Thursday 17 December 2009

Libel tourism, the common law invention of privacy and Justice Eady

Unusually, in the UK, the introduction of Article 8 of the ECHR has occurred due to judicial innovation not a constitutional protection directly. J. Eady here speaks about his work in the Moseley case and his lack of belief in 'libel tourism', whereby foreign celebrities and billionaires bring actions in his courtroom to protect their reputations worldwide. This was shortly followed by Tiger Woods' injunction against British newspapers.

Monday 14 December 2009

Council of Europe work on Article 10

See various meeting documents here and here. The Council has various working groups that coordinate the 47 members and 5 observers' work on freedom of expression, in connection with Article 10 of the European Convention.

Human Rights Day – 10 December “Human rights must go online!”


Statement by Secretary General of the Council of Europe Thorbjørn Jagland
Strasbourg, 09.12.2009 – The Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Thorbjørn Jagland, today gave the following message to mark Human Rights Day:
“Freedom of expression is a fundamental human right, enshrined in the European Convention on Human rights and a pillar of the Europe we know today.
We live in an age of technological innovation and advancing globalisation, where freedom of expression must continue to be central to our vision of Europe. The Internet is a space of creativity and enormous opportunity, but it can also present threats to our privacy, and dangers related to all sorts of cybercrime. We must never forget that the Internet can be (mis)used to promote discrimination and hatred. That is why freedom of expression is not an absolute right, it is a right that comes with responsibility. So it must be on the Internet.
On the occasion of International Human Rights day and recognising the many essential advances in protecting and promoting human rights, the Council of Europe will seek close cooperation with governments and the private sector to make sure that human rights are both promoted and protected from abuse online”.