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Procedure : 2012/2094(INI)
Document stages in plenary
Document selected : A7-0374/2012

Texts tabled :

A7-0374/2012

Debates :

PV 10/12/2012 - 24
CRE 10/12/2012 - 24

Votes :

PV 11/12/2012 - 8.5
Explanations of votes
Explanations of votes

Texts adopted :

P7_TA(2012)0470

Verbatim report of proceedings
Monday, 10 December 2012 - Strasbourg Revised edition

24. A digital freedom strategy in EU foreign policy (short presentation)
Video of the speeches
Minutes
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  La Présidente. - L'ordre du jour appelle le rapport de Marietje Schaake sur une stratégie pour la liberté numérique dans la politique étrangère de l'Union [2012/2094(INI)] (A7-0374/2012).

 
  
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  Marietje Schaake, rapporteur. − Madam President, this report is mainly directed at High Representative Ashton and her External Action Service. Technological developments have a revolutionary impact on the lives of people all over the world. Several EU Member States, and the United Nations, have now identified access to the Internet as an enabler of fundamental rights, and the Commission agrees that digital freedoms are part of the Copenhagen criteria.

Initial policy steps through the European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights and the No Disconnect Strategy are welcome, but we need to be much more ambitious. Tomorrow, we vote for the first strategy to mainstream technologies into the EU’s external actions. I am not suggesting over-regulation – that would hurt the open Internet – but in some policy areas rules are needed and need to be updated to match the revolutionary impact of technological developments with adequate democratic oversight.

The Commission is working on a cyber security plan which this Parliament is eagerly awaiting, but let us ensure that there is no zero-sum game between cyber security and digital freedoms. We must put people first. The struggle for human rights has a growing technology component: prisons are increasingly populated by dissidents confronted with their own Internet and mobile communications having been compromised by the authorities. People facing repression deserve EU support, and in any case should not be targeted with tools and technologies developed and exported from within the EU. Promoting and defending human rights also means enabling people to circumvent mass censorship and to evade cyber attacks.

While the recent EU export bans on repressive technologies to Syria and Iran are important ad hoc sanctions, generally, more transparency and accountability are needed. Technologies, tools or services custom-made for targeted human rights violations should be categorised separately, as single-use technologies, and should be restricted. An EU law for intercept standards without the context of the rule of law loses all meaning.

In trade agreements, but also in development assistance, we need to include digital freedoms in conditionalities and to enforce them. There are a lot of opportunities in EU development policies: we can bridge the digital divide, build and install basic ICT infrastructures, provide people with access to knowledge and information, and enable online education in remote areas.

In the first critical hours after natural disasters or during humanitarian crises, ad hoc emergency mobile and Internet connections should be set up. ICTs are also essential for effective citizen election monitoring. In turning these opportunities into actions we must be vigilant and recall that the EU cannot credibly promote or protect digital freedoms in the world if they are not safeguarded at home.

European companies should be reminded of their corporate social responsibilities. We need human rights impact assessments in the R&D phase and must implement the concept of human rights by design. The External Action Service should take the lead in globally promoting and protecting digital freedoms by synergising trade, security and foreign policies, and by aligning our EU values and interests. We need to do justice to the new reality that technological developments create and update our laws and regulations to mainstream digital freedom.

Presidents, governments cannot do this alone and the private sector has increasing responsibilities. The Internet is now governed by a so-called multi-stakeholder approach which developed organically into a network of public and private stakeholders. This model can only function when it is inclusive, including small businesses, Internet users and consumers, who need a seat at the table. We must consider the Internet public and public interests.

I would like to thank the shadows who contributed to this and all the stakeholders who gave their input to the discussion paper. This report was crowd-sourced, which is another reminder of how technology can assist democracy, and create more openness and participation within the EU too.

 
  
 

Interventions à la demande

 
  
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  Silvia-Adriana Ţicău (S&D). - Strategia privind libertatea digitală în politica externă a Uniunii Europene recunoaşte că accesul necenzurat la internetul deschis, telefoanele mobile, comunicaţiile şi tehnologia informaţiei au avut un real impact asupra drepturilor omului şi libertăţilor fundamentale.

Tehnologia informaţiei şi comunicaţiile facilitează transparenţa şi buna guvernanţă, alfabetizarea, educaţia, asistenţa, monitorizarea eficientă a alegerilor şi ajutorul în caz de dezastre, în special în zone izolate şi în societăţi în curs de dezvoltare. Politicile eficiente ale Uniunii Europene de dezvoltare şi cele în domeniul drepturilor omului necesită integrarea tehnologiei informaţiilor şi a comunicaţiilor şi diminuarea decalajului digital prin furnizarea de infrastructuri tehnologice de bază, prin facilitarea accesului la cunoştinţe şi la informaţii şi prin promovarea competenţelor digitale în întreaga lume. Programele de dezvoltare ale Uniunii şi cele privind drepturile omului ar trebui să includă programe de ajutor care să promoveze libertăţile digitale, mai ales în ţări nedemocratice, precum şi în ţări aflate într-o perioadă de tranziţie politică sau în situaţii post-conflict.

