The New Dark Age

13 August, 2010 — www.statewatch.org/

Statewatch European Documentation Centre (SEMDOC): www.statewatch.org/semdoc/
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1.   EU: European Investigation Order (EIO)
2.   UK: Torture Guidelines
3.   UK: Annual report: Intelligence Services Commissioner, 2009
4.   POLAND-GERMANY: Suspected Israeli spy subject to European Arrest Warrant
5.   UK: RESPONSE TO HUMAN RIGHTS JUDGMENTS
6.   EU: EURODAC: Annual report 2009
7.   USA: EPIC: Documents reveal that body scanners routinely store and records images
8.   BELGIUM-USA: Viewpoint: Possible Extradition of Nizar Trabelsi
9.   EU: European Commission: Report on the placing on the market of replica firearms
10. EU: Council: Data Protection subsumed into Working Party on “Information exchange”
11. EU: Council: “Police Cooperation Working Party” changed its name
12. EU: Council Presidency: Operation Hermes
13. EU: Council of the European Union: “State of play” at the Brussels summer break
14. EU: Council Presidency: Belgian EU Presidency: Immigration and asylum Programme
15. Poland: Fresh evidence regarding CIA rendition flights
16. UK: Terrorism Act: Carlile report for 2009
17. EU: COUNTER-TERRORISM: Communication

1. EU: European Investigation Order (EIO): JUSTICE: Briefing on the European Investigation Order:
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/aug/eu-justice-briefing-eio.pdf

See also: Fair Trials International: Submission on a European Investigation Order:
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/jul/eu-eio-ft-briefing.pdf

and Statewatch Analysis: The proposed European Investigation Order: Assault on human rights and national sovereignty by Steve Peers, Professor of Law, University of Essex: www.statewatch.org/analyses/no-96-european-investigation-order.pdf

2. UK: After numerous complaints of UK agents being present or knowing of torture, inhuman or degrading treatment of terrorist suspects around the world the Government has published the following Guidelines: Consolidated Guidance to Intelligence Officers and Service Personnel on the Detention and Interviewing of Detainees Overseas, and on the Passing and Receipt of Intelligence Relating to Detainees July:
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/aug/uk-consolidated-guidance-intell-questionning.pdf

and Note of Additional Information from the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, the Home Secretary, and Defence Secretary: Consolidated Guidance to Intelligence Officers and Service Personnel on the Detention and Interviewing of Detainees Overseas, and on the Passing and Receipt of Intelligence Relating to Detainees: www.statewatch.org/news/2010/aug/uk-consolidated-guidance-intell-questionning-2.pdf

3. UK: Annual report: Intelligence Services Commissioner, 2009:
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/aug/uk-intelligence-services-commissioner-2009.pdf

This has always been a “fig-leaf” of a report containing nil statistics and comprising 90% of the same content each year. It contains the long-standing definition of the role of the Security Service (MI5) as including combating actions intended to “undermine parliamentary democracy by political, industrial or violent means”. While:

“Covert human intelligence sources are essentially people who are members of, or act on behalf of, one of the intelligence services and are authorised to
obtain information from people who do not know that this information will reach the intelligence service.”

4. POLAND-GERMANY: Suspected Israeli spy subject to European Arrest Warrant:
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/aug/03poland-israel.htm

5. UK: RESPONSE TO HUMAN RIGHTS JUDGMENTS: Responding to human rights judgments Government Response to the Joint Committee on Human Rights’ Fifteenth Report of Session 2009-10: www.statewatch.org/news/2010/aug/uk-min-justice-responding-human-rights-judgments-2009-2010.pdf

See: Joint Human Rights Committee report: Enhancing Parliament’s role in relation to human rights judgments:
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/aug/uk-jhrc-human-rights-judgments.pdf

See also: Many European human rights decisions left unimplemented for years (UK Human Rights blog, link)
ukhumanrightsblog.com/2010/08/09/many-european-human-rights-decisions-left-unimplemented-for-years/

6. EU: EURODAC: Annual report to the European Parliament and the Council on the activities of the EURODAC Central Unit in 2009:
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/aug/eu-com-eurodac-annual-report-com-415-10.pdf

See also: 50% drop in EU irregular migrant border crossings after Italy-Libya pact (euobserver, link):
euobserver.com/9/30580

7. USA: Electronic Privacy Information Centre (EPIC): Documents reveal that body scanners routinely store and records images:
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/aug/usa-epic-body-scanner-prel.pdf

8. BELGIUM-USA: Viewpoint: Possible Extradition of Nizar Trabelsi to the United States: Another Act of War? by Luk Vervaet, a teacher in prisons:
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/aug/02belgium-trabelsi.htm

“In the case of the demand made by the United States federal judge Alan Kaye for the extradition of Nizar Trabelsi issued on 16 November 2007, three years of legal interventions by his lawyers, Fernande Motte-Deraedt, Marc Neve and Chantal Morreau, have failed to convince the Belgian authorities to refuse the American’s extradition request. The final decision is now in the hands of the justice minister in Belgium’s temporary government, the Christian-democrat Stefan Declerck. While Declerck continues to negotiate with his American counterpart, it seems likely that he will rule that the issue of Trabelsi does not fall under the remit of ‘current affairs’. While Trabelsi continues his anxious wait in a prison cell, is seems most likely that Declerck will pass his case on to the new justice minister in the new government..”

