Brussels, 17/07/2008 (Agence Europe) - The MEPs of the European Parliament's committee on civil liberties called on Tuesday 15 July for public incitement to terrorism to be criminalised with full respect for fundamental rights. The MEPs were consulted on a European Commission proposal of November 2007 concerning the modification of the framework decision on combating terrorism which aims to introduce three new crimes into European law: public provocation, in particular on the internet, recruitment and training of terrorists. Almost 5000 websites contribute to radicalising European youth, according to data provided by the EU counterterrorism coordinator, Gilles de Kerchove.
Adopting the report by Roselyne Lefrançois (PES, France), by 35 votes in favour, 4 against and one abstention, the MEPs were seen to be attempting to arrive at a more balanced text than that achieved by the Council in April (EUROPE 9646). “Today, criminals do not hesitate to use the internet as a global platform to transmit propaganda messages, instructions for how to make bombs and explosives and online training manuals”, Ms Lefrançois said after the vote. “Such behaviour, where it is deliberate and presents a clear danger, should be punished severely on the condition that solid safeguards are in place in terms of fundamental rights”, the MEP added in a press release. The MEPs first clarified the definition of the concept of “public provocation”, replacing it with “public incitement”, a term more commonly used in legal parlance and which is less ambiguous. Moreover, where the proposal intended to punish the publication of any message intending to incite a terrorist act, the MEPs ensured the specific mention that such behaviour is only incriminating if it creates a clear danger, not simply a hypothetical one. The MEPs also added guarantees of fundamental freedoms throughout the text, in particular freedom of expression, with provisions reiterating the safeguard clause already contained in the Council of Europe Convention. The report also points out the need to respect the Charter of Fundamental Rights and the European Convention on Human Rights. Finally, it stresses that the framework decision should not prevent the transmission of polemic or radical content, including on the subject of terrorism, and that the content of private communications such as emails should be preserved. MEPs will be consulted at the plenary session in September in Strasbourg. (B.C.)