What's New
on the
Statewatch website - archive: 2001
US domestic
surveillance programme: News in brief
Rules on public access to documents from
the European Commission and the European Parliament published:
FOI
in the EU
Full-text of the UK Anti-Terrorism, Crime
and Security Act: Text
Australia: New ASIO powers threaten democratic
rights (updated 23.12.01): Observatory
European Parliament allows more time
for debating the European arrest warrant - vote postponed: Report
MEPs demand European arrest warrant
vote to be postponed: Report
EU Joint investigation teams: scope
changed from tacking terrorism, drugs and illegal immigration,
to any criminal offence - "however minor": Report
The "Laeken Declaration",
15.12.01: Text
(amended 13.12.01: full-text
available) Text agreed on
Framework Decision on combating terrorism by the Council at Justice
and Home Affairs Council on 6-7 December. It will be formally
adopted later subject to three national parliament reservations
and re-consulting the European Parliament: Observatory
Text
adopted by the Council of the European Union: Framework Decision
on European arrest warrant. Italy withdrew its objection on 11
December. The Decision has to be re-submitted to the European
Parliament before it can be formally adopted by the Council:
Observatory
EU definition of "terrorism"
could still embrace protests: Report
SEMDOC legislative observatory fully updated: 10
December and includes the following items:
Title VI framework funding
programme proposed
Framework decision on racism & xenophobia proposed
EC-Hong Kong readmission agreement finalised: readmission
EU strategy papers, discussion papers and communications now
on SEMDOC
Directive amending the 1991 EC money laundering directive adopted
Ratification of international civil law treaties proposed
Belgian proposal for Decision amending Common Consular Instructions
To subscribe to the Statewatch
European Monitoring and Documentation Centre website: SEMDOC
Update of "Anti-terrorist roadmap",
dated 7 December: Observatory
A victory for civil society on the EU
definition of terrorism? Report (5.12.01)
European Ombudsman calls on the European
Parliament to take action on the Council's failure to release
documents to Statewatch: Report (5.12.01)
European Commission publishes new security rules
before its rules on the public's right of access to its documents:
Report
EU plans to extend the Schengen Information System
(SIS) to: i)
create EU database to target "suspected" protestors
and bar them from entering a country where a protest is planned;
ii) create EU database of all "foreigners" to
remove third country nationals who have not left within the "prescribed
time frame": Special Statewatch report
Commentaries on the effect on civil liberties
of the "war against terrorism" in the EU, UK and US:
Commentaries
The new Regulation of public access to
EU documents comes into operation on 3 December 2001: FOI
European Appeal:
"Democratic
rights must not become the collateral damage caused by the war
against terrorism" - Press conference, Brussels, on 3 December:
Details
Action
against terrorism must not undermine human rights, say UN High
Commissioner for human rights, Council of Europe and OSCE:
Report
Anti-Terrorism,
Crime and Security Bill: JOINT STATEMENT FROM FIVE ORGANISATIONS - FOR LORDS
COMMITTEE MONDAY: Report
Tragic death leads to
call for halt to asylum seekers snatch squads in London: Report
Majority of EU governments want a wide
definition of "terrorism", one that could include protests:
Report
Critique of the ATCS Bill by the Coalition Against
the Terrorism Act (CATA): UK
Observatory
UK Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security
Bill would give the executive unprecedented powers to bring in
EU measures on policing and sentencing without any parliamentary
debate or amendments: Special Statewatch report
European Parliament and EU governments
on a collision course over the retention of data (telecommunications
surveillance), text of Council's position: Report
EU
Forum on cybercrime: Discussion Paper for Expert’s Meeting
on Retention of Traffic Data, 6 November 2001. An informal
Working Paper prepared by the Commission services: S.O.S.Europe
UK plans for the retention of data for 12 months:
Report
- UK
to introduce data retention for 12 months under "voluntary
code"
- Power to introduce mandatory retention available too
- UK derogates from 1997 EU Directive on privacy and pre-empts
EU decision on data surveillance