9. EU: European Commission: Report on the placing on the market of replica firearms:
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/aug/eu-commission-firearms-and-replicas-com-404-10.pdf

This report also gives figures on the number of firearms produced each year in the EU with 1,924,997 in 2008. The EU imports firearms to the value 52 million euro and exports firearms to the value of 348 million euro (2008). And: for “non-firearms”: “spring, air or gas guns and truncheons are included in the same statistical category [and] the four main producer countries in the EU are Germany (which has a large population of hobby marksmen – around 1.7 million licence-holders), Italy, the United Kingdom and Spain.”

10. EU: Council of the European Union: Data Protection subsumed into Working Party on “Information exchange”:
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/aug/01eu-dp-adgie.htm

The Ad Hoc Group on Information Exchange (running the EU’s Information Management Strategy for EU Internal Security) has been merged with the Working Party on Data Protection (which rarely met) and “with data protection being discussed as the need arises.”

Tony Bunyan, Statewatch editor, comments:

“The track record of the Council shows that it has never taken data protection seriously. The Stockholm Programme states that personal privacy is fundamental but that this can be “interfered” with by “public authorities” (ie: state agencies). When “balancing” the demands of internal security and against the right to personal privacy there is little doubt which will win.”

11. EU: Council of the European Union: As from 1 July 2010, the “Police Cooperation Working Party” changed its name into “Law Enforcement Working Party”, which will combine the activities of the former “Police Cooperation Working Party” with those of the “Europol Working Party” and:

– The Multidisciplinary working group on organised crime (MDG), created in 1994: “As from 1 July 2010 the MDG will be renamed “Working Party on General Matters, including Evaluation”. The working group will keep on dealing with matters related to organised crime, as far as they are not covered by COSI or another working party” with the acronym: GENVAL.

12. EU: Council Presidency: Operation Hermes (link):
police-eu2010.be/mu-eu2010/en/international-police-cooperation/operation-hermes/

“During the Belgian presidency, the Belgian integrated police will take the initiative to organise a joint operation in a large number of Member States, aimed at mapping the flows of illegal immigration within the European Union.” But:

“Operation Hermes is not limited to mapping flows of illegal immigration. Another important goal of this project is to actively promote and valorise the
European police networks Tispol, Aquapol and Railpol. Tispol is a network of European traffic police forces. Aquapol unites the European police and
inspection services of the waterways and Railpol brings together the European railway police services.”

13. EU: Council of the European Union: “State of play” at the Brussels summer break:

– Dublin II: Regulation establishing the criteria and mechanisms for determining the Member State responsible for examining an application for international protection lodged in one of the Member States by a third-country national or a stateless person (recast) (73 pages):
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/jul/eu-council-latest-text-dublin-II-12537-10.pdf

– High Level Working Group on Asylum and Migration (HLWG): Summary of discussions includes state of negotiations on re-admission and visa waiver agreements:
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/jul/eu-council-hlwg-asylum-migration-outcomes-12423-10.pdf

– European Investigation Orders (EIOs): Follow-up document of the meeting on 12-13 July 2010 (14 pages):
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/jul/eu-council-io-12201-10.pdf

See also: Discussion paper on the European Investigation Order:
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/jul/eu-council-discussion-paper-eu-investigation-order-11842-10.pdf

and Initiative for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council regarding the European Investigation Order in criminal matters – Detailed Statement (42 pages):
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/jun/eu-coucil-investigation-order-det-statement-9288-add2-10.pdf

– See: Initiative for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council regarding the European Investigation Order in criminal matters:
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/apr/eu-council-investigation-order-9145-10.pdf

– FRONTEX POWERS: Current Council position:
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/jul/eu-council-frontex-12290-10.pdf

Outcomes: Working Party on Frontiers/Mixed Committee (Details Member States positions):
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/jul/eu-council-frontex-11843-10.pdf

– and Proposal for a Regulation: amending Council Regulation (EC) No 2007/2004 establishing a European Agency for the Management of Operational Cooperation at the External Borders of the Member States of the European Union (FRONTEX):
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/jul/eu-com-prop-frontex-powers-com-61-10.pdf

14. EU: Council Presidency: Belgian EU Presidency: Immigration and asylum Programme:
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/jul/eu-belgian-presidency-progamme-asylum-migration.pdf

15. Poland: Fresh evidence regarding CIA rendition flights: Warsaw-based Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights (HFHR) provided fresh evidence of cooperation between the Polish Government and the CIA on renditions:
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/jul/08poland-cia.htm

16. UK: Terrorism Act: Carlile report for 2009: Report on the operation in 2009 of the Terrorism Act 2000 and of Part 1 of the Terrorism Act 2006 by Lord Carlile (90 pages):
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/jul/uk-carlile-ind-rev-terrorism-annual-report-09.pdf

See also: 2008 report: www.statewatch.org/news/2009/jun/uk-carlile-report-2008.pdf

17. EU: COUNTER-TERRORISM: Communication: The EU Counter-Terrorism Policy: main achievements and future challenges (COM 386):
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/jul/eu-com-counter-terrorism-com-386-10.pdf

and Commission Staff Working Paper: Taking stock of EU Counter-Terrorism Measures (SEC 911):
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/jul/eu-com-counter-terrorism-sec-911-10.pdf

See also: 2008 report: Radicalisation Processes Leading to Acts of Terrorism: A concise Report prepared by the European Commission’s Expert Group on Violent Radicalisation (May 2008):
www.statewatch.org/news/2010/jul/eu-com-expert-group-report-violent-radicalisation.pdf

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