A joint resolution on Transparency and State of Play of ACTA negotiations from virtually all party groups in the European Parliament was tabled earlier today. It will debated tonight and faces a vote on Wednesday. If approved, the resolution marks a major development in the fight over ACTA transparency. It calls for public access to negotiation texts and rules out further confidential negotiations. Moreover, the EP wants a ban on imposing a three-strikes model, assurances that ACTA will not result in personal searchers at the border, and an ACTA impact assessment on fundamental rights and data protection. The full resolution:
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Joint European Parliament ACTA Transparency Resolution Tabled, Vote on Wednesday
European ACTA Pressure Intensifies: Transparency Demands, EP Resolution
Europe has become the centre of a storm over the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement. Late last week, the Government of Sweden announced that the European Union was now uniformally seeking ACTA transparency. The announcement came just days after the Dutch leak that identified the specific countries opposed to a transparent approach. The revelations appear to have had a significant impact as all European Union countries are now said to support release of the ACTA text.
This week the issue hits the European Parliament that includes an ACTA debate on Tuesday, followed by a landmark resolution that will be on the table on Wednesday. At the moment, there are two competing resolutions. One resolution promoted by an alliance of the Liberal and Green Party, includes the following:
Detailed Interview on ACTA With Richard Poynder
Richard Poynder, who covers open access issues in great detail, has posted a detailed interview with me on ACTA and its implications for open access and IP policy.
Haggart on ACTA Transparency in Mexico
Blayne Haggart offers some insight into the fight for ACTA transparency in Mexico.
Clement on Copyright: A Made-in-Canada Approach
In the immediate aftermath of yesterday's Speech from the Throne, some copyright watchers claimed that it foreshadowed the return of a Canadian DMCA, pointing to language that promises to "strengthen laws governing intellectual property and copyright." While the return of Bill C-61 is a possibility, comments from Industry Minister Tony Clement immediately afterward suggest that he is not a mirror image of his predecessor Jim Prentice.
Clement has spoken frequently on the need for forward-looking legislation and launched a major copyright consultation effort last summer. Yesterday, he was asked specifically about copyright and U.S. claims that Canada is a copyright outlaw on CTV's Power Play. His response:
I've been pretty clear to the Americans and in my public statements that we are moving ahead with copyright reform. The key is, from the American perspective, they want us to be part of WIPO, which is an international treaty on protecting intellectual property. We don't have a problem with that, but we're going to do it in a made-in-Canada way. We're not just going to take what the Americans are doing or what the Europeans are doing. We are going to fit it to the Canadian context and I think that is the right thing to do.
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