Brussels, 08/10/2003 (Agence Europe) - MEPs express concern about the lack of transparency in the Schengen Information System (SIS) and its transformation scheduled for 2006 (SIS II). During a hearing organised on Monday by the European Parliament's Committee on Citizens' Freedoms, Portuguese Christian Democrat Carlos Coelho, Parliament rapporteur on the development of this European police database, was highly critical of the large number of initiatives relating to SIS and to the future SIS II. He considers this is "extremely opaque and difficult to understand even for experts" and "truly incomprehensible for average citizens". British Liberal Democrat Sarah Ludford (ELDR) deplored what she called "one of the strongest examples of democratic deficit in the EU" and expressed concern about the fact that there were proposals to use this database for purposes other than for border control. Italian national Giuseppe Di Lello (PRC) voiced concern about the risk of being abusively included on SIS. Representatives of the Council of Europe said at the hearing that they feared the European Union would entrench itself behind Schengen borders and that SIS data would be forwarded to third countries, and to the United States in particular.
Giovanni Buttarelli, president of the joint control authority of Schengen, on the other hand, said he was pleased with the way SIS works. This system, he started by saying, "has so far worked within the framework of strict legality without breach of the law". He stressed the appearance of "just one serious case". He nonetheless called for a "qualitative leap for data protection". Mr Burttarrelli specified that the control authority was tackling the SIS II project and the other SIS projects being developed.
The Schengen Information System has worked as a compensatory measure to the abolition of borders since 1995. It is a database allowing police and border control posts, as well as visa-issuance authorities, to know certain categories of persons or objects sought in the other Member States bound to Schengen. Fifteen States have access to such data: - the EU Member States (except the United Kingdom and Ireland), Norway and Iceland. Luc Vandamme, of the Secretariat General of the Council of Ministers, explained at the hearing that the SIS contains 11.3 million data entries, most on documents (8 million) and 1.2 million on persons sought, including 770,000 which are "alerts" on persons whose access to European territory must be refused.
The principle of changing SIS into SIS II had been decided in December 2001. The Fifteen trust that this new database will be operational by end 2006. It should comprise more data (mainly biometric) on more infringements, objects and persons, and be accessible to more authorities. The European Commissioner for Justice and Home Affairs, Antonio Vitorino, said during the hearing that he hoped the SIS II would be ready to receive the new Member States in 2006, otherwise it will not be possible to completely abolish the borders within the EU. Commissioner Vitorino stressed that SIS II would not be of the same kind as the first SIS. In his draft report on SIS II, Carlos Coelho calls for a public debate on the aims and nature of SIS II.
Even before going on to SIS II, the Member States should add new functions to SIS, which will make it develop. Following a Spanish proposal, which could be adopted in November, the list of objects that could be sought or searched through would be lengthened, Europol and Eurojust could have access to certain categories of data, and delays for warnings and research would be extended. Europol and Eurojust access brings a new aspect as it is "not linked to the lifting of borders", Mr Vandamme stressed.
The question of data access and data protection was discussed at length during the hearing. Commissioner Vitorino considers it is important for SIS II to clarify who has access to data, to what extent and to what end. Carlos Coelho calls for a very careful examination of the way access to databases is granted to new authorities. MEPs Carlos Coelho and Marco Cappato (Italian Radical) denounced the profusion of rules under the third pillar and called for them to be harmonised in a specific instrument. For now, Europol, Eurojust and Schengen all have their own rules. In the same way, Carlos Coelho, as the president of the Schengen control authority, calls for the possibility of melting all the databases into a single database to be examined. Commissioner Vitorino considers that the introduction of biometric data will make it possible to avoid confusion between persons even if this may "present new risks". He pointed out that he could not rule out the fact that, one day, SIS data may be forwarded to third countries, even through "nothing is foreseen for now". He hoped that the system would work with a single central database accessible by Member States and not with a copy per Member State. Copies make the system "more complicated and more vulnerable" he said.
At the Justice and Home Affairs Council in June, the Fifteen had adopted long conclusions on transition to SIS II, insisting on respect of the deadline and took stock of preparations for the system.
The European Commission, which was responsible for the completion of this project, had presented them a detailed time-table: August 2003: launch of initial call for tenders for the design and development of SIS II; June 2004, signature of contract; January 2005, development of SIS II begins; spring 2005, Schengen States begin to adapt to the new system; autumn 2006, system migration begins; end 2006, system operational. Member States said in June that "the question of whether the acceding countries could join the system at the same time as the current parties is still being discussed". Commissioner Vitorino would like an agency to be set up to manage SIS II. He hopes that the new Constitutional Treaty will help get rid of the gulf between the first and third pillars, which concerns Schengen and SIS. He thinks its seat should remain in Strasbourg.