Archive
European Commission wants common rules on “registration and certification” for Mediterranean search and rescue organisations
A "Draft Roadmap towards a 'European Framework for Operational Cooperation on Search and Rescue in the Mediterranean Sea'," obtained by Statewatch and published here, indicates that the European Commission is aiming for "standardisation/convergence of registration and certification rules on private vessels carrying out SAR [search and rescue] as their predominant activity." This could be used to hinder the activities of search and rescue organisations. Read More
European Commission: “the content is the crime,” so let’s break encryption
The EU's proposed Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) Regulation is perfectly legal, the European Commission has argued, in response to the Council Legal Service's arguments that the "detection orders" set out in the proposal would be illegal. Read More
Frontex takes the lead on deportations
EU border agency Frontex has recently sought to take on a more prominent role in deportations, and has been testing the possibility of organising the "initiative, destination, date," amongst other tasks - roles previously reserved for national authorities. Read More
EU rules allowing “exceptional” use of spyware against journalists need “fine-tuning”
Agreement within the Council on the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) is "very close", according to a recent document circulated by the Swedish Presidency - but provisions on the "exceptional" use of spyware against journalists are still the subject of discussions. Read More
EU: Tracking the Pact: Compromise texts, member state comments, “balance between solidarity and responsibility”
Council documents detailing the state of play with the Asylum Procedure Regulation (including comments from the member states), the Asylum and Migration Management Regulation, and a Presidency discussion paper on the "balance between solidarity and responsibility". Read More
Development of EU border police watchlist is “progressing well”
The development of a new watchlist for “identifying connections” between people seeking authorization to travel to the EU and terrorist or criminal suspects is “progressing well”, according to a Europol report obtained by Statewatch. Read More
Europol data deals with violent police forces need “strong data protection safeguards”
Proposed data-sharing deals between Europol and five states in Central and South America needs explicit safeguards if they are to uphold fundamental rights, the European Data Protection Supervisor said at the beginning of May. Police forces in those states have brutal records of violence and torture. Read More
Open Letter to the Spanish Presidency of the Council of the European Union: Ensuring the protection of fundamental rights on the AI Act
With the European Parliament and Council of the EU heading for secret trilogue negotiations on the Artificial Intelligence Act, an open letter signed by 61 organisations - including Statewatch - calls on the Spanish Presidency of the Council to make amendments to the proposal that will ensure the protection of fundamental rights. Read More
Detention of children: European Court of Human Rights rules against France 11 times
On 4 May 2023, the European Court of Human Rights delivered three rulings concerning the confinement of families with children in administrative detention centres (CRA). These rulings concern seven children, aged between seven months and thirteen years, who were locked up in 2020 and 2021 at the Mesnil-Amelot and Metz detention centres. Read More
Tracking the Pact: Detention of children and families for the asylum “border procedure”
The Council of the EU wants to simplify the detention of families and children for the purposes of processing asylum applications at the borders. Read More