Leden Europese Parlement: aanzetten tot terrorisme is een misdaad, maar fundamentele rechten moeten wel gewaarborgd blijven (en)

The fight against terrorism must not constrain freedom of expression, said the European Parliament Civil Liberties Committee in a report it approved on Tuesday on a Commission proposal to include three new offences in European law: public incitement to commit terrorist offences, recruitment for terrorism, and terrorist training.

Aiming to produce a balanced text that can best serve those seeking to prevent radicalisation and the emergence of potential terrorists whilst affording maximum protection to fundamental rights, MEPs adopted a consultation report by Ms Roselyne Lefrançois (PES, FR) with 35 votes in favour, 4 against and one abstention.

Tighter definition of public incitement

MEPs first sought to clarify the definition of "public provocation". This initially used term was replaced by "public incitement", as being clearer and more widely used in legal language.

Furthermore, where the proposal would have made it a criminal offence to make available to the public any message intended to incite the commission of a terrorist act, MEPs specified that this conduct would be an offence only if it created a "genuine" danger and not just a "hypothetical" one.

Explicit safeguard clauses

MEPs also inserted safeguards, throughout the text, for fundamental freedoms and in particular freedom of expression. These provisions took up the safeguard clause already present in the Council of Europe Convention, which the Commission had left out of its proposal.

The approved report also reiterates the need to abide by the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and the European Convention on Human Rights.

Finally, it stresses that the framework decision must not prevent the airing of radical, polemic or controversial views, even on terrorism and that the contents of private communications such as e-mail must be protected.

14/07/2008

In the chair : Gérard DEPREZ (ALDE, BE)

Procedure: consultation. Plenary session: September I, Strasbourg