9 December 2011), where they announced future action in two directions:
- a new fiscal compact and strengthened economic policy coordination;
- the development of stabilisation tools to face short term challenges.
The statement itself contained main points about the common understanding, but no exact documentary references.
How about the guarantees for openness during the operations to contain and to overcome the crises?
Eurogroup
The informal Eurogroup, where finance ministers meet ”to discuss questions related to the specific responsibilities they share with the single currency”, is at least referred to in a protocol (No 14) annexed to the Treaties.
Euro Summit
The eurozone summits have just been convened without any particular legal basis. The Euro Summit has now been institutionalised, turned into a permanent feature with at least biannual meetings and a permanent president.
The Euro Summit is currently based only on the conclusions of the eurozone heads of state or government themselves (Euro Summit statement 26 October 2011, paragraphs 30-33 and Annex 1), although the so called fiscal compact tries to catch up with reality (Article 12 TSCG).
Good governance and transparency?
We are looking at economic policy making for the euro area, which consists of 17 countries, with a total population of 332 million people (Eurostat) – bigger than the home of the US dollar, with 313 million (US Census Bureau).
What do we have? Now we have not only one, but two informal conclaves preparing and agreeing on crucial issues in the dark, before they give the public a rough outline of what has been agreed (if not formally decided).
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union institutions and the eurozone coteries shape our future. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: Referring the anti-piracy treaty #ACTA to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) marks a lull in the proceedings, but not an end to the political battle. A few moments ago, the petition launched by @Avaaz for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject ACTA had already been signed by 2,422,421 netizens, but more are welcome until the official burial.
Tomorrow, Saturday 25 February 2012, European netizens join forces through more than 150 demonstrations for open and democratic legislation and Internet freedoms. In Finland Stop ACTA Helsinki convenes in front of the Central Railway Station at 14:00 hours.
Grahnlaw among top ten political blogs in Finland
Cision Finland ranked the top ten political blogs in Finland according to their own algorithm. The tabloid Ilta-Sanomat picked up the news and the Green Party paper Vihreä lanka happily noted the strong showing of Green politicians.
The Green top duo Jyrki JJ Kasvi and Osmo Soininvaara was complemented by the Green minister Heidi Hautala in seventh place.
The justice minister Anna-Maja Henriksson came in third and Finland's EU and trade minister Alexander Stubb fifth.
I was astonished to find my English blog Grahnlaw, which deals with "remote" EU issues, ranked fourth among these well known public figures in Finland.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: Referring the anti-piracy treaty #ACTA to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) marks a lull in the proceedings, but not an end to the political battle. A few moments ago, the petition launched by @Avaaz for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject ACTA had already been signed by 2,418,109 netizens, but more are welcome until the official burial.
Tomorrow, Saturday 25 February 2012, European netizens join forces through more than 150 demonstrations for open and democratic legislation and Internet freedoms. In Finland Stop ACTA Helsinki convenes in front of the Central Railway Station at 14:00 hours.
The Green top duo Jyrki JJ Kasvi and Osmo Soininvaara was complemented by the Green minister Heidi Hautala in seventh place.
The justice minister Anna-Maja Henriksson came in third and Finland's EU and trade minister Alexander Stubb fifth.
I was astonished to find my English blog Grahnlaw, which deals with "remote" EU issues, ranked fourth among these well known public figures in Finland.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: Referring the anti-piracy treaty #ACTA to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) marks a lull in the proceedings, but not an end to the political battle. A few moments ago, the petition launched by @Avaaz for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject ACTA had already been signed by 2,418,109 netizens, but more are welcome until the official burial.
Tomorrow, Saturday 25 February 2012, European netizens join forces through more than 150 demonstrations for open and democratic legislation and Internet freedoms. In Finland Stop ACTA Helsinki convenes in front of the Central Railway Station at 14:00 hours.
Thursday, 23 February 2012
General Report on the Activities of the European Union 2011 – a useful source
The avalanche of European Union and eurozone summits, statements and proposals during the multiple crises in the euro area has been enough to set anyone's head spinning.
Are you looking for calmer waters in order to get a grip on developments?
Here are a two reading tips, with official information freely available (in 22 languages).
Preparing my presentation for the Attac seminar The new budgetary discipline in the EU: Implications to socio-economic developments and democracy, I felt the need to recall the main events regarding EU intentions and decisions.
I profited from the overview by the European Council president Herman Van Rompuy and the EUCO conclusions and summit statements contained in the publication The European Council in 2011, mentioned in the previous post on this blog.
Another valuable background resource was the latest annual report about EU activities: General Report on the Activities of the European Union 2011, especially Chapter 1 Strengthening economic governance in the European Union (from page 6) and the Chronology of the EU's response to the debt crisis (from page 176).
Naturally, these annual publications can be used as raw materials for search and research on other EU policy areas as well.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu, a part of the emerging European public sphere, which utilises online opportunities. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: Referring the anti-piracy treaty #ACTA to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) marks a lull in the proceedings, but not an end to the political battle. A few moments ago, the petition launched by @Avaaz for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject ACTA had already been signed by 2,409,331 netizens, but more are welcome until the official burial.
Are you looking for calmer waters in order to get a grip on developments?
Here are a two reading tips, with official information freely available (in 22 languages).
Preparing my presentation for the Attac seminar The new budgetary discipline in the EU: Implications to socio-economic developments and democracy, I felt the need to recall the main events regarding EU intentions and decisions.
I profited from the overview by the European Council president Herman Van Rompuy and the EUCO conclusions and summit statements contained in the publication The European Council in 2011, mentioned in the previous post on this blog.
Another valuable background resource was the latest annual report about EU activities: General Report on the Activities of the European Union 2011, especially Chapter 1 Strengthening economic governance in the European Union (from page 6) and the Chronology of the EU's response to the debt crisis (from page 176).
Naturally, these annual publications can be used as raw materials for search and research on other EU policy areas as well.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu, a part of the emerging European public sphere, which utilises online opportunities. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: Referring the anti-piracy treaty #ACTA to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) marks a lull in the proceedings, but not an end to the political battle. A few moments ago, the petition launched by @Avaaz for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject ACTA had already been signed by 2,409,331 netizens, but more are welcome until the official burial.
Sunday, 19 February 2012
The European Council in 2011 (publication)
The Treaty of Lisbon, which entered into force on 1 December 2009, made the European Council (EUCO) an official institution of the European Union. It consists of the head of state or government of each member state of the EU, as well as without a vote, the president of the European Commission (José Manuel Barroso) and the EUCO president elected for two and a half years by the 27 national leaders (Herman Van Rompuy).
The first two years of the European Council have coincided with the profound financial and economic crises in the eurozone and the European Union generally, leading to repeated summits of varying kinds.
For the second time, president Van Rompuy has put a summary of his thoughts on record in an annual publication, now:
The European Council in 2011 (January 2012; 74 pages)
This is not a novelty, because the English and a few other versions were published in January.
There are, however, a few reasons for me to mention – even to recommend – the publication now.
I have now read the overview presented by Van Rompuy. His ”official” account of history in the making is an important source, regardless of how readers feel about the subject and the success this far.
The publication has now become available in 22 EU languages. (You can either toggle the language switch for the language of your choice, or proceed to the page for Council publications.)
The third reason is that you are able to find the official EUCO conclusions and the extraordinary summit statements neatly in one place for future reference.
