Author: Karen Melchior

The Urgency of Action: Nagorno-Karabakh and the EU’s Responsibility

Written on 29. September 2023.

Metal Helmet Of United States Army Infantry Soldier At World War II. Helmet On Camping Tent In Forest Camp.The haunting echoes of recent events in Nagorno-Karabakh serve as a stark reminder to us all of the urgency gripping the Armenian people. Lives lost, families torn apart – this is the grim reality faced by those in the midst of this conflict. In these critical times, the European Union finds itself at a crossroads, demanding decisive action grounded in our shared values. We must rise to the occasion, because the atrocities unfolding in Nagorno-Karabakh are a painful testament to the cost...

Speaking at Blockchain for Europe Summit (27 September 2023)

Written on 29. September 2023.

I was honoured to speak at this year’s Blockchain for Europe Summit on the future of digital policy and priorities for the next EU Commission. Here is what I said: This mandate has been one of the busiest ever for Europe’s tech policy, and I think it marks a significant change for the EU. We’ve seen a flurry of regulation, including new laws on data storage and use, competition in the digital sphere, online platforms, digital identity, and artificial intelligence, to name a few. Throughout this mandate, we have seen lawmakers gain a better understanding of the impact of digital...

Fra Arabisk Forår til Efterårskup

Written on 12. September 2023.

Mark Rutte, Ursula von der Leyen, Kas Saed, and Giorgia Meloni, from left to right

Strasbourg 11. september 2023Vi har brug for langsigtede investeringer i demokrati, retsstat og menneskerettigheder, hvis vi ønsker at sikre freden på Europas dørtrin til resten af verden. Ellers er der overhængende fare for, at vi bliver gidsler for uberegnelige despoter i slyngelstater, der udelukkende ønsker at gøre op med vores værdier og måder at leve på.Man kan udfordre de herskende diktatorer og deres sortsyn. Tænk tilbage på vinteren 2010/2011: Dengang lykkedes det den tunesiske befolkning at samle sig i frustrationerne over diktatoren Ben Ali. Han blev fjernet fra magten –...

EU Commission sells out for migration deal with Tunisia’s president Kaïs Saied

Written on 18. August 2023.

On 16 June, the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, the Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and the Dutch Prime Minister, Mark Rutte, agreed with the President of Tunisia, Kaïs Saied, to implement the comprehensive partnership package announced jointly on 11 June 2023. This came in the context of grave violations of the rights of migrants and asylum seekers, as well as an escalation of restrictions on civil and political rights.The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) fails to address core human rights concerns observed in Tunisia, which include grave violations of...

Kan EU-Kommissionen lukke sociale medier med Digital Services Act i hånden?

Written on 4. August 2023.

TL;DR Nej Der er skrevet en del blogindlæg på internettet og kommentarer på sociale medier om, at DSA (Digital Services Act) skulle være en “censurlov” der giver Kommissionen beføjelser til at forlange misinformation fjernet (herunder bestemme hvad der er sandt og falsk, som et Ministry of Truth). Hvis man læser DSA er det svært at finde de påståede beføjelser. Nok kan der i DSA gives store bøder for manglende overholdelse af DSA, men intetsteds i DSA står der, at platforme har pligt til at fjerne falsk information. Det samme gælder skadeligt indhold, hvordan man så end definerer...

Our voice should be matter: Multimodal digital mobility services

Written on 28. June 2023.

On behalf of the Renew Europe Group and the Greens, we have written a letter to President Ursula von der Leyen, the Vice-Presidents and the Commissioner. We raised the issue of the legislative proposal on digital mobility services, which was originally intended to be adopted in the 2022 work programme to boost digital solutions and support integrated and sustainable mobility. The letter is also particularly important because EU citizens have the right to uniform and easy access to mobility tools, which can only be achieved through the liberalisation of ticketing systems. The proposed measure...

AI Act: The European Parliament votes for safer AI and an end to Mass Surveillance

Written on 16. June 2023.