Council of the European
Union maintains wider definition of "terrorism":
Report
Immigration lawyers group (ILPA) report
criticises UK anti-terrorism Bill: ILPA
Statewatch
"Observatory" in defence of freedom and democracy carries
the two latest version of the "Coordination of the implementation
of the plan of action to combat terrorism" dated 31.10.01
and 15.11.01: Observatory
Critical reports on proposed UK Anti-Terrorism,
Crime and Security Bill by UK parliamentary committee and Liberty:
Reports
European Commission's anti-hacking proposal
for "attacks against information systems": News in
brief
Italy: Immigrant
group and associations oppose "law against immigrants":
Report
Special:
Text
of US letter from Bush with
demands for EU for cooperation:
- a sweeping agenda covering unregulated and unaccountable powers
affecting criminal investigations, suspects' rights, the retention
of telecommunications data, border controls and asylum policies
"The fragile superpower - US: no longer the
land of the free", article from Le Monde diplomatique,
November 2001: Article
UK
Anti-terrorism, crime and security Bill published (updated 14.11.01):
Full-text
European
lawyers launch "Appeal": "Democratic rights must not become the
collateral damage caused by the war against terrorism":
Appeal
UK National Criminal Intelligence Service
(NCIS) publishes its "threat assessments" for 2001:
NCIS
UK government plans new law for the
retention of all telecommunications data for use by the law enforcement
agencies: Report
Statewatch's work recognised as "influential"
in the EU: EV50
Statewatch editor,
Tony Bunyan, has been selected by the European Voice newspaper
as one of the fifty most influential people in the EU over the
past year.
Police in Sicily mark Sudanese "illegals"
with numbers: Report
New version of the "anti-terrorism
roadmap" has been added to the post-11 September "Observatory"
Interception
of telecommunications in the EU: Update report
- US calls for
EU data protection to be ditched
- Council Legal Services says governments already have powers
to combat terrorism
- European Parliament committee re-affirms its report on new
directive
New
laws & practices affecting civil liberties and rights after
11 September - reactions at national level:
Report
Statewatch analyses of post-11
September EU measures affecting civil liberties and accountability:
- new measures
being rushed through are more concerned with law enforcement
than terrorism
- the creation of informal ad hoc and unaccountable "operational"
groups and data exchanges
Report
Text of US Patriot Act: Observatory
(28.10.01).
European Parliament takes Council to
court for failure to consult over new (NATO) classification code
- the "Solana Two Decision": Report Full-text: EU/NATO:
Security
Regulations
(Word 97) Security
Regulations
(pdf)
"Open letter to
the French Parliament" - Fifteen groups write on "Open
letter" to protest at the dangers to civil liberties in
proposed laws: France
UK anti-terrorism proposals include internment
for terrorist "suspects" and data retention by communications
providers: Report
Statewatch "Observatory": In
defence of freedom & democracy - New laws & practices
affecting civil liberties and rights after 11 September in the
EU, UK and US: Observatory (updated 16.10.01)
The Council of the European Union proposes
a wider definition of "terrorism" and extends it to
those who aim to "seriously.. affect..an international organisation"
(15.10.01): Report
Amnesty International: Reports on the "backlash" in
the aftermath of 11 September and "security and respect"
for human rights in the EU (15.10.01): Reports
US: ACLU "Bitterly disappointed"
in House-Senate Joint Passage of anti-terrorism legislation:
Report
"Snatch squads" being set up
in London to deport "failed asylum seekers": Report
EU Regulation
forbidding financial transactions with certain persons and entities
- EU, US & UK lists of terrorist or proscribed groups:
Report
Proposal to create EU para-military police
units to counter protests: Report
UK Terrorism Act: 21
proscribed organisations: Report
EU governments want the retention of
all telecommunications data for general use by law enforcement
agencies under terrorism plan: Report
- governments want to use new terrorism
measures to put all communications under surveillance
- governments demanding that EU data protection
and privacy laws be "revised" to allow for retention
- Statewatch report on "Data protection
and data retention in the EU?"