The introduction and the conclusions are available in the same manner for the previous year, in:
The European Council in 2010 (January 2010; 45 pages; also available in 22 languages)
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: A few moments ago, the petition launched by @Avaaz for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject #ACTA had already been signed by 2,377,656 netizens, but more are welcome until the official funeral of the anti-piracy treaty.
The first two years of the European Council have coincided with the profound financial and economic crises in the eurozone and the European Union generally, leading to repeated summits of varying kinds.
For the second time, president Van Rompuy has put a summary of his thoughts on record in an annual publication, now:
The European Council in 2011 (January 2012; 74 pages)
This is not a novelty, because the English and a few other versions were published in January.
There are, however, a few reasons for me to mention – even to recommend – the publication now.
I have now read the overview presented by Van Rompuy. His ”official” account of history in the making is an important source, regardless of how readers feel about the subject and the success this far.
The publication has now become available in 22 EU languages. (You can either toggle the language switch for the language of your choice, or proceed to the page for Council publications.)
The third reason is that you are able to find the official EUCO conclusions and the extraordinary summit statements neatly in one place for future reference.
The introduction and the conclusions are available in the same manner for the previous year, in:
The European Council in 2010 (January 2010; 45 pages; also available in 22 languages)
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: A few moments ago, the petition launched by @Avaaz for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject #ACTA had already been signed by 2,377,656 netizens, but more are welcome until the official funeral of the anti-piracy treaty.
Saturday, 18 February 2012
European Parliament (IMCO): Customs enforcement of intellectual property rights
After the introductory blog post about the proposed EU regulation about customs enforcement of intellectual property rights COM(2011) 285, we follow this future ”more robust enforcement tool” to the European Parliament.
The committee stage in the EP is soon closing for the new regulation. The Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) is scheduled to vote on 29 February 2012 (agenda item No 21).
The draft report by Jürgen Creutzmann PE470.069 proposes 60 amendments to the Commission text.
The rapporteur wants to make the distinction between procedural and substantive intellectual property (IP) law even clearer. Thus, the regulation should not set out any criterion for determining an infringement of intellectual property rights (IPR).
The report does not subscribe to a simplified procedure only for counterfeit and pirated goods, but wants all IPR infringements to be treated in the same, simplified manner.
Small consignments are a special case. Creutzmann does not want the Commission to use a delegated act to define a small consignment. Hence, he introduces a definition into the regulation. A total weight of less than 2 kilograms seems clear enough, but does ”less than three items” mean a maximum of two?
The explanatory statement (from page 44) shows unwavering support for toughening customs control, welcoming the extension of the scope to all types of IPR infringements contemplated by the EU's and member states' substantive legislation, including parallel trade and overruns.
Since this regulation should remain procedural, Creutzmann calls for future substantive legislation, as in:
Opinions
Marielle Gallo has prepared the opinion PE478.335 of the Committee on Legal Affairs (JURI) about the proposal to replace regulation 1383/2003. Some amendments were proposed.
The opinion PE476.120 of the Committee on International Trade (INTA) was prepared by Josefa Andrés Barea. The opinion discusses especially goods in transit, parallel trade and international cooperation.
Amendments
In addition to the sixty amendments proposed by the rapporteur, IMCO can look forward to voting on a number of other amendments (61 – 259), found in document PE480.583.
The preliminary date for the EP plenary debate is 22 May 2012.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: A few moments ago, the petition launched by @Avaaz for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject #ACTA had already been signed by 2,363,595 netizens, but more are welcome until the official funeral of the anti-piracy treaty.
The committee stage in the EP is soon closing for the new regulation. The Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) is scheduled to vote on 29 February 2012 (agenda item No 21).
The draft report by Jürgen Creutzmann PE470.069 proposes 60 amendments to the Commission text.
The rapporteur wants to make the distinction between procedural and substantive intellectual property (IP) law even clearer. Thus, the regulation should not set out any criterion for determining an infringement of intellectual property rights (IPR).
The report does not subscribe to a simplified procedure only for counterfeit and pirated goods, but wants all IPR infringements to be treated in the same, simplified manner.
Small consignments are a special case. Creutzmann does not want the Commission to use a delegated act to define a small consignment. Hence, he introduces a definition into the regulation. A total weight of less than 2 kilograms seems clear enough, but does ”less than three items” mean a maximum of two?
The explanatory statement (from page 44) shows unwavering support for toughening customs control, welcoming the extension of the scope to all types of IPR infringements contemplated by the EU's and member states' substantive legislation, including parallel trade and overruns.
Since this regulation should remain procedural, Creutzmann calls for future substantive legislation, as in:
The rapporteur is of the opinion that the substantive IP law should recognise the principle that fake goods also constitute infringements of IPR when they are for private use and encourages the Commission to address this problem by revising the respective legislation.
-----
The principle of freedom of transit was never intended to apply to illicit trade, including goods which infringe IPRs. Therefore the rapporteur encourages the Commission to ensure in future revisions of substantive IP law that goods placed under suspensive procedures that are imitations or copies of goods protected in the EU by IPRs can always be classified as counterfeit and pirated goods.
Opinions
Marielle Gallo has prepared the opinion PE478.335 of the Committee on Legal Affairs (JURI) about the proposal to replace regulation 1383/2003. Some amendments were proposed.
The opinion PE476.120 of the Committee on International Trade (INTA) was prepared by Josefa Andrés Barea. The opinion discusses especially goods in transit, parallel trade and international cooperation.
Amendments
In addition to the sixty amendments proposed by the rapporteur, IMCO can look forward to voting on a number of other amendments (61 – 259), found in document PE480.583.
The preliminary date for the EP plenary debate is 22 May 2012.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: A few moments ago, the petition launched by @Avaaz for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject #ACTA had already been signed by 2,363,595 netizens, but more are welcome until the official funeral of the anti-piracy treaty.
Friday, 17 February 2012
ACTA coming up in the European Parliament (INTA)
Today, most of the documents for the 29 February 2012 meeting of the Committee on International Trade (INTA) of the European Parliament have now been posted online.
Among the documents we find (Agenda item No 23):
The agenda and other documents relating to ACTA are still missing, so there is still no official information about what INTA may discuss or decide at the meeting.
However, the Legislative Observatory Oeil anticipates that David Martin MEP – already one of the most widely known with a dossier to prepare – would be formally appointed then. See procedure file 2011/0167(NLE) on ACTA.
ACTA workshop
On 1 March 2012 INTA arranges a workshop about the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement.
If the workshop is open, it would add a nice touch if the programme contained information for prospective attendants and for those who might want to follow the proceedings online.
The bare ACTA text can be found here (Council document 12196/11).
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: The petition launched by @Avaaz for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject #ACTA has already been signed by 2,354,856 netizens, but more are welcome until the anti-piracy treaty has been officially buried.
Among the documents we find (Agenda item No 23):
COUNCIL DECISION on the conclusion of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement between the European Union and its Member States, Australia, Canada, Japan, the Republic of Korea, the United Mexican States, the Kingdom of Morocco, New Zealand, the Republic of Singapore, the Swiss Confederation and the United States of America(Council document 12195/11)
The agenda and other documents relating to ACTA are still missing, so there is still no official information about what INTA may discuss or decide at the meeting.
However, the Legislative Observatory Oeil anticipates that David Martin MEP – already one of the most widely known with a dossier to prepare – would be formally appointed then. See procedure file 2011/0167(NLE) on ACTA.
ACTA workshop
On 1 March 2012 INTA arranges a workshop about the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement.
If the workshop is open, it would add a nice touch if the programme contained information for prospective attendants and for those who might want to follow the proceedings online.