 
  
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  Seán Kelly (PPE). - A Uachtaráin, ba mhaith liom comhghairdeas a ghabháil leis an rapóirtéir arís. Cé go bhfuil sé déanach, tá an t-ábhar seo tábhachtach mar baineann sé le saoirse an duine – an rud is tábhachtaí ar fad i saol aon duine.

Freedom, regardless of what type of freedom we are talking about, is fundamental for all human beings, particularly with the growth of the Internet where in recent years we have seen the upside of it and the downside of it. It is good that it is recognised as a fundamental right for people in Europe, but we must try and get that established right across the globe. The downside is that we see cyber bullying, cyber attacks on businesses and on national states, and of course we see the control that fundamentalist regimes in particular try to exercise over their people. All this has to be guarded against, and the European Union has a very important role to play in ensuring that there is digital freedom as part of our EU foreign policy. That is very important for us.

 
  
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  Jaroslav Paška (EFD). - Intenzívny rozvoj digitálneho sveta otvoril nové možnosti šíreniu informácií, čo v slobodnom demokratickom svete považujeme za dôležitú vymoženosť. Pre autoritatívne režimy však otvorený necenzurovaný prenos informácií predstavuje vážnu komplikáciu pri ovládaní spoločnosti. Preto treba prirodzene očakávať, že takéto režimy sa pokúsia v rámci svojej regionálnej pôsobnosti obmedziť otvorenosť digitálneho priestoru a ovládnuť tok informácií tak, aby vedeli ovládať spoločnosť, ktorú spravujú. Ja si nerobím ilúzie o tom, že by sme dokázali technickými embargami zabrániť takým krajinám, ako je napríklad Čína, aby uplatňovali svoju politiku pri správe internetových sietí. Myslím si však, že musíme v zahraničnej politike predovšetkým pôsobiť na tieto režimy, usilovať sa ich presvedčiť o tom, že spoločnosť sa má vyvíjať slobodne, a takýmto spôsobom bude aj čínska spoločnosť slobodnejšia a bezpečnejšia.

 
  
 

(Fin des interventions à la demande)

 
  
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  Tonio Borg, Member of the Commission. − Madam President, I welcome the report by Ms Schaake on a digital freedom strategy in EU foreign policy, because it is a very appropriate subject. I was Foreign Minister in my country for a number of years before I became a Commissioner, so I can appreciate the importance of this subject as part of the overall foreign policy of the EU.

The report is a timely one. It contributes to the European Union’s work on human rights and digital freedom, development, internet governance, trade and security. The European Union is committed to promote human rights, in particular using the link – as we saw in the Arab Spring – between new technologies and human rights as important avenues for promoting democracy.

We share Parliament’s view that uncensored access to the open internet, mobile phones and ICT are important in safeguarding human rights. The internet has provided a forum for the free exercise of human rights and empowered people in their quest for more just societies, as we saw in the revolutions in North Africa – despite the serious incidents curbing internet access which we have witnessed recently.

The European Union will continue to send clear political messages in response to the worrying trend of increased internet censorship. For instance, in the United Nations Third Committee on Human Rights in New York on 6 December this month, the European Union deplored the trend of increased censorship and condemned restriction on the internet.

The EU Strategic Framework for Human Rights foresees, in its Action Plan, actions to build on work already conducted, including in the framework of the so-called ‘No Disconnect’ Strategy, which was created to uphold the EU’s commitment to ensure that the internet can remain a driver of political freedom, democratic development and economic growth.

The EU has also adopted sanctions prohibiting the export of these technologies to Syria and Iran, to prevent authoritarian regimes from using them to crack down on human rights defenders. Further internal discussions are taking place in the framework of the revision of the EU’s Security Export Control Policy regarding the possibility of extending export controls to certain materials that might be used for internet monitoring and/or telecommunication surveillance in violation of human rights.

At the recent meeting of the Internet Governance Forum in Baku, the EU – along with Members of this Parliament – stood united in defending the principle that restrictions on fundamental freedoms of whatever kind and wherever they take place are unacceptable, within the EU’s borders and globally. By the end of April next year, we shall issue specific guidelines for ICT/telecommunications companies on the corporate responsibility to respect human rights. They will be based on the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights – the so-called Ruggie principles.

Trade policy deserves special consideration in this regard. Our trade agreements are instrumental in the promotion of European values and human rights. The European External Action Service and the Commission services are committed to mainstreaming the protection and promotion of digital freedoms in all the EU’s external actions, while preparing a joint communication on cyber-security.

We are working to ensure a common position in the ongoing World Conference on International Telecommunications. The EU will increase its efforts to engage in international forums such as the UN, the Council of Europe and the OSCE in promoting an open, secure and safe internet. We welcome the report’s emphasis on the importance of an overall EU strategy for internet governance. The EU should lead by example through the implementation of its policy, and it provides financial support to a large number of projects and to civil society organisations via the European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights.

Finally, the EU has the potential to play a decisive role in preserving a robust and innovative internet, which will continue to flourish if private sector innovation and civil society drive its growth and development.

 
  
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  La Présidente. - Le débat est clos.

Le vote aura lieu mardi 11 décembre 2012, à 12 heures.

 
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