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[Debate] Act now! The future of EU Internet may be sealed tonight.
La Quadrature du Net - For immediate release
Permanent link: http://www.laquadrature.net/en/act-now-the-future-of-eu-internet-may-be-sealed-tonight
Act now to save Net neutrality!
*** Brussels, September 28th - The first conciliation meeting on the Telecoms Package will take place tonight at 9:30PM. In this meeting, 27 Members of the European Parliament and 27 representatives of the Council of EU will decide on the future of Internet in Europe. They will choose whether to fix or maintain the dreadful anti-Net neutrality dispositions voted in second reading by the Parliament, under the influence of AT&T. Rapporteurs and representatives of the Swedish Presidency opposed this idea so far. European citizens only have a few hours to urge MEPs to preserve Europe's innovation, competition, and citizen's fundamental rights. ***
The inaugural meeting of Conciliation phase on the Telecoms Package will gather 27 Members of the European Parliament delegation, and 27 representatives of the ministers of the Member States, on Monday, September 28th, at 9:30PM. During this procedure, the whole European regulatory framework of the Internet will be negotiated. In the first meeting, members of the committe will decide on the crucial perimeter of the negotiations. From this decision will depend the fate of Net neutrality in Europe.
So far, the rapporteur Catherine Trautmann and the minister in charge for the Swedish Presidency Åsa Torstensson expressed their will to deal only with the "amendment 138", which the Council wants to get rid of [1]. This would mean that the dreadful provisions allowing operators to kill Net neutrality in order to get control of the Internet [2]. These provisions allowing for limiting access to Internet services and applications, voted in second reading under influence by AT&T [3], would then become law in Europe.
"Trautmann and Torstensson are trying to make everyone believe that Net neutrality should be dealt separately, after the Telecoms Package, but this is just a bad excuse. They know that Net neutrality is already in the Telecoms Package, because AT&T amendments allows operators to kill it to take control of the Net. They must admit it and do what is best for Europe's competitiveness and citizens's fundamental rights, at any cost. Internet is much more important for the future of our societies than the efficiency of the EU legislative process." explains Jérémie Zimmermann, spokesperson for citizen advocacy group La Quadrature du Net.
Citizens from all Member States have a few hours left to call all the Members of the European Parliament delegation in the conciliation committee [4]. They can find arguments in the letter sent to them by La Quadrature [5] along with the Open letter [6] signed by more than 70 NGOs across 15 Member States (including ISOC, CCC, Reporters without Borders, and major consumers unions) , in a 2-pager memo and in a complete 22-pages dossier about Net neutrality.
"Conciliation must leave room for a clear legislative statement affirming that the fundamental principles of a non-discriminatory Internet have higher status than the short-term convenience of specific interest business models. It is very important that citizens who love the Internet act together now. We need to use this unique opportunity to help European lawmakers avoid making an irremediable mistake. " concludes Zimmermann.
* Références *
1. Amendment 138 states that restrictions to fundamental rights and freedoms such as access to the Internet must be subject to a prior ruling by the judicial authority. This was confirmed by a decision of the highest French jurisdiction, the Consitutional council, on the "three strikes" policy. The Council added that "In the current state of the means of communication and given the generalized development of public online communication services and the importance of the latter for the participation in democracy and the expression of ideas and opinions, this right implies freedom to access such services."
2. Located in Articles 20.1.b and 21.3.b of the Universal Service Directive, it allows for "conditions limiting access to and/or use of services and applications".
3. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/08/technology/08iht-neutral.1.20669185.html?_r=1
4. A specific campagne page: http://www.laquadrature.net/wiki/Call_conciliation_MEPs_sept28
5. http://www.laquadrature.net/files/LaQuadratureduNet-20090928-Letter_to_the_conciliation_committee_MEPs.pdf
6. Open letter "We must save Net neutrality!" with full list of signatories: http://www.laquadrature.net/en/we-must-protect-net-neutrality-in-europe-open-letter-to-the-european-parliament
** About la Quadrature du Net **
La Quadrature du Net (Squaring the Net) is citizen group informing about legislative projects menacing civil liberties as well as economic and social development in the digital age.
La Quadrature du Net informs citizens, public authorities, organizations, corporations.
It works with everyone to elaborate balanced alternative solutions.
La Quadrature du Net is supported by French, european and international NGOs including the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the Open Society Institute and Privacy International.
List of supporting organisations : http://www.laquadrature.net/en/they-support-squaring-net-la-quadrature-du-net
** Press contact and press room **
Jérémie Zimmermann, jz@laquadrature.net, +33 (0)615 940 675
http://www.laquadrature.net/en/press-room
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