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European Parliament Committee Rejects ACTA Delay as MEPs Seek to “Bury” the Agreement

March 28, 2012

The European Parliament’s INTA Committee yesterday soundly rejected a proposal to refer the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement to the European Court of Justice for review. ACTA critics viewed the proposal as a delay tactic designed with the hope that public opposition to the agreement would subside in the year or two it would take for a court review. The 21-5 vote against the motion means that the INTA committee will conclude its ACTA review later this spring with a full European Parliament vote expected in June or July. The lack of support for ACTA within the European Parliament is now out in the open with multiple parties indicating they will not support the agreement. For example, MEP Bernd Lange stated:

Today’s decision not to ask for legal advice from the Court of Justice is the first sign that this Parliament is ready to reject ACTA. It was a mistake from the beginning to put counterfeit goods and internet content in the same agreement. The European Parliament was not involved in the negotiations and now we are asked to say either yes or no, without the possibility of amending the shortcomings. We cannot support the text as it is. ACTA will probably be buried before the summer.

There were similar comments from other MEPs, who, after being shut out of the ACTA process for years, are now unwilling to delay voting on the agreement within the next few months. I spoke at the INTA Committee workshop on ACTA earlier this month – the sense the European Parliament would reject ACTA was openly discussed then – and my report on the agreement should be released shortly.

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8 Comments

  1. pat donovan says:
    March 28, 2012 at 10:17 am

    backdoor
    things slip thru congress in late night secret vote sessions… on unread bills.

    I see the demonstrations in europe getting an upgrade to lynch-mobs soon.

    packrat

  2. Anarchist Philanthropist says:
    March 28, 2012 at 10:26 am

    Why do we even bother with governing systems like this?? They always end up failing or being corrupted by the corporations.

  3. Chris Brand says:
    March 28, 2012 at 12:16 pm

    At last
    “It was a mistake from the beginning to put counterfeit goods and internet content in the same agreement” – what a relief to hear a politician say that. Of course the reality is that it was more like “subterfuge” than “a mistake”, but so many politicians seem to have fallen for it…

  4. ENO says:
    March 28, 2012 at 12:26 pm

    Meanwhile in Germany…
    The German Pirate Party has won four seats in Saarland, one of the smallest regions in Germany, described as a “conservative area.”
    boingboing: http://bit.ly/GXcVZb

    The Pirate Party managed to get 7.4 percent of the votes, with 35,646 votes.
    PcWorld: http://bit.ly/GQFPx8

  5. Crockett says:
    March 28, 2012 at 12:29 pm

    Too bad Canada signed onto the agreement already, but with the EU rejection and the US congress demanding to have their say the probability of this agreement being fully ratified is starting to look dim.

    +1 for the people and common sense. In the future perhaps a more open inclusive process of treaty negotiations can produce usable legislation … dreamer, I know.

  6. Jailtime says:
    March 28, 2012 at 10:35 pm

    there i fixed it
    corporate lobbying, and corporations even communicating with government officials, should be made illegal – world-wide. problem solved.

  7. Doug Webb says:
    March 29, 2012 at 4:56 am

    I heard music floating on the air
    but it was quickly shut down by rights holders.