The data spying scandal has been a subject of discussion for several months now, however, no concrete action had been taken. In view of this, the European Parliament adopted a resolution which condemns spying by the US National Security Agency (NSA) on EU citizens.
Although this is a non-binding resolution, MEPs are trying to use every means possible to exert pressure on member states and the European Commission. The resolution is based on the findings of an inquiry by the European Parliament which looked into the mass surveillance allegations. These allegations emerged last year after Edward Snowden, who sought asylum, leaked information about NSA activities.
The evidence which led to the adoption of this resolution included a written response from Snowden. He answered a number of questions by MEPs and explained how the US attempted to manipulate EU member state intelligence agencies against each other. He also wrote that NSA was carefully looking into constitutional protection and laws in order to find loopholes which can be used to justify their activities.
As representatives of EU citizens, MEPs have expressed their concerns and called on member states and the European Commission to suspend existing agreements with the US, which mostly relate to internet privacy and sharing of bank data. The resolution shows that, in particular, the agreement known as Safe Harbour should be replaced. In fact, MEPs held that the principles entrenched in this agreement do not offer adequate protection for EU citizens.
MEPs have also voiced their concerns over the Terrorist Finance Tracking Programme (TFTP) deal. While the fight against terrorism is important, MEPs have argued that this should not serve as a justification for illegal or secret mass surveillance.
Due to the serious allegations that US authorities accessed bank data outside this agreement, MEPs have called for its suspension until all is clarified. The European Parliament insisted that in EU-US relations, there should be specific negotiations for data protection. Thus, it should be left out of EU-US free-trade talks and negotiated separately.
MEPs acknowledged the fact that the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership agreement (TTIP) is “of major strategic importance for creating further economic growth”. However, it was argued that, since the digital economy is an important component in EU-US relations, if mass surveillance does not stop, the whole deal will put at risk. This is due to the fact that if there is no adequate solution to address the situation, the Parliament would consider not giving its consent to the final TTIP agreement. In the resolution, MEPs continued to stress that the European Parliament may only give its consent if there is full protection and respect for fundamental rights and that protection of privacy is ensured.
Concerned MEPs have called for existing agreements with the US to be suspended
Although the resolution was approved, it faced resistance from the European Conservatives and Reformists group (ECR). In fact, some members of the ECR argued that this was just an irrational and expensive exercise. However, a valid counter argument is that the European Parliament has taken a proactive approach and looked into these allegations, something which cannot be said for certain institutions and member states.
The European Commissioner for Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship, Viviane Reding, agreed that the resolution should be a lasting element in the next Parliament. Indeed, this resolution is not an end in itself but it can rather be considered as a starting point.
One must also understand these developments in the context of the data protection reform, which was initiated by the European Commission and has already been discussed at a committee level within the European Parliament.
This reform is intended to enhance protection and confidence when using online services and to also ease the access to the internal market.
By adopting this resolution, the European Parliament has shown that it keeps EU citizens rights at heart and that it will not remain idle when violations are revealed.
David Casa is a Nationalist MEP.