This week, the European Parliament adopted its position on the Artificial Intelligence Act (AI act). As Renew’s lead negotiator on the AI act in the JURI committee, I fought hard to protect citizens’ fundamental rights, and give businesses space and certainty to innovate. I’m very glad to announce that many of the things I fought for have made it into Parliament’s final position. Let’s take a look at what we achieved! The JURI Opinion The Legal Affairs Committee (JURI), where I was lead negotiator, finished its position on the Artificial Intelligence Act in September of last year. Since then...

What is the place for Geo-blocking in a Digital Age of Free Movement ?

Written on 12. June 2023.

“Sorry, but this content is not available in your country!” This is a situation, all too many of us are familiar with! When we were trying to access something that we were very interested in, but the site said no. In 2018 we ended geo-blocking – just not for audiovisual content Previous EU decisions have ended location-based restrictions in many other sectors, but in 2018 one important sector was excluded from the scope of the regulation: audiovisual content. In recent years, especially during the years affected by the pandemic, there has been a significant increase in interest...

Dereliction of Duty: how the Women’s Rights Committee failed Women in the Discussions on the ChatControl (CSAM) Regulation

Written on 12. June 2023.

The proposal to break end-to-end encryption in the CSAM regulation (ChatControl) puts everyone’s privacy at risk but is particularly harmful for women. As countries in the EU and elsewhere turn to digital surveillance to hunt down women who are seeking reproductive healthcare, I called on the Women’s rights committee of the European Parliament to speak out about the dangers of breaking end-to-end encryption, but the committee created to protect women’s rights refused to defend them. Protecting Citizens’ rights to privacy, and women’s right to access reproductive healthcare have been two of my...

AI Act vote: our push to protect citizens from Mass Surveillance

Written on 11. June 2023.

On the 14 of June, MEPs will vote on Parliament’s position on the Artificial Intelligence Act, a proposed EU law on how AI is used in Europe. The reports of the IMCO and LIBE committees already go a long way toward protecting citizens, by banning dangerous Biometric Mass Surveillance, but there are still some gaps that need to be plugged.Firstly, while the AI act does ban so-called “emotional recognition”, there are concerns that this ban may not extend to “behavioral recognition”, a deeply flawed technology that has reported hugs as violent assault. I don’t believe that citizens should...

Due Diligence Mandate for European Parliament

Written on 7. June 2023.

It was a big moment when we in the European Parliament last week voted through the compromise on the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive! Now the negotiations with the Council (the EU Member States) can begin. The “due diligence” directive defines what responsible big companies must do to minimise their impact on the environment and uphold human rights. In the EU, we have rules covering hazardous sectors like conflict minerals and timber. With the proposed legislation, we want a set of rules that apply to all industries. The mandate for the European Parliament to enter into negotiations...

Radikales håndtering af arbejdsmiljøsag – advokatnotat

Written on 3. June 2023.

Karen Melchior in a yellow dress standing on black tiles by a red sofa looking up and smiling

I denne uge kom der endnu en gang fokus på et dansk politiker, og et dansk medlem af Europa-Parlamentet, i sammenhæng med påstande om dårligt arbejdsmiljø for medarbejderne. Det er både trist, ærgerligt og kedeligt – selvfølgelig først og fremmest fordi alle involverede er mennesker af kød og blod. Jeg er helt bevidst om, at arbejdsmiljø og adfærd opleves meget forskelligt af henholdsvis medarbejdere og ledere. Magtbalancen gør, at ord og samtale kan opfattes med divergerende vægtning. Derudover kan kemien og kompetencerne simpelthen være manglende i forholdet mellem medarbejdere og leder. For...

Free Period Products for EP Visitors

Written on 28. May 2023.

I am happy to share that the European Parliament is launching a pilot project of providing free period products at our visitors’ toilets! Thank you to all my colleagues from different political groups who supported this initiative of mine, which the Parliament has adopted. We believe that menstrual security should be a collective issue. It is a question of dignity, solidarity, and health. Period products are a necessity for a sizable proportion of our guests. For people on their period, they are as intuitively essential as toilet paper, soap or hand towels and should therefore be made...