The bare ACTA text can be found here (Council document 12196/11).
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: The petition launched by @Avaaz for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject #ACTA has already been signed by 2,354,856 netizens, but more are welcome until the anti-piracy treaty has been officially buried.
Thursday, 16 February 2012
EU customs enforcement of intellectual property rights
The digital agenda and the intellectual property agenda of the EU are closely related.
On 24 May 2011, the same day the European Commission published its strategy paper A Single Market for Intelletual Property Rights COM(2011) 287, it also proposed new measures to toughen the control at the borders of the customs union.
For an overview, you can read MEMO/11/327 Customs enforcement of intellectual property rights – Frequently Asked Questions.
COM(2011) 285
The detailed proposal for a new regulation in English (pdf):
Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL concerning customs enforcement of intellectual property rights; Brussels, 24.5.2011 COM(2011) 285 final (32 pages)
This legislative proposal is available in all 23 official EU languages.
The Commission offers the following reasons for tightening the rules of IPR enforcement at the customs borders (page 1):
One thing the ACTA debate has demonstrated, is how the external and internal aspects of IPR protection are communicating vessels. The Commission clearly spells out the relationship (page 2):
With regard to the legal basis, the Commission reasoned (page 3):
The new regulation is intended to repeal and replace the existing Council regulation No 1383/2003.
Among the proposed novelties meant to introduce new restrictions (page 4):
In some cases counterfeit or pirated goods could be more easily destroyed than currently. Small consignments are dealt with in this context, but with a specific light procedure.
The scope of intellectual property rights is also widened.
All in all, the directly applicable new regulation, with 37 Articles, is described as a ”more robust enforcement tool”.
***
We are going to return to the legislative procedure for the proposed regulation in later blog posts.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: The @Avaaz petition for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject #ACTA has already been signed by 2,341,157 netizens, but more are welcome until the anti-piracy treaty has been officially buried.
On 24 May 2011, the same day the European Commission published its strategy paper A Single Market for Intelletual Property Rights COM(2011) 287, it also proposed new measures to toughen the control at the borders of the customs union.
For an overview, you can read MEMO/11/327 Customs enforcement of intellectual property rights – Frequently Asked Questions.
COM(2011) 285
The detailed proposal for a new regulation in English (pdf):
Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL concerning customs enforcement of intellectual property rights; Brussels, 24.5.2011 COM(2011) 285 final (32 pages)
This legislative proposal is available in all 23 official EU languages.
The Commission offers the following reasons for tightening the rules of IPR enforcement at the customs borders (page 1):
IPR infringements and the resulting trade in infringing goods are of growing concern, particularly in a globalised economy. In addition to the economic consequences for industry, the infringing products may pose serious health and safety risks to consumers. In its Communication on a Single Market Act [COM(2011) 206], the Commission therefore recalled that customs authorities should be able to provide greater protection for intellectual-property rights through revised legislation.
One thing the ACTA debate has demonstrated, is how the external and internal aspects of IPR protection are communicating vessels. The Commission clearly spells out the relationship (page 2):
The proposal is in line with the Union’s longstanding policy and strategy on the protection of IPR. This policy has been reflected in several Communications from the Commission, such as Europe 2020 and the Communication on a Single Market Act [COM(2010) 608]. Protection of intellectual property stimulates innovation and effective enforcement has a positive impact on employment, consumers and society as a whole.
The border enforcement of IPR by customs complements enforcement on the internal market, as well trade initiatives with third countries and in international fora. The proposal is an integral part of the strategic framework outlined in the new Communication from the Commission on a Single Market for Intellectual Property Rights of [24 May 2011, COM(2011) 287].
With regard to the legal basis, the Commission reasoned (page 3):
The Regulation concerns the commercial aspects of intellectual property rights in that it deals with measures enabling customs to enforce intellectual property rights at the border on goods that are internationally traded. Article 3(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union provides exclusive competence on the European Union in the area of common commercial policy.
The new regulation is intended to repeal and replace the existing Council regulation No 1383/2003.
Among the proposed novelties meant to introduce new restrictions (page 4):
In order to strengthen enforcement, it is proposed to broaden the scope covered by Regulation (EC) No 1383/2003, by including trade names, topographies of semiconductor products and utility models. It is also proposed to widen the scope of the Regulation by including infringements resulting from parallel trade and devices to circumvent technological measures, as well as other infringements of rights already enforced by customs.
In some cases counterfeit or pirated goods could be more easily destroyed than currently. Small consignments are dealt with in this context, but with a specific light procedure.
The scope of intellectual property rights is also widened.
All in all, the directly applicable new regulation, with 37 Articles, is described as a ”more robust enforcement tool”.
***
We are going to return to the legislative procedure for the proposed regulation in later blog posts.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU affairs, especially digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: The @Avaaz petition for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject #ACTA has already been signed by 2,341,157 netizens, but more are welcome until the anti-piracy treaty has been officially buried.
Wednesday, 15 February 2012
More on EU Commission roadmap for A Single Market for Intellectual Property Rights
In the blog post EU Commission roadmap: A Single Market for Intellectual Property Rights, we looked at the issues listed in the communication 24.5.2011 COM(2011) 287 (available in 22 language versions).
Overviews
For those who want overviews of the strategy proposal and related questions, the European Commission published material for journalists and the wider public on the day.
The main introduction is the press release Commission sets out ”blueprint” for Intellectual Property Rights to boost creativity and innovation (IP/11/630, 22 languages).
In addition, there are two memos in English: Intellectual Property Strategy – Frequently Asked Questions (MEMO/11/332) with ongoing and planned initiatives to strengthen protection of copyright and industrial rights, and Orphan Works – Frequently Asked Questions (MEMO/11/333), which deals with works under copyright but without known holders, as well as with out-of-commerce books.
You find more information through the web page Internal Market > Protection of rights and further to Copyright, Industrial property and Enforcement of rights, especially if you use the links on the pages.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: The @Avaaz petition for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject #ACTA has already been signed by 2,316,523 netizens, but more are welcome until the anti-piracy treaty has been officially buried.
Overviews
For those who want overviews of the strategy proposal and related questions, the European Commission published material for journalists and the wider public on the day.
The main introduction is the press release Commission sets out ”blueprint” for Intellectual Property Rights to boost creativity and innovation (IP/11/630, 22 languages).
In addition, there are two memos in English: Intellectual Property Strategy – Frequently Asked Questions (MEMO/11/332) with ongoing and planned initiatives to strengthen protection of copyright and industrial rights, and Orphan Works – Frequently Asked Questions (MEMO/11/333), which deals with works under copyright but without known holders, as well as with out-of-commerce books.
You find more information through the web page Internal Market > Protection of rights and further to Copyright, Industrial property and Enforcement of rights, especially if you use the links on the pages.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: The @Avaaz petition for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject #ACTA has already been signed by 2,316,523 netizens, but more are welcome until the anti-piracy treaty has been officially buried.
European digital agendas: Wallonia in Belgium
Economic growth is the magic concept to survive and to rebound from the economic crisis. The Europe 2020 strategy (EU2020) and its seven flagship initiatives are intended to bring us smart, sustainable and inclusive growth.
The Digital Agenda for Europe is the information society or ICT strategy, which bundles 101 actions under eight pillars (themes), but they cannot be achieved by the EU Commission alone. The member states are involved in setting policy guidelines, legislation and follow-up. Many actions depend on what the member states achieve domestically.
Thus, we face the question if there are national digital agendas in line with the Digital Agenda for Europe.
