The ACTA Archive

By EDRi · July 4, 2013

Today is the first anniversary of the rejection of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) in the European Parliament – after months of debates, a large majority of Parliamentarians voted against the adoption. This is the perfect time to gather all documents that have ever been produced by EDRi on this Agreement, to recall who were the stakeholders involved in the negotiation process within the EP and the NGOs who fought along with EDRi against ACTA.

A little bit of history

Many NGOs and international organisations advocated for the rejection of ACTA, which was a plurilateral agreement for the purpose of establishing international standards for the enforcement of intellectual property rights. It aimed to establish an international legal framework for targeting counterfeit goods and medicines and copyright infringements on the Internet.

The agreement was signed in October 2011 by Australia, Canada, Japan, Morocco, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, and the United States. When in 2012, Mexico, the European Union and 22 Member States signed as well, it resulted in widespread protests across Europe. Supporters of the agreement described it as a response to “the increase in global trade of counterfeit goods and pirated copyright protected works”. Opponents said it adversely affects fundamental rights including freedom of expression and privacy. Another reason to reject this agreement was the complete lack of transparency that surrounded the negotiation process since civil society groups, developing countries and the general public have been excluded from it.

European Digital Rights actively participated in the global campaign against ACTA. EDRi produced many papers in order to raise awareness on the agreement controversial aspects, both in process and substance. Indeed, the way in which ACTA was negotiated has robbed it of both democratic credibility and legal clarity. If ratified, it would also have had major implications for freedom of expression and access to culture, the right to privacy, in addition to harming international trade and stifling innovation. Eventually, on 4 July 2012, the European Parliament rejected the agreement in plenary session, with 478 votes against, 39 in favour and 165 abstentions.

Booklets
Fact Sheets
Studies and Opinions
File in the EU Parliament
Articles 2007
Articles 2008
Articles 2009
Articles 2010
Articles 2011
Articles 2012
Articles 2013
Websites and platforms
NGOs and Associations

Booklets

* Booklet: Why you should care about ACTA (pdf) – Available in 15 different languages.
* ACTA: Article 27 (pdf)

Fact sheets

Fact sheets on ACTA:
ACTA and its Impact on Fundamental Rights
ACTA – Criminal Sanctions
ACTA – Innovation and Competition
ACTA and its Impact on the EU’s International Relations
ACTA and its “Safeguards”

Studies and Opinions

* Opinion of European Academics on ACTA http://www.iri.uni-hannover.de/acta-1668.html
* Douwe Korff & Ian Brown, Opinion on the compatibility of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) with the European Convention on Human Rights & the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, 2011 http://rfc.act-on-acta.eu/fundamental-rights
* European Parliament study – http://www.europarl.europa.eu/committees/en/INTA/studiesdownload.html?languageDocument=EN&file=43731
*Sean Flynn with Bijan Madhani, ACTA and Access to Medicines http://rfc.act-on-acta.eu/access-to-medicines
* Opinion of the European Data Protection Supervisor on the current negotiations by the European Union of an Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, paragraph 44 http://www.edps.europa.eu/EDPSWEB/edps/Consultation/OpinionsC/OC2010
* Sakharov price winners on ACTA- http://en.rsf.org/union-europeenne-online-freedoms-threatened-by-15-12-2011,41557.html
* European Economic and Social Committee – http://www.laquadrature.net/files/EESC_on_IPR_Streategy.doc

File in the European Parliament

* EU/Australia, Canada, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Morocco, New Zealand, Singapore, Switzerland and United States Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) 2011/0167(NLE): http://www.europarl.europa.eu/oeil/popups/ficheprocedure.do?reference=2011/0167%28NLE%29
* Link to Parltrack: http://parltrack.euwiki.org/dossier/2011/0167%28NLE%29

Stakeholders involved in ACTA

INTA (Lead Committee)
Rapporteur: Originally Kader Arif (S&D) (resigned in January 2012 as he was against the Agreement), then David Martin (S&D)

Shadows:
* Christofer Fjellner (EPP)
* Niccolò Rinaldi (ALDE)
* Syed Kamall (ECR)
* Helmut Scholz (GUE/NGL)

ITRE (Opinion)
Rapporteur: Amelia Andersdotter (Greens/EFA)

Shadows:
* Daniel Caspary (EPP)
* Francesco de Angelis (S&D)
* Jens Rohde (ALDE)
* Marisa Matias (GUE/NGL)
* Vicky Ford (ECR)

JURI (Opinion)
Rapporteur: Evelyn Regner (S&D) (originally Marielle Gallo (EPP))

Shadows:
* Cecilia Wikström (ALDE)
* Eva Lichtenberger (Greens/EFA)
* Luigi Berlinguer (S&D)

LIBE (Opinion)
Rapporteur: Dimitrios Droutsas (S&D)

Shadows :
* Sophia in’t Veld (ALDE)
* Zuzana Roithová (EPP)
* Carl Schlyter (Greens/EFA
* Timothy Kirkhope (ECR)
* Cornelia Ersnt (GUE/NGL)

DEVE (Opinion)
Rapporteur: Jan Zahradil (ECR)

Shadows :
* Charles Goerens (ALDE)
* Michèle Striffler (EPP)
* Thijs Berman (S&D)
* Franziska Keller (Greens/EFA)
* Gabriele Zimmer (GUE/NGL)

DG TRADE (in charge of negotiations for the EU Commission)

Karel de Gucht, Commissioner for Trade
Pedro Velasco Martins, Deputy Head of Unit, Public Procurement and Intellectual Property Unit (Brussels Office number +(32) 2 2968893)

DG MARKT

Michel Barnier, Commissioner for the Internal Market
Benoît Lory, Policy Officer, Legal and Policy Affairs, Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights Unit

Websites and platforms

Stop(ped) ACTA!
Stop ACTA: http://www.stopacta.info/
FFII ACTA Blog : http://acta.ffii.org/?cat=5

NGOs and Associations

* La Quadrature du Net: http://www.laquadrature.net/en/ACTA
* Open Rights Group: http://wiki.openrightsgroup.org/wiki/Anti-Counterfeiting_Trade_Agreement_2011
* Access Now: https://www.accessnow.org/page/s/just-say-no-to-acta – ACTA Action Center: https://www.accessnow.org/blog/acta-protest-feb-11
* Knowledge Ecology International: http://keionline.org/acta
* Panoptykon Foundation: http://panoptykon.org/wiadomosc/biezace-doniesienia-z-frontu-acta
* EFF: https://www.eff.org/issues/acta
* FFII: http://action.ffii.org/acta/Analysis
* Digitale Gesellschaft: http://acta.digitalegesellschaft.de/
* Bits of Freedom: https://www.bof.nl/category/acta/
* Public Citizen http://www.citizen.org/documents/Letter-to-Members-of-the-Committee-on-Legal-Affairs-on-the-ACTA.pdf
* ARTICLE 19 http://www.article19.org/resources.php/resource/2901/en/european-parliament:-reject-anti-counterfeiting-trade-agreement-%28acta%29
* Oxfam Statement regarding ACTA and Public Health http://www.oxfamsol.be/fr/IMG/pdf/Oxfam_ACTA_analysis_FINAL.pdf
* Amnesty International: “EU urged to reject international anti-counterfeiting pact” – http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/eu-urged-reject-international-anti-counterfeiting-pact-2012-02-10