FEMM Committee Chat Control Amendment Discussion (24 May 2023)

Written on 24. May 2023.

Good Morning, Following the revelations in Wired yesterday showing that a majority of our member states wish to break encryption and some not only to prevent and prosecute Child Sexual Abuse material. We must remember that once encryption is broken, it is broken for all. We must remember once we give up our rights to privacy it’s gone for all of us. I’m glad to be here in the FEMM committee this morning, and welcome this opportunity for this discussion on the CSAM regulation. Thank you to the Rapporteur and shadows for their diligent work There are lots of issues with the Commission’s proposal,...

CSAM – Scanning of end-to-end encrypted conversations and for unknown content and grooming is particularly problematic

Written on 23. May 2023.

First and foremost, it is essential to understand that the proposal for a regulation laying down rules to prevent and combat child sexual abuse (CSAM / Chat Control) from the Commission, rather than aiding our fight against abuse, may inadvertently make it more challenging. Specifically, the scanning of end-to-end encrypted conversations and the pursuit of unknown content and grooming will prove ineffective in catching abusers.The Commission is acting like they can wave a magic “digital” wand and solve child abuse, but their proposal actually risks making it harder to catch abusers while...

You spoke, and we heard you: protecting open-source developers in the CRA and PLD

Written on 26. April 2023.

The Product Liability Directive and Cyber Resilience Act are two important EU laws that will impact how software is developed, but many in the open source community are worried about how these laws will affect them, and so am I; which is why I have proposed changes to protect the open source community and guarantee fair rules on liability and cybersecurity.Two weeks ago, the Python Software Foundation published an article expressing concern about issues they had found in two upcoming EU laws: the Cyber Resilience Act (CRA), and the Product Liability Directive (PLD). Since the publication...

ChatControl is illegal, so what can we do to protect kids?

Written on 19. April 2023.

We don’t have to spy on our children to keep them safe! Stop believing in the magic wands of digital filters and flagging content that can make our societies’ problems disappear. Let us use technology to empower our children to identify risks and enable them to reach out to trusted adults instead of a paternalistic approach using flawed technology that won’t protect kids but will make it harder to catch abusers! Let us build an internet that lets kids explore independently while learning about risks in an environment built to offer them safety, agency, and privacy.IntroductionLast week,...

Sport og politik hænger sammen som ærtehalm – derfor skal russiske og belarussiske atleter ikke deltage i OL

Written on 2. April 2023.

Der er historier vi fortæller os, selvom vi burde have indset for længe siden at de ikke passer. En af dem, som mange bliver ved med at fortælle dem selv og verden er, at sport og politik ikke hænger sammen. En løgn, som blev gentaget i Politikens leder den 3. april, på trods af den var skrevet af satireredaktøren, så tror jeg desværre ikke den var satire. Sport og politik hænger sammen som ærtehalm. Statsledere, byer og nationer bruger sporten til at vaske deres image rent og hylde dem selv. Sportsfolkene i klæder sig de nationale farver og flag mens deres uddannelse understøttes gavmildt...

The European Digital Identity: Parliament’s final position

Written on 23. February 2023.

The European Digital Identity is a proposal that will allow EU citizens, residents and businesses to identify themselves, access digital services and digitally sign documents through a Digital ID and store and share “attributes” such as personal information, diplomas and licenses safely and easily using a Digital Wallet. It will provide inter-operability across the union; with signatures and attributes recognised in all member states, making it easier to work, study and travel around the Union. In 2022, I led negotiations on this law in the JURI Committee, with negotiations concluding in October...

The Data Act: preserving privacy and putting citizens in control

Written on 27. January 2023.

In recent years, we have seen an explosion in the development of “smart” and “connected” devices: from home appliances to industrial machines, and medical equipment to cars. The EU wants to make better use of this data to benefit the economy. I have been negotiating on behalf of Renew in the JURI committee, to make sure the Data Economy is fair, doesn’t harm businesses, puts citizens in control of their data, and prevents abuse of data, be it by governments or companies.On Tuesday 24 January, the JURI committee voted on our opinion on the data act after months of tough negotiations. In...