Yesterday we glimpsed at Belgium and found the Flanders in Action Pact 2020 (ViA), but I did not yet stumble across a specific digital agenda.
Wallonia
Now we turn to the French-speaking region of Wallonia, where we find the broad initiative Creative Wallonia: Introduction, Trois axes and Documents. The two main documents are the framework programme and the preparatory study:
Programme-cadre Creative Wallonia (undated; 72 pages)
Le rapport de la commission Zénobe (downloadable here; 2009; 111 pages)
The substance covers wide areas of the EU2020 strategy.
Wallonia's ICT strategy
Within this context, more specifically ICT oriented is:
Master Plan TIC (dowloadable here; 16 June 2011; 92 pages)
You can find aa Executive Summary in French, as well as in Dutch, German and English: Executive Summary – ICT Master Plan (downloadable here; 6 pages)
After presenting main ICT trends, the summary offers a roadmap with ten strategic priorities and six major issues briefly outlined.
Finally, there is the Baromètre TIC 2011 – L'usage de technologies de l'Information et de la Communication en Wallonie, with hard facts about ICT usage in the reagion, as well as recommendations by the Agence Wallonne des Télécommunications (AWT) for the future (26 pages).
***
If you have updated information about a Flemish digital agenda, or about the central government of Belgium, I am grateful for information. You can comment on this blog post or send me an email. Updates about other national (regional) ICT strategies in the European Union and the European Economic Area are also welcome.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: The @Avaaz petition for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject #ACTA has already been signed by 2,315,016 netizens, but more are welcome until the anti-piracy treaty has been officially buried.
The Digital Agenda for Europe is the information society or ICT strategy, which bundles 101 actions under eight pillars (themes), but they cannot be achieved by the EU Commission alone. The member states are involved in setting policy guidelines, legislation and follow-up. Many actions depend on what the member states achieve domestically.
Thus, we face the question if there are national digital agendas in line with the Digital Agenda for Europe.
Yesterday we glimpsed at Belgium and found the Flanders in Action Pact 2020 (ViA), but I did not yet stumble across a specific digital agenda.
Wallonia
Now we turn to the French-speaking region of Wallonia, where we find the broad initiative Creative Wallonia: Introduction, Trois axes and Documents. The two main documents are the framework programme and the preparatory study:
Programme-cadre Creative Wallonia (undated; 72 pages)
Le rapport de la commission Zénobe (downloadable here; 2009; 111 pages)
The substance covers wide areas of the EU2020 strategy.
Wallonia's ICT strategy
Within this context, more specifically ICT oriented is:
Master Plan TIC (dowloadable here; 16 June 2011; 92 pages)
You can find aa Executive Summary in French, as well as in Dutch, German and English: Executive Summary – ICT Master Plan (downloadable here; 6 pages)
After presenting main ICT trends, the summary offers a roadmap with ten strategic priorities and six major issues briefly outlined.
Finally, there is the Baromètre TIC 2011 – L'usage de technologies de l'Information et de la Communication en Wallonie, with hard facts about ICT usage in the reagion, as well as recommendations by the Agence Wallonne des Télécommunications (AWT) for the future (26 pages).
***
If you have updated information about a Flemish digital agenda, or about the central government of Belgium, I am grateful for information. You can comment on this blog post or send me an email. Updates about other national (regional) ICT strategies in the European Union and the European Economic Area are also welcome.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU digital policy and law
P.S. 1: For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
P.S. 2: The @Avaaz petition for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject #ACTA has already been signed by 2,315,016 netizens, but more are welcome until the anti-piracy treaty has been officially buried.
Tuesday, 14 February 2012
European digital agendas: Flanders in Belgium
Last autumn I discussed the Digital Agenda for Europe, and I asked readers for information about corresponding information and communication (ICT) policy strategies at national level in the member states of the European Union (especially in English or other widely understood languages).
The response has not amounted to much yet, so I return to the national digital agendas on the basis of what I happen to find.
Belgium - Flanders
In highly decentralised Belgium, I came across the Flanders region, which has a Flanders in Action Pact 2020 (ViA), built along the lines of the lines of the Europe 2020 strategy (EU2020).
In English you can find links to the seven breakthrough actions. A good way to start may be the background page About ViA, with the following description of the Pact 2020 initiative:
The page contains links to three publications with more information:
Action for 2020! The future plan for Flanders in progress (August 2011 brochure)
Flanders in action – I'm all for it (June 2010 folder with further links)
Flanders outlook 2011 – A benchmarking of Flanders amongst the European regions (February 2011)
My cursory search did not reveal a specific digital agenda. The thematic page most closely related to the EU Digital Agenda seems to be Innovation centre Flanders, with a brief introduction. The Dutch page Innovatiecentrum Vlaanderen offers more information, as well as links to research and development (R&D) issues, more closely related to the flagship initiative Innovation Union and the R&D programmes of the EU.
The general ViA brochure in Dutch has about twice the volume of its English counterpart, but I found no specific digital agenda there either:
Actie voor 2020! Het toekomstplan voor Vlaanderen in uitvoering (January 2011)
***
If you have information about a planned or finished Flemish digital agenda, or about the central government or the other regions of Belgium, I am grateful for information. You can comment on this blog post or send me an email. Updates about other ICT (information society) strategies are also welcome.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU digital policy and law
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
The response has not amounted to much yet, so I return to the national digital agendas on the basis of what I happen to find.
Belgium - Flanders
In highly decentralised Belgium, I came across the Flanders region, which has a Flanders in Action Pact 2020 (ViA), built along the lines of the lines of the Europe 2020 strategy (EU2020).
In English you can find links to the seven breakthrough actions. A good way to start may be the background page About ViA, with the following description of the Pact 2020 initiative:
The plan consists of twenty objectives that are sharply and quantifiably delineated, plus five breakthrough actions in areas where Flanders has already achieved a model presence but where, tomorrow, it can truly make a major difference.
The page contains links to three publications with more information:
Action for 2020! The future plan for Flanders in progress (August 2011 brochure)
Flanders in action – I'm all for it (June 2010 folder with further links)
Flanders outlook 2011 – A benchmarking of Flanders amongst the European regions (February 2011)
My cursory search did not reveal a specific digital agenda. The thematic page most closely related to the EU Digital Agenda seems to be Innovation centre Flanders, with a brief introduction. The Dutch page Innovatiecentrum Vlaanderen offers more information, as well as links to research and development (R&D) issues, more closely related to the flagship initiative Innovation Union and the R&D programmes of the EU.
The general ViA brochure in Dutch has about twice the volume of its English counterpart, but I found no specific digital agenda there either:
Actie voor 2020! Het toekomstplan voor Vlaanderen in uitvoering (January 2011)
***
If you have information about a planned or finished Flemish digital agenda, or about the central government or the other regions of Belgium, I am grateful for information. You can comment on this blog post or send me an email. Updates about other ICT (information society) strategies are also welcome.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU digital policy and law
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
Monday, 13 February 2012
EU Commission roadmap: A Single Market for Intellectual Property Rights
We started exploring the intellectual property rights (IPR) agenda of the European Commission here and here.
We arrived at the Commission's roadmap or strategy paper, published last spring:
A Single Market for Intellectual Property Rights: Boosting creativity and innovation to provide economic growth, high quality jobs and first class products and services in Europe; Brussels, 24.5.2011 COM(2011) 287 final (25 pages)
The communication is available in 22 EU languages.
