Brussels, 08/06/2012 (Agence Europe) - In a press release, the Commission explained that a new law to ensure defendants' right to information during criminal proceedings throughout the European Union had been published in the Official Journal on 7 June. This law will now become a legal obligation throughout the EU. The 'Directive on the right to information in criminal proceedings' was proposed by the European Commission in July 2010, voted by the European Parliament on 13 December 2011 and agreed by national justice ministers on 27 April 2012. This law ensures that anyone arrested or subject to a European Arrest Warrant in any EU member state is given a Letter of Rights listing their basic rights during criminal proceedings. EU member states now have two years to introduce the new rules in their national legal system. The Letter of Rights will contain practical details about the rights of persons arrested or detained, such as the right to remain silent, to a lawyer, to be informed of the charge, to interpretation and translation in any language for those who do not understand the language of the proceedings, to be brought promptly before a court following arrest, and to inform someone else about the arrest or detention. (SP/transl.fl)