Last week the European Commission said it will ask the Court of Justice of the EU to clarify whether the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement and its implementation are fully compatible with freedom of expression and freedom of the internet.
Now a leading MEP has recommended that the European Parliament refers issues relating to ACTA to the Court of Justice separately and not together with the European Commission’s referral.
Recent demonstrations and bloggers’ activities across Europe have forced the issue high up the political agenda and the process of ratifying ACTA itself is slowing down in a number of countries.
The latest manifestation of unease about the deal among politicians came in the European Parliament in Brussels today, when MEPs were presented with a petition signed by about 2.4 million internet users asking them not to agree to ACTA’s ratification. The European Parliament has the power to reject ACTA as far as the EU as a whole is concerned.
The European Parliament’s Committee for International Trade, which is the lead committee on this issue, will discuss ACTA on February 29. The committee’s rapporteur, David Martin (Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats, UK), told journalists today that he expected the Court to treat the issue as “a high priority” but that it would take “a year minimum before the Court comes back on it”.
He noted that the Commission says that ACTA does not change the rules but added that he wants the Commission to issue guidance and implementation measures.
Speaking personally rather than as the rapporteur, he said he had “no interest in criminalising individual consumers” such as teenagers who download music without authorisation. He argued that there is already an obligation on internet service providers to take action if it receives complaints about an illegal website.
“If ACTA criminalises individuals for illegal downloads, I’d find it impossible to support ACTA in these circumstances,” he concluded.