Overview
The Contents offer an overview of the multitude of issues related to copyright and other intellectual property rights on the agenda of the EU Commission and the other institutions. I present the headlines (but without page numbering):
Naturally, matters have moved on since May 2011. We are going to return to the digital single market, or the single market for intellectual property rights, in future blog posts.
Ralf Grahn
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
I work as a speaker on EU digital policy and law.
We arrived at the Commission's roadmap or strategy paper, published last spring:
A Single Market for Intellectual Property Rights: Boosting creativity and innovation to provide economic growth, high quality jobs and first class products and services in Europe; Brussels, 24.5.2011 COM(2011) 287 final (25 pages)
The communication is available in 22 EU languages.
Overview
The Contents offer an overview of the multitude of issues related to copyright and other intellectual property rights on the agenda of the EU Commission and the other institutions. I present the headlines (but without page numbering):
1. INTRODUCTIONThe strategy is well documented and thus a valuable source for those who want to follow individual issues.
2. OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES FOR A SINGLE MARKET FOR IPR
3. KEY POLICY INITIATIVES TO MEET THE CHALLENGES AHEAD
3.1. Reform of the patent system in Europe and accompanying measures
3.1.1. A unitary patent protection
3.1.2. A unified patent litigation system
3.1.3. An IPR valorisation instrument
3.2. Modernisation of the trade mark system in Europe
3.3. Creation of a comprehensive framework for copyright in the digital single market
3.3.1. European copyright governance and management
3.3.2. Technology and database management
3.3.3. User-generated content
3.3.4. Private copying levies
3.3.5. Access to Europe's cultural heritage and fostering media plurality
3.3.6. Performers' rights
3.3.7. Audiovisual works
3.3.8. Artists' resale right
3.4. The issue of complementary protection of intangible assets
3.4.1. Trade secrets and parasitic copies
3.4.2. Non-agricultural geographical indications
3.5. Enhanced fight against counterfeiting and piracy
3.5.1. Public awareness
3.5.2. A more sustainable structure for the European Observatory on Counterfeiting and Piracy and new tasks
3.5.3. A review of the IPR Enforcement Directive
3.6. The international dimension of IPR
3.6.1. Multilateral initiatives, including co-ordination with international organisations
3.6.2. Bilateral negotiation and co-operation on IP protection with third countries
3.6.3. Enhanced IPR protection and enforcement at the EU border
4. CONCLUSIONS
Naturally, matters have moved on since May 2011. We are going to return to the digital single market, or the single market for intellectual property rights, in future blog posts.
Ralf Grahn
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
I work as a speaker on EU digital policy and law.
Sunday, 12 February 2012
Netizens of the world, unite! Follow ACTA ad acta
Here are some more twitterers I enjoy following with regard to #ACTA and other things concerning politics in the digital era.
Professor Michael Kennedy @Prof_Kennedy offers a transatlantic perspective on the European citizens' uprising for digital freedoms.
The knowledgeable Internet policy advisor Ralf Bendrath @bendrath provides insights in both German and English.
The pseudonym A.Wood.B.Maven @awbMaven is an active and intelligent participant in the discussions.
Jérémie Zimmermann @jerezim is a pillar of La Quadrature du Net.
With selective tweets and discussion @CWICKET contributes more than a ”simple geek”.
Switching between English and Portuguese, net freedom is not the least of causes for @jmcest.
The founder of the first Pirate Party, in Sweden, @Falkvinge is now the evangelist promising weeping and gnashing of teeth to those who want to encroach on digital freedoms.
There are, obviously, many worthies missing. Follow, participate and share #ACTA to find your own favourites, then keep watching Internet politics.
Netizens of the world, unite!
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU digital policy and law
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
Professor Michael Kennedy @Prof_Kennedy offers a transatlantic perspective on the European citizens' uprising for digital freedoms.
The knowledgeable Internet policy advisor Ralf Bendrath @bendrath provides insights in both German and English.
The pseudonym A.Wood.B.Maven @awbMaven is an active and intelligent participant in the discussions.
Jérémie Zimmermann @jerezim is a pillar of La Quadrature du Net.
With selective tweets and discussion @CWICKET contributes more than a ”simple geek”.
Switching between English and Portuguese, net freedom is not the least of causes for @jmcest.
The founder of the first Pirate Party, in Sweden, @Falkvinge is now the evangelist promising weeping and gnashing of teeth to those who want to encroach on digital freedoms.
There are, obviously, many worthies missing. Follow, participate and share #ACTA to find your own favourites, then keep watching Internet politics.
Netizens of the world, unite!
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU digital policy and law
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
ACTA parties - Let them eat (humble) pie
The blatant attempted robbery of citizens' digital rights by the European Union and its Member States, Australia, Canada, Japan, the Republic of Korea, the United Mexican States, the Kingdom of Morocco, New Zealand, the Republic of Singapore, the Swiss Confederation and the United States of America, through the Anti-Counterfeiting (and much more) Trade Agreement ACTA, deserves generous helpings of humble pie on their menu.
They must renounce short-circuiting open and democratic policy and law making through closed trade negotiations. If vigilant citizens prevented the actual theft of net freedoms, the process was wrong and the intent was there. The failure is, in a benign light, perhaps a mitigating circumstance.
Plat du jour: Let them eat (humble) pie, by jettisoning ACTA and wiping the slate clean by converting to democratic ways.
Just des(s)erts: Only then can they make a fresh start with regard to copyright and other issues of intellectual property, on parole but under the watchful eyes of citizens.
Until this has happened, I suggest that citizens worldwide keep following #ACTA on Twitter to prevent any relapse.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU digital policy and law
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
They must renounce short-circuiting open and democratic policy and law making through closed trade negotiations. If vigilant citizens prevented the actual theft of net freedoms, the process was wrong and the intent was there. The failure is, in a benign light, perhaps a mitigating circumstance.
Plat du jour: Let them eat (humble) pie, by jettisoning ACTA and wiping the slate clean by converting to democratic ways.
Just des(s)erts: Only then can they make a fresh start with regard to copyright and other issues of intellectual property, on parole but under the watchful eyes of citizens.
Until this has happened, I suggest that citizens worldwide keep following #ACTA on Twitter to prevent any relapse.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU digital policy and law
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
ACTA online organisations, pundits and communicators
Many of the biggest anti-ACTA demonstrations yesterday took place in Germany. It is therefore only fair to begin with two German influencers of digital politics. Digitale Gesellschaft @digiges works for democratic participation in the digital world. Netzpolitik @netzpolitik is a blog and a political platform for freedom and openness on the Internet.
FFII (Foundation for a Free Information Infrastructure) is a global network of associations campaigning for open standards and patent systems less detrimental to competition. Follow @FFII on Twitter or proceed to the web pages for more.
Glyn Moody @glynmoody is a prolific twitterer and writer, with four updates about ACTA and much else you can find through his blog.
Cory Doctorow @doctorow has a larger following than the vast majority of the politicians called on to ratify or reject ACTA. He yesterday sent the message through BoingBoing that Today is the day to kill ACTA.
The tech journalist David Meyer @superglaze has written a number of illuminating articles about ACTA.
These are some of the organisations, pundits and communicators I recommend following on digital policy (with more recommendations to come).
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU digital policy and law
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
FFII (Foundation for a Free Information Infrastructure) is a global network of associations campaigning for open standards and patent systems less detrimental to competition. Follow @FFII on Twitter or proceed to the web pages for more.
Glyn Moody @glynmoody is a prolific twitterer and writer, with four updates about ACTA and much else you can find through his blog.