Ligue des droits de l'Homme (The Belgian League of Human Rights) press
release: "Deny terrorism
a second victory"
Letter from Fair Trials
Abroad on the EU arrest warrant: Letter
Identity cards: Information
and documentation from Privacy International
Council of Europe: Cybercrime Convention to be formally
adopted on 8 November: Cybercrime
Electronic Privacy Information Centre (EPIC) in
the US has produced a detailed analysis of the proposed Anti-Terrorism
Act 2001: Analysis
European NGOS concerned with privacy
and civil liberties urge European leaders to defend citizens'
freedoms: Letter
to Summit
EU to adopt new laws on terrorism: definition
of "terrorism" to cover groups with the aim of "seriously
altering... the political, economic or social structure"
of one or more countries and their institutions and includes
"urban violence": Report and
documents
UK Home Office announces
new plans to stop immigration: Immigration
Data surveillance introduced in UK and
USA - Director of Europol says: "Only by total surveillance
is there a chance of total control": Report
“Stop the TABD – Democratic
Alternatives to Neoliberal Governance” , TABD Counter-summit,
October 12-13, Stockholm
(TABD, Transatlantic Business
Dialogue): TABD
National Civil Rights Movement: International
Festival for Peace, Justice and Human Rights, 10-11 November
2001, London: News
in brief
The Statewatch searchable database has
been updated, see: New features added. The database has been
online since 1991 and is an invaluable resource for students,
researchers and journalists: search database
Initial reaction of the Belgian Presidency
of the EU on the issues to be considered at the planned intergovernmental
conference on future structures: News in brief
European Commission proposal for a Directive on
laying down minimum standards for third country nationals and
refugees COM (2001) 510, full-text: News in brief
Campsfield hunger strikers' statement,
9 September 2001: Campsfield
Press statement on the court decision
on the Oakington detention centre (pdf file): Statement
European Parliament discusses Echelon
and Genoa: Report
Statewatch bulletin vol 11 no 3/4 has
been published: Contents
Fifty new signatories
for the "Call for an Open and Democratic Europe" from
13 countries: Call
Criminalising asylum: The EU adopts the
French immigration proposals: Report
Civil society boycotts
Hague police conference on public order: Hague
Special Statewatch report
on: The "enemy within" - EU plans for the surveillance
of protestors and the criminalisation of protests which will:
1. create mechanisms for “operational” cooperation
for which there are no legal powers
2. legitimise the ongoing surveillance by “police and intelligence
officers” (internal security services) of “persons
or groups likely to pose a threat to public order and security”
3. create national databases of “troublemakers” based
on suspicion and supposition without any legal standards or data
protection and allow the unregulated exchange of this data
Report
and full documentation
European Ombudsman receives award for
work on openness and transparency: News in brief
Northern Ireland: The Pat Finucane Centre press
release on the British Government's police implementation plans:
Press release
Gothenburg: Statement from Paul Robinson
- Gothenberg prisoner: Statement
Genoa: 20
of the PublixTheatreCaravan detainees freed & Germany to
challenge Italian "expulsion orders"? Detainees
freed
Genoa: Demand for the immediate release
of members of the PublixTheatreCaravan. Protest against miscarriage
of justice and for freedom of expression, 12.8.01: Appeal
Report by Annelie Buntenbach and Hans-Christian
Ströbele, Members of the German Bundestag, on their trip
to Genoa on 25 and 26 July 2001: Report
UK police force to deploy "taser"
stun guns, including a report on: taser
technology
Report from the Human Rights Association in Turkey
on the 205 Africans dumped into the border zone between Turkey
and Greece: Turkey
Long-awaited European Commission White
Paper on "European Governance" was published on 25.7.01:
Text (pdf file)
Fair
Trials Abroad press statement on Genoa arrests: Genoa
arrests
UK, London, 31 July: Public meeting organised
by the Campaign Against Criminalising Communities (CACC) (Coalition
of groups Against Terrorism Act 2000): Communities
Speak Out Against Terrorist Ban
Statewatch wins new complaints against the Council
of the European Union: European Ombudsman decides access must
be given to the agendas of the EU-US Senior Level Group and the
EU-US Task Force: Decision
Statewatch launches Freedom of Information
in the EU site with all the background news and
documents on access to documents plus a new Observatory on case
law: FOI
Genoa, midnight Saturday 21 July: Police raid on independent
media centre and school - many injured: Report
Events leading up to the Genoa protests: raids
on social centres and left groups and clashes at the Italian
borders: Reports from the
ground
From Oldham to Bradford: The violence of the violated".
