FC: Privacy International agitates over top EU "data protection" chief

[Declan McCullagh <declan () well com>]

[With due respect to my friend Simon, this is one of the problems of 
relying on multinational bureaucracies to protect your privacy: You have to 
ensure that decent people run them. Expectations may not jibe with reality. 
Welcome to the world of public choice theory: 
http://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/PublicChoiceTheory.html  --Declan]

--

Date: Tue, 27 May 2003 14:51:33 +0100
From: Simon Davies <s.g.davies () lse ac uk>
Subject: dirty politics
Content-Type: multipart/alternative; 
boundary="============_-1158078995==_ma============"

Hi folks,

This is quite a crucial story. Would you be able to do something with it?

Best wishes

Simon


PRIVACY INTERNATIONAL

MEDIA RELEASE

PRIVACY WATCHDOG CONDEMNS "SHAMEFUL" DEAL
OVER NOMINATION FOR TOP EU POST

EUROPEAN PRIVACY IS AT A CROSSROADS


27th May 2003
The global civil liberties watchdog Privacy International has strongly 
criticised the European Parliament over its decision to recommend the 
appointment of an "unknown" Spanish magistrate for the influential post of 
European Data Protection chief.

In a secret ballot of the Committee on Citizens' Freedoms and Rights, 
Justice and Home Affairs of the EP on May 20, Joaquín Bayo Delgado was 
selected as primary candidate for the post of "Data Protection Supervisor" 
for Europe. The post carries extensive responsibilities, including 
oversight of the controversial Schengen Information System. Nearly all 
aspects of data protection will be under the aegis of the Supervisor.

The vote followed more than three months' intensive lobbying by Bayo, the 
Spanish government and Spanish MEP's. His nomination was accelerated by a 
series of back-room deals amongst major EP parties, most of which were 
anxious to ensure that the "hard line" data protection lobby did not 
succeed in securing a candidate.

Privacy International's Director, Simon Davies, said Joaquín Bayo Delgado 
was completely unknown to any privacy or data protection advocate in 
Europe. "To the best of our knowledge he has never written about the 
subject, nor spoken about it in any public presentation", said Mr Davies.

"Privacy and Data Protection are complex issues requiring a high degree of 
sensitivity and wisdom. This deplorable deal has occurred at a moment when 
these rights are under unprecedented stress. The protection of privacy in 
Europe is at a crossroads, and this decision may well result in the loss of 
rights for all Europeans", he added.

While Bayo's appointment is likely to be a "done deal" there is still a 
slim opportunity for it to be overturned. The Committee's chairman, Jorge 
Hernandez Mollar (Christian Democrats), will negotiate on his list of four 
finalists (Joaquín Bayo Delgado and the three runners-up) with the Council. 
Interestingly, the Council has drawn up its own list of finalists, which 
does not include Bayo but which does include the names of the other three 
candidates. The list will then be reduced to two names (one for Supervisor 
and one for Assistant Supervisor), to be put to the vote by the  Citizens' 
Rights Committee on 2 June. Finally, the election of the two candidates 
must be endorsed by Parliament's Conference of Presidents.

The "group of four" being presented to the Council contains individuals 
with the background, skills and motivation necessary for this important 
post. Privacy International urges the Council and the Committee on 
Citizens' Rights to overturn the nomination and to vote for a candidate who 
is capable of representing the rights and interests of European citizens.

NOTES TO EDITORS

References:

EU Legislative Observatory

http://wwwdb.europarl.eu.int/oeil/oeil_ViewDNL.ProcedureView?lang=2&procid=5467

EP News report - May 20

http://www2.europarl.eu.int/omk/sipade2?SAME_LEVEL=1&LEVEL=3&NAV=X&PUBREF=-//EP//TEXT+PRESS+NR-20030520-1+0+DOC+XML+V0//EN#SECTION5


- Privacy International (PI) is a human rights group formed in 1990 as a 
watchdog on surveillance by governments and corporations. PI is based in 
London, and has an office in Washington, D.C.  Together with members in 40 
countries, PI has conducted campaigns throughout the world on issues 
ranging from wiretapping and national security activities, to ID cards, 
video surveillance, data matching, police information systems, and medical 
privacy, and works with a wide range of parliamentary and 
inter-governmental organisations such as the European Parliament, the House 
of Lords and UNESCO.

- Simon Davies can be reached at simon () privacy org and on 07958 466 
552   (+44) 7958 466 552 from outside the UK.





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