Cory Doctorow @doctorow has a larger following than the vast majority of the politicians called on to ratify or reject ACTA. He yesterday sent the message through BoingBoing that Today is the day to kill ACTA.
The tech journalist David Meyer @superglaze has written a number of illuminating articles about ACTA.
These are some of the organisations, pundits and communicators I recommend following on digital policy (with more recommendations to come).
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU digital policy and law
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
Follow ACTA networks with news and links
On Twitter #ACTA reflects - in almost real time - news and opinion about the anti-counterfeiting (and much more) trade agreement. Even if some of the exhortations and slogans are over the top, there are reality based news items and knowledge based critical analyses among the tweets.
Access.org
The ACTA Action Center of Access offers a variety of information, such as a petition to sign, arguments against the treaty and videos from the demonstrations. You can follow @accessnow on Twitter.
Naturally, you have to be as critical when you read claims from campaigners, as when you encounter arguments put forward by the EU Commission and the governments of the member states of the European Union.
Stopacta.info
Stopacta.info and @StopActaNow offer you both campaign material and links to critical studies about the anti-piracy treaty. The latest tweets linked to the anti-ACTA action day demonstrations.
Stopp ACTA!
Stopp ACTA! offers information about the action day demonstrations 11 February 2012 and @Stopp_ACTA tweets in both German and English, including a link to photos and videos from the events.
La Quadrature, EDRi, 10comm and EFF
For those who want to look deeper at the issues, there are a few networks or organisations with detailed analyses and arguments on offer. You find their web pages, with more information, through their Twitter accounts.
Both in English and in French: @laquadrature. In English: @EDRi_org and @10comm as well as the American @EFF.
Avaaz petition - 2.2 million signatures!
The Avaaz petition for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject ACTA keeps rolling. It has passed the two million mark and a few moments ago 2,200,370 citizens had already signed the global appeal.
Political anti-ACTA parties
The Greens in the European Parliament have worked tirelessly for Internet and digital rights and copyright themes.
The Green group includes two Swedish Pirate Party MEPs. After the birth in Sweden, the Pirate Party movement has spread to most of the developed countries, with the Pirate Parties International (PPI) (website) as the umbrella organisation.
The oldest sister in the family, @piratpartiet tweets in Swedish. The web page Piratpartiet live aggregates blog entries from activists and on the web in both Swedish and English.
As we saw earlier, the Party of European Socialists (PES) and the second largest EP political group, the Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D), practically sent ACTA to the scrapheap of history with regard to the European Union and its member states.
We can follow @PES_PSE and @TheProgressives on Twitter for further developments. It remains to be seen if the national social democratic, socialist and labour parties, as well as their youth organisations, join the the European level political group and party in derailing ACTA.
After the massive protests, there is cause for the remaining political ACTA proponents to think how profoundly the want to stay out of touch with netizens in general and the young generations in particular.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU digital policy and law
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
Access.org
The ACTA Action Center of Access offers a variety of information, such as a petition to sign, arguments against the treaty and videos from the demonstrations. You can follow @accessnow on Twitter.
Naturally, you have to be as critical when you read claims from campaigners, as when you encounter arguments put forward by the EU Commission and the governments of the member states of the European Union.
Stopacta.info
Stopacta.info and @StopActaNow offer you both campaign material and links to critical studies about the anti-piracy treaty. The latest tweets linked to the anti-ACTA action day demonstrations.
Stopp ACTA!
Stopp ACTA! offers information about the action day demonstrations 11 February 2012 and @Stopp_ACTA tweets in both German and English, including a link to photos and videos from the events.
La Quadrature, EDRi, 10comm and EFF
For those who want to look deeper at the issues, there are a few networks or organisations with detailed analyses and arguments on offer. You find their web pages, with more information, through their Twitter accounts.
Both in English and in French: @laquadrature. In English: @EDRi_org and @10comm as well as the American @EFF.
Avaaz petition - 2.2 million signatures!
The Avaaz petition for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject ACTA keeps rolling. It has passed the two million mark and a few moments ago 2,200,370 citizens had already signed the global appeal.
Political anti-ACTA parties
The Greens in the European Parliament have worked tirelessly for Internet and digital rights and copyright themes.
The Green group includes two Swedish Pirate Party MEPs. After the birth in Sweden, the Pirate Party movement has spread to most of the developed countries, with the Pirate Parties International (PPI) (website) as the umbrella organisation.
The oldest sister in the family, @piratpartiet tweets in Swedish. The web page Piratpartiet live aggregates blog entries from activists and on the web in both Swedish and English.
As we saw earlier, the Party of European Socialists (PES) and the second largest EP political group, the Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D), practically sent ACTA to the scrapheap of history with regard to the European Union and its member states.
We can follow @PES_PSE and @TheProgressives on Twitter for further developments. It remains to be seen if the national social democratic, socialist and labour parties, as well as their youth organisations, join the the European level political group and party in derailing ACTA.
After the massive protests, there is cause for the remaining political ACTA proponents to think how profoundly the want to stay out of touch with netizens in general and the young generations in particular.
Ralf Grahn
speaker on EU digital policy and law
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. More than 900 euroblogs are aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu. Is your blog already listed among them? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
Friday, 10 February 2012
Civil society beating back ACTA assault
On and off line beating back ACTA is the greatest pan-European civil society campaign ever.
We note that media interest is widening.
The Economist: Internet freedom and copyright law: ACTA up – Protests across Europe may kill anti-piracy treaty
Financial Times, Stanley Pignal and Jan Cienski: Latest pact on internet piracy set to be derailed
Ratification on hold
By now, the governments of Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Latvia and Germany have put ACTA ratification or signing on hold, following the protests.
This may be only temporary relief, but it could also be the first step towards withdrawal.
PES joined the battle
Thanks to @jonworth I noticed that the Party of European Socialists (PES) - @PES_PSE on Twitter - came out against ACTA in a press release and a declaration.
Hannes Swoboda, the leader of the second largest political group in the European Parliament, the Alliance of Socialists & Democrats (S&D) - @TheProgressives on Twitter – made a statement envisioning possible rejection of the treaty.
Citizens mobilise
The Twitter discussion under #ACTA is intense ahead of the biggest action day against the anti-piracy agreement tomorrow, Saturday 11 February 2012, with more than 200 new demonstrations taking place.
The total numbers participating remain to be seen, but the defence of Internet freedom unites Europeans across borders.
The stream of new signatures on the Avaaz petition for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject ACTA is continuing. A few moments ago 2,076,598 had already signed.
***
Signs that the ACTA assault may be petering out raises hopes for the netizens. The EU trade commissioner Karel De Gucht is ”not impressed” by the demonstrations, but he may be one of his kind.
Popular opinion gives the remaining supporters in the parliaments cause to ponder the wisdom of further confrontation with voters.
Ralf Grahn
speaker, trainer and advisor
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. Is your blog already listed among the more than 900 euroblogs aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
We note that media interest is widening.
The Economist: Internet freedom and copyright law: ACTA up – Protests across Europe may kill anti-piracy treaty
Financial Times, Stanley Pignal and Jan Cienski: Latest pact on internet piracy set to be derailed
Ratification on hold
By now, the governments of Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Latvia and Germany have put ACTA ratification or signing on hold, following the protests.
This may be only temporary relief, but it could also be the first step towards withdrawal.
PES joined the battle
Thanks to @jonworth I noticed that the Party of European Socialists (PES) - @PES_PSE on Twitter - came out against ACTA in a press release and a declaration.
