Welcome to Liberties' monthly round-up, where we catch you up on the most pressing human rights topics we've been working on. This month, we sat down with Xnet, a Spanish organisation, and HCLU, our Hungarian member, to discuss how social media platforms are being used to skirt campaign rules in their local context. We also relaunched Democracy Drinks after a summer hiatus and followed the latest EU post-election developments.
While Germany’s railway service is losing its reputation for efficiency, the change of seasons is as punctual as ever. Like clockwork, once October arrived Berlin’s weather regressed to grey, overcast skies, drizzling rain and chilly temperatures. Meanwhile, in Brussels, Ursula von der Leyen has been busy putting her ducks in a row for the upcoming political term. And by ducks, I mean European commissioners.
Now that all the portfolios have been handed out, confirmation hearings will be held in early November. European Parliament committees will put the nominees through their paces before confirming the proposed Commