ALDE: EU must ensure genuine press freedom and data protection

On the evening of 11 September, as requested by the ALDE group, the European Parliament will debate the threats to media freedom and surveillance of citizens, based on last month's detention in the UK - under Section 7 of the Terrorist Act 2000 - of David Miranda, partner of Guardian journalist Glenn Greenwald. 

"Media freedom is a vital element and a pre-condition for a genuine democracy. Any form of harassment or intimidation of journalists is something we expect from authoritarian regimes, not from western democracies. Unfortunately though, in recent years, we have being witnessing a progressive dismantling of the rule of law and fundamental rights across Europe. The same Europe that wants to be the global beacon of freedom and democracy," said Sophie In't Veld (pictured) (D66, Netherlands), Vice-President of Parliament's Civil Liberties Committee and specialist on data privacy issues.

"More than ever we need checks and balances to avoid a chilling effect. More than ever we need European standards for the protection of press freedom and a strict enforcement by the European Commission".  "When we recall that in some countries people take to the streets, give their lives even, in order to obtain freedom and democracy, we should be ashamed that journalists in Europe might no longer feel safe to publish their articles here".

In't Veld added: "We must condemn in the strongest possible terms any abuse of counter terrorism laws by any EU country and deny them the possibility to cover up with legalese".  "We must also condemn any abuse of surveillance of citizens. Secret services have become a state within a state. But who checks on them? Secret laws, secret courts, secret budgets: no, this is not North Korea but western democracies.  We must provide our citizens with the certainty that their fundamental rights, such as data protection, are duly guaranteed. We should start by suspending the EU-US TFTP agreement," she concluded.

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