Hannes Swoboda, the leader of the second largest political group in the European Parliament, the Alliance of Socialists & Democrats (S&D) - @TheProgressives on Twitter – made a statement envisioning possible rejection of the treaty.
Citizens mobilise
The Twitter discussion under #ACTA is intense ahead of the biggest action day against the anti-piracy agreement tomorrow, Saturday 11 February 2012, with more than 200 new demonstrations taking place.
The total numbers participating remain to be seen, but the defence of Internet freedom unites Europeans across borders.
The stream of new signatures on the Avaaz petition for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject ACTA is continuing. A few moments ago 2,076,598 had already signed.
***
Signs that the ACTA assault may be petering out raises hopes for the netizens. The EU trade commissioner Karel De Gucht is ”not impressed” by the demonstrations, but he may be one of his kind.
Popular opinion gives the remaining supporters in the parliaments cause to ponder the wisdom of further confrontation with voters.
Ralf Grahn
speaker, trainer and advisor
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. Is your blog already listed among the more than 900 euroblogs aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
Thursday, 9 February 2012
ACTA demonstrations and EU online music licensing
All around Europe demonstrations are planned, especially for Saturday, 11 February 2012, against the Anti-Counterfeiting (and much more) Trade Agreement ACTA. As never before, Europeans keep tweeting #ACTA calls to sign the @Avaaz online petition for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject the anti-piracy treaty.
But they also tweet to exchange information about the deal among governments to attain ”state-of-the-art provisions on the enforcement of IPR, including provisions on civil, criminal, border and digital environment enforcement measures, robust cooperation mechanisms” etc.
By now the Avaaz online petition has been signed by 1.946 million citizens, so the new goal of two million signatures is approaching fast.
Resistance and EU Commission agenda
Yesterday I looked at why forcing ACTA down the throats of actively resisting EU citizens wasn't such a great idea in the wider scheme of things, and I also presented the bare bones of the EU Commission's agenda on intellectual property rights (IPR), as recorded in the Commission Work Programme (CWP) 2012.
Let us take a look at the individual proposals being prepared.
Online music
82 Legislative proposal on collective rights management: Music rights – music online
The CWP web page offers us access to forthcoming CWP initiatives 2012. The link provided opens up the so called roadmap regarding initiative 82: Legislative initiative on collective rights management.
If we want a real digital single market, the whole European Union (EU), indeed the European Economic Area (EEA), should constitute one seamless, borderless market for online citizens and consumers.
However, the roadmap language is much fuzzier, speaking only about facilitating multi-territory licenses, which looks like a more modest aim.
Are these doubts justified?
We need further study.
COM(2011) 287
The roadmap refers to a communication from the Commission. For my multilingual readership I would like to point out that this ”strategy paper” is available in 22 of the official EU languages and different formats on Eur-Lex. Here the English version (pdf):
A Single Market for Intellectual Property Rights: Boosting creativity and innovation to provide economic growth, high quality jobs and first class products and services in Europe; Brussels, 24.5.2011 COM(2011) 287 final (25 pages)
The introduction seems ambitious enough for those, who accept the basic idea of monopoly rights for creators and right holders, but without the ”medieval” online market fragmentation and outdated business models we see in Europe today:
We need to take a closer look at the proposed strategy and the process in future blog posts.
Ralf Grahn
speaker, teacher and advisor
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. Is your blog already listed among the more than 900 euroblogs aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
But they also tweet to exchange information about the deal among governments to attain ”state-of-the-art provisions on the enforcement of IPR, including provisions on civil, criminal, border and digital environment enforcement measures, robust cooperation mechanisms” etc.
By now the Avaaz online petition has been signed by 1.946 million citizens, so the new goal of two million signatures is approaching fast.
Resistance and EU Commission agenda
Yesterday I looked at why forcing ACTA down the throats of actively resisting EU citizens wasn't such a great idea in the wider scheme of things, and I also presented the bare bones of the EU Commission's agenda on intellectual property rights (IPR), as recorded in the Commission Work Programme (CWP) 2012.
Let us take a look at the individual proposals being prepared.
Online music
82 Legislative proposal on collective rights management: Music rights – music online
The proposed instrument will have a double focus: first, a general level of governance and transparency to apply to all collecting societies; and second, specific rules aimed at licensing of online music in order to foster the digital single market and provide more cross-border services to customers across the EU. (1st quarter 2012)
The CWP web page offers us access to forthcoming CWP initiatives 2012. The link provided opens up the so called roadmap regarding initiative 82: Legislative initiative on collective rights management.
If we want a real digital single market, the whole European Union (EU), indeed the European Economic Area (EEA), should constitute one seamless, borderless market for online citizens and consumers.
However, the roadmap language is much fuzzier, speaking only about facilitating multi-territory licenses, which looks like a more modest aim.
Are these doubts justified?
We need further study.
COM(2011) 287
The roadmap refers to a communication from the Commission. For my multilingual readership I would like to point out that this ”strategy paper” is available in 22 of the official EU languages and different formats on Eur-Lex. Here the English version (pdf):
A Single Market for Intellectual Property Rights: Boosting creativity and innovation to provide economic growth, high quality jobs and first class products and services in Europe; Brussels, 24.5.2011 COM(2011) 287 final (25 pages)
The introduction seems ambitious enough for those, who accept the basic idea of monopoly rights for creators and right holders, but without the ”medieval” online market fragmentation and outdated business models we see in Europe today:
Putting in place a seamless, integrated Single Market for Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) is one of the most concrete ways to release the potential of European inventors and creators and empower them to turn ideas into high quality jobs and economic growth.
We need to take a closer look at the proposed strategy and the process in future blog posts.
Ralf Grahn
speaker, teacher and advisor
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. Is your blog already listed among the more than 900 euroblogs aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
Wednesday, 8 February 2012
EU intellectual property rights (IPR) agenda
The high-running Twitter discussion about #ACTA, the Avaaz online petition for rejection of the Anti-Counterfeiting (and much more) Trade Agreement and the wave of demonstrations all over Europe merit some facts and discussion about the IPR agenda of the EU Commission.
External and internal obligations walk hand in hand, although EU-wide or national rules are sometimes alternatives.
Here are some bare bones for a starter.
Commission Work Programme 2012
In the blog post European Commission Work Programme 2012: Internal market and services we looked at the CWP proper 15.11.2011 COM(2011) 777 final (Volume 1/2) as well as the more substantive Annex to the CWP 2012 (Volume 2/2).
In the CWP Annex we found the following relevant actions planned for this year. The headlines have been modified, but the added texts are quotes.
Online music
82 Legislative proposal on collective rights management: Music rights – music online
IPRED revision
88 Enforcement of intellectual property rights – adaptation of the Directive 2004/48 known as IPRED
Notice and takedown
91 Digital Single Market: Initiative on notice and takedown procedures
Illicit drugs (crime)
This was not mentioned in the earlier post.
97 Minimum provisions on the constituent elements of criminal acts and penalties in the field of illicit drug trafficking (legislative proposal)
Ralf Grahn
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. Is your blog already listed among the more than 900 euroblogs aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
External and internal obligations walk hand in hand, although EU-wide or national rules are sometimes alternatives.
Here are some bare bones for a starter.
Commission Work Programme 2012
In the blog post European Commission Work Programme 2012: Internal market and services we looked at the CWP proper 15.11.2011 COM(2011) 777 final (Volume 1/2) as well as the more substantive Annex to the CWP 2012 (Volume 2/2).
