[pp.int.general] Request for common press release

[Jan Huwald]

Hi Pirates,

I request a common press release of the European pirates to the following 
topic. I would come forward to write a first draft, but before I'd like to 
hear your thoughts abut:

Today in Germany a future terror attack has been "prevented". After this, not 
only German antiterror fundamentalists praised their roadmap deeper into the 
surveillance state, also Franco Frattini did. In contrast to local 
politicians his voice may also be heard in your media.

Frattinis speech:
http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=SPEECH/07/505&format=PDF&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en

The contents of his speech are:
* balance "fundamental right to security of citizens" against "other 
fundamental rights ... including privacy and procedural rights"
* set up a central explosives database
* criminalize deployment of instructions related to building bombs and 
terrorism
* use PNR data within Europe for prosecution & prevention
* claims that EU is as much target for terrorism as USA => argues that we need 
to adopt their level of surveillance/control
* complains about resistance against anti terror measures in parlament, etc.


My comments about (and possible content for the press release):

* balance "fundamental right to security of citizens" against "other 
fundamental rights ... including privacy and procedural rights"
-> it is not suitable to balance one right (anti terror measures) against 
_all_ other; it is an offense to subsume privacy under "other rights"
-> the right for security is no fundamental right, if it is compared with 
individual freedom, equality in front of the law and human rights at all; 
security is the buzzword used to outpace every human right, not protecting 
any of them

* set up central explosives database
-> I have no general problem with it but this depends on them implementation
-> the measure is only of limited use as explosives can be built using 
chemicals available in average households
-> I think we should drop this point

* criminalize deployment of instructions related to building bombs and 
terrorism
-> this will criminalize publishing scientists and security researches as 
their researches might be used by terrorists (as almost any technical or 
scientific progress)
-> information for building bombs is contained in every basic chemistry book 
and can be deducted by individuals even with a limited chemical _or_ physical 
knowledge
-> using secure channels such information can always be transmitted; the law 
will not prevent those who actually plan attacks

* claims that EU as much target for terrorism as USA => argues that we need to 
adopt their level of surveillance/control
-> FUCK UP. we need to engage personal rights not the prevention state. I 
think our point is clear here

* use PNR data within Europe for prosecution & prevention
-> US No Fly list have shown that those instruments are used to punish the 
opposition and have absolutely no effect in terror prevention
-> we can not tolerate collection profiles of the movement all individuals; 
this always has to be limited to single persons (individual surveillance) not 
the entire population

* complains about resistance against anti terror measures in parlament, etc.
-> we thank for that democratic attitude and complain that the resistance has 
been broken in the case of IP data retention

I request for your comments.

Regards,
Jan Huwald
Political Secretary of the German Pirate Party

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