The Institute of Race Relations has today published a commentary
on the riots in Oldham, Burnley and Bradford: IRR
(pdf file)
GENOA: French government stops train from UK going
to Genoa - G8 Summit: Genoa1
EU-FBI "Requirements" on interception
of telecommunications come home to the UK through RIPA: UK
New report on the emergence of 'xeno-racism' by
the Institute of Race Relations is to be launched at the "Statewatching
the new Europe 2001" conference on 30 June: Press
release Summary and details: xeno-racism
The "law and order" lobby win
the first round on the retention of data: The Council of the
European Union agrees on the retention of telecommunications
data, the European Commission says the European Parliament must
now reject the Council's position: Council
EXCLUSIVE: EU governments
to decide on the retention of telecommunications data: the European
Commission and the EU's Data Protection Working Party strongly
oppose initiative led by the UK: Decision
time on data retention
Public order policing in Europe - policy
backlash expected: Public order
NETHERLANDS - UK: Questions ask whether the death of 58
Chinese immigrants was a "controlled delivery"? Deaths
Dounreay - An end to reprocessing? Dounreay
The first seminar on the new Regulation on access
to EU documents is being organised by the Academy of European
Law in Trier, Germany and Statewatch: Seminar
Full-text of the Turkish government's
submission to the EU on its detailed plans to meet the standards
for accession to the EU: Turkey
Echelon report by the European Parliament (from
cryptome.org) updated with 18 May version of report: Echelon
Adoption of ENFOPOL 29 ("ENFOPOL
98") delayed: S.O.S.Europe
UK Terrorism Act: 21 organisations proscribed:
Proscription
Europol corruption scandal: French Europol
official arrested for alleged fraud and money-laundering: Europol
Final version of the new EU code of access
to documents:
Netherlands
court case withdrawn & European Parliament negotiating over
access to classified documents: New Regulation
EU report shows UK, France and Belgium
are planning for communications data to be retained for 12 months: Report
Revised text (27th version) of the Council of Europe
Convention on cybercrime: CoE (Word 97, 518k)
Updated
22.5.01: Exclusive Statewatch report: EU governments to give law enforcement
agencies access to all telecommunications data: Statewatch report
* EU laws on data protection and privacy to be reviewed to meet demands of the "agencies" for access to all telecommunications content and traffic data
* The Council
of the European Union to back retention and archiving of all
phone-calls, e-mails, faxes, internet usage and websites for
up to seven years
* "ENFOPOL 98" to go through EU Justice and Home Affairs
Council at the end of May: extending surveillance to mobile phones,
internet usage and websites
* access to documents
refused because disclosure "could impede the efficiency
of ongoing deliberations"
EXCLUSIVE Statewatch report
Echelon
Committee suspicions grow: US agencies cancel appointments with
European Parliament delegation: Echelon
Postcript to the vote on the new code
of access to EU documents - "Call for an Open Europe"
to continue: Postcript updated 16.5.01
The "Call for an Open Europe"
is to continue until true openness is established in the EU:
Call
European Parliament votes in favour of
"deal" with the Council on access to EU documents -
campaign for an open and democratic Europe to continue: EP
vote
revised 4.5.01.
Leading
civil society groups send "Open letter" to all MEPs
asking them to reject the "deal" on access to EU documents
on 3 May: "Open
letter"
"Call
for an Open Europe": over two hundred sign up
Support for openness:
from 72 individuals and organisations across the EU
Full-text of Commission's original proposal
and the amendments to it by the European Parliament (to be discussed
on 2-3 May) which represents, when combined, the proposed new
Regulation on public access to EU documents: Observatory
"Brussels
stitch-up" agreed
- Council, Commission
and EP Committee agree "compromise/common text"
- Civil society groups reject "deal" between Council
and European Parliament
Press release: "OPEN LETTER from civil society on the new code of
access to documents of the EU institutions" (23.4.01)
New code on access to EU documents: Updated
23 April
"Brussels
stitch-up" on the cards
- Council and EP
rapporteurs agree "common text"
- Civil society groups reject "deal" between Council
and European Parliament
"News in brief": Repeal the
Official Secrets Act": the UK is one of the few countries
in the EU which has a law which punishes "whistle-blowers"
and journalists and others who receive "leaked" information
on state activities. A campaign has been launched to repeal it:
ROSA
European Commission press release on a proposal to limit the right of freedom of movement for the peoples in the country scheduled to join the EU for the first seven years: Press release