In the CWP Annex we found the following relevant actions planned for this year. The headlines have been modified, but the added texts are quotes.
Online music
82 Legislative proposal on collective rights management: Music rights – music online
The proposed instrument will have a double focus: first, a general level of governance and transparency to apply to all collecting societies; and second, specific rules aimed at licensing of online music in order to foster the digital single market and provide more cross-border services to customers across the EU. (1st quarter 2012
IPRED revision
88 Enforcement of intellectual property rights – adaptation of the Directive 2004/48 known as IPRED
The main objective would be to adapt the Directive (2004/48/EC) to today’s challenges in order to make sure that intellectual property rights can be protected effectively and uniformly in the EU, in particular in a digital environment. Several provisions of the Directive should be clarified in order to achieve consistent interpretation and enforcement
Notice and takedown
91 Digital Single Market: Initiative on notice and takedown procedures
The main policy objectives are: contribute to a good functioning of Digital Single Market, contribute to combating illegality on the internet, ensure the transparency, effectiveness, proportionality and compliance with fundamental rights of notice and takedown procedures, ensure a balanced and workable approach towards NTD procedures, with focus on fundamental rights and the impact for innovation, growth
Illicit drugs (crime)
This was not mentioned in the earlier post.
97 Minimum provisions on the constituent elements of criminal acts and penalties in the field of illicit drug trafficking (legislative proposal)
To enable Member States to tackle illicit drug trafficking more efficiently and foster a common EU approach to drug trafficking through approximation of offences and sanctions, addressing shortcomings identified during the assessment carried out in 2009 of Framework Decision 2004/757/JHA, and replacing this instrument
Ralf Grahn
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. Is your blog already listed among the more than 900 euroblogs aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
Forcing ACTA on EU citizens
Was it too much to tweet the following to @davidmartinmep – the new ACTA rapporteur in the European Parliament: 100 demonstrations this week & 1.8 million signatures against #ACTA cause for rejection of current IPR agenda?
On the face of it, yes, as @awbMaven pointed out: By themselves they're not cause 4 rejection, but it IS cause 4 IN DEPTH consideration of the issues raised imv.
Good point, but what about the wider questions of the right aims and objectives, common sense (proportionality), legitimacy and acceptance?
The Group of Socialists and Democrats (S&D) had just appointed David Martin MEP the new rapporteur for ACTA in the Committee on International Trade (INTA) in the European Parliament. Martin seemed to dismiss the widespread concerns among citizens as myths, and took a narrow, technical view of the treaty, removing ACTA from the context of the EU Commission's copyright and IPR enforcement agenda.
I was not the only one worried by the first signs from the new rapporteur, after the recent spectacular defection by Kader Arif. La Quadrature du Net asked: Will the New ACTA Rapporteur Stand For Citizens' Freedoms?
Wider issues are real concerns
The Anti-Counterfeiting (and much more) Trade Agreement ACTA has wider implications than its deceptive packaging as merely an intergovernmental trade pact and the misleading headline evoking counterfeit goods would lead us to believe.
Read the article about the wider stakes and common sense by professor Michael Kennedy, For Your Digital Freedom and Ours, mentioned in the previous Grahnlaw post (about the EU IPR enforcement agenda).
David Jolly reports from Paris for the New York Times: A New Question of Internet Freedom. The article was written for American readers, so it offers an excellent introduction to others as well, who are curious about the commotion, but do not yet know the issues.
Alexander Furnas provides a more detailed analysis in The Atlantic: Why an International Trade Agreement Could Be as Bad as SOPA. Even if some people make exaggerated assertions about ACTA, the treaty seen in context is dangerous.
Legitimacy
After the wave of protest in Central Europe, the BBC speaks about a hundred demonstrations planned for this week all over Europe. Saturday, 11 February 2012, is the main day of action according to the map and the facts provided by stoppacta-protest.info.
The Avaaz online petition for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject ACTA has now been signed by 1.84 million citizens, and the number keeps growing every few seconds.
For a treaty which allegedly changes nothing in EU law (but perhaps something in the member states), it looks stupid to purposefully lose the respect of citizens, especially the younger generations.
Aren't the relations of the European Union with civil society bad enough as they are, without a determined effort to poison them further?
I am all for statesmen having to do the right thing, when needed. But leadership and legitimacy are not about persisting in doing the wrong thing, however efficiently.
Paradoxically, the stubborn and callous policies of the EU Commission and its repressive allies have united Europeans more than anything to date. My humble congratulations.
With the arrival of the new EP rapporteur, the need for the petitions and demonstrations has only grown greater.
Ralf Grahn
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. Is your blog already listed among the more than 900 euroblogs aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
On the face of it, yes, as @awbMaven pointed out: By themselves they're not cause 4 rejection, but it IS cause 4 IN DEPTH consideration of the issues raised imv.
Good point, but what about the wider questions of the right aims and objectives, common sense (proportionality), legitimacy and acceptance?
The Group of Socialists and Democrats (S&D) had just appointed David Martin MEP the new rapporteur for ACTA in the Committee on International Trade (INTA) in the European Parliament. Martin seemed to dismiss the widespread concerns among citizens as myths, and took a narrow, technical view of the treaty, removing ACTA from the context of the EU Commission's copyright and IPR enforcement agenda.
I was not the only one worried by the first signs from the new rapporteur, after the recent spectacular defection by Kader Arif. La Quadrature du Net asked: Will the New ACTA Rapporteur Stand For Citizens' Freedoms?
Wider issues are real concerns
The Anti-Counterfeiting (and much more) Trade Agreement ACTA has wider implications than its deceptive packaging as merely an intergovernmental trade pact and the misleading headline evoking counterfeit goods would lead us to believe.
Read the article about the wider stakes and common sense by professor Michael Kennedy, For Your Digital Freedom and Ours, mentioned in the previous Grahnlaw post (about the EU IPR enforcement agenda).
David Jolly reports from Paris for the New York Times: A New Question of Internet Freedom. The article was written for American readers, so it offers an excellent introduction to others as well, who are curious about the commotion, but do not yet know the issues.
Alexander Furnas provides a more detailed analysis in The Atlantic: Why an International Trade Agreement Could Be as Bad as SOPA. Even if some people make exaggerated assertions about ACTA, the treaty seen in context is dangerous.
Legitimacy
After the wave of protest in Central Europe, the BBC speaks about a hundred demonstrations planned for this week all over Europe. Saturday, 11 February 2012, is the main day of action according to the map and the facts provided by stoppacta-protest.info.
The Avaaz online petition for the European Parliament (and the national parliaments) to reject ACTA has now been signed by 1.84 million citizens, and the number keeps growing every few seconds.
For a treaty which allegedly changes nothing in EU law (but perhaps something in the member states), it looks stupid to purposefully lose the respect of citizens, especially the younger generations.
Aren't the relations of the European Union with civil society bad enough as they are, without a determined effort to poison them further?
I am all for statesmen having to do the right thing, when needed. But leadership and legitimacy are not about persisting in doing the wrong thing, however efficiently.
Paradoxically, the stubborn and callous policies of the EU Commission and its repressive allies have united Europeans more than anything to date. My humble congratulations.
With the arrival of the new EP rapporteur, the need for the petitions and demonstrations has only grown greater.
Ralf Grahn
P.S. For better or for worse, between the global issues and the national level, the European Union shapes our digital future and online freedoms. Is your blog already listed among the more than 900 euroblogs aggregated by multilingual Bloggingportal.eu? Are you following the debates which matter for your future?
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