Piracy pact shot down
A large majority of European parliamentarians, among them all the Maltese MEPs, have shot down the controversial global pact to battle counterfeiting and online piracy, known as Acta. In a widely expected result, only 165 MEPs voted in favour of the...
A large majority of European parliamentarians, among them all the Maltese MEPs, have shot down the controversial global pact to battle counterfeiting and online piracy, known as Acta.
In a widely expected result, only 165 MEPs voted in favour of the proposal, against the 478 who threw it out.
The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (Acta) had been signed by 22 of the 27 EU member states, including Malta, as well as the US and Japan.
It faced strong global resistance. In Malta, a demonstration against it was held in Valletta and in its wake Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi had said the government would present a Bill to safeguard the people’s rights to use the internet.
In welcoming the overwhelming vote against Acta, Labour MEP Edward Scicluna said this was a victory for freedom on the internet.
“Intellectual property is one of most valuable commodities of the European economy and we need to have clear rules to protect the rights of authors and performers,” Prof. Scicluna said.
Likewise, Nationalist MEPs Simon Busuttil and David Casa said they voted against because they could not agree with the pact in its current form.
“After six months of serious examination of the text of the agreement in the European Parliament, we came to the conclusion that the current text does not offer sufficient safeguards to internet freedom.”
The thumbs down to the proposed pact was also welcomed by Alternattiva Demokratika. Spokesman Ralph Cassar said the rejection was the “just and democratic” response to the mass mobilisation by citizens across Europe against Acta.