European Commission programme announced for "conflict resolution", which is a mixture of the sensible and the interventionist (ie: in the EU interests): Conflict resolution
Journalists Condemn Secrecy in American Trade Talks: "Threat To Foundations of Democracy". The world's largest journalists' group, the International Federation of Journalists, today condemned a "sinister process of secrecy" that has excluded civil society groups and citizens from negotiations on a new trade agreement between 34 countries to be discussed at the Summit of the Americas in Quebec next week: FTAA
Exclusive: Where now for accountability
in the EU? - "sanitised" annual report on Europol -
arbitrary decision discontinues Schengen annual reports - chair
of EP itizens' Freedoms and Rights Committee demands full report:
Report
The SEMDOC legislative observatory on
justice and home affairs in the EU has now been updated, see: What's
new ("What's
New" is accessible but this is a subscriber site so to see
details), go to get: Access
The UK government's plans to expand the police
DNA database comes under attack from the Human Genetics Commission:
Human Genetics Commission: News
in brief
New Council draft code undermines current rights
of access: New draft
Highly critical report on CoE draft cyber
crime Convention by EU data protection advisers: News online
European Federation of Journalists call
for an end to secret negotiations and a "fresh start"
on the new code of access to EU documents: "Fresh
start"
The fourth version of the European Parliament's
draft report on the new code of access to EU documents plus a
critique of it has been added to the Observatory on access:
Observatory
Validity of secret "trilogue"
meetings over new code of access to EU documents thrown into
question: Report
Statewatch to get award for its work
on EU openness: Award
Fourth version of the Cashman/Maij-Weggen
(PSE/PPE) report for the European Parliament on the new code
of access to EU documents dated 22 March 2001: Observatory
on access to EU documents
The SEMDOC legislative observatory on
justice and home affairs in the EU has now been updated (21.3.01).
This is the most comprehensive source of information on measures
going through or adopted (currently over 130 meaures) It cover
measures the Council and the European Commission and responses
of the European Parliament - many links to the full-text of proposals
and reports: SEMDOC legislative observatory This is a subscriber
site, to get: Access
The Statewatch database has been updated:
Search
database
(22.3.01)
Council Decisions: 1) gives EU member
states a "veto" over access to documents 2) new Solana
classification code will "contaminate" access: Decisions
Hautala v. Council: Partial access
to documents: News online
New draft of the Council of Europe Convention
on cyber-crime: News in brief
(13.3.01) Statewatch wins two new complaints:
European Ombudsman decision breaches "space to think":
European
Ombudsman
(13.3.01) New issue of
Statewatch bulletin covers: EU-FBI surveillance plan/DNA
database plans/the Criminal Justice and Police Bill/the Schengen
Information System/Crowd control tecnologies and much more, for
full contents see: Statewatch bulletin
"UK parliament report slams the "Solana
Decision" on access to EU documents: Report
"Trilogue" talks start again
- call by civil society groups for an end to secret negotiations:
Trilogue
II
"Trilogue" discussions collapse
with no agreement - 1st May deadline will not be met: Trilogue
"Lawfully
Authorised Electronic Surveillance", standards for interception
prepared by the US telecommunications industry (it is a large
495k pdf file): News in brief
Interception Requirements Get Dutch Internet
Providers Into Trouble: News in brief
DCS1000: The device formerly known as
Carnivore has been renamed: Carnivore
Seminar on access to EU documents, 27
February, Brussels: Seminar
UK Prime Minister and Home Secretary
argue: Refugees
and asylum-seekers: no, "legal migration": yes and critics take them to task:
Migration
ECAS
press release on new code of access: press release
Access to documents: New draft shows how far the EU is from
real freedom of information
UK Prime Minister argues: Refugees and
asylum-seekers: NO, "legal migration": YES: No to refugees
See News in Brief for: reports on World Social Forum meeting
and report by Human Rights Watch on Greek Immigration Bill
EU institutions to hold
"trilogue" meetings
to try and sort a "compromise"
on their different versions of the new code of access: trilogue (news,
22.1.01)
Report from the Canadian
Security and Intelligence Service: "Anti-globalisation - a spreading phenomenon" and article from Le Monde Diplomatique
on the debate:
"Frightening
the free marketeers"
Code of access to EU documents for civil
society launched: Our code
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