The European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party, convening in Barcelona, Catalonia on 19^th and 20^th November 2009:

Whereas:

-         Since 9/11 and the so-called “war on terror” we have seen an escalation in the violation of our privacy rights;

-         There are an increasing number of cameras in streets, on ships, in public buildings and even on buses;

-         All data concerning each air journey that any passenger books, and increasingly also railway travel, car rental, and hotel reservations are stored in Passenger Name Records (PNR) databases. This information is increasingly transferred to non-EU countries such as the United States of America;

-         The desire to create a central database of the biometric data currently stored on identification cards and passports is growing among many EU governments;

-         The mobile phone, internet and financial transactions of all European citizens are recorded and retained by law for at least six months, thus allowing the creation of complete communication as well as location profiles.

Noting that:

-         Article 8 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, as adopted by all members of the Council of Europe, protects the right to respect for private and family life stating that there shall be no restrictions on the exercise of these freedoms, except if they are in accordance with the law and are necessary in a democratic society, notably in the interests of national security, public safety, for the prevention of disorder or crime, for the protection of the reputation or the rights of others;

-         We do not defend our way of living by giving up the essential freedoms that define it. If we give up privacy - a basic right of any individual - open society as we know it will cease to exist and will slowly but surely become more and more controlled and less free;

-         The war against international Islamic terrorism most of all is a war of ideas.  Only by sticking to the ideals of democracy, rule of law and an open society can this confrontation be won;

-         Privacy (or any other basic human right) should not be sacrificed or suspended in order to fulfil a temporary and questionable goal. Or as Thomas Jefferson put it: “Those who desire to give up freedom in order to gain security, will not have, nor do they deserve, either one.”

The European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party:

-         Calls on decision-makers at all levels of power to use the principles of necessity and subsidiarity in making rules that affect our privacy;

-         Strongly opposes any kind of agreement between the United States of America or other third countries and the European Union which would grant automatic access to European SWIFT banking data without judicial oversight by a European judge;

-         Opposes any kind of internet censorship other than where criminals abuse individuals, if there is no possibility to erase the website.

-         Calls for a review of the PNR agreement currently in place;

-         Prefers to fight crime and terrorism by having adequately funded, well staffed and best trained police and law enforcement services rather than automatic surveillance or symbolic policies such as changing privacy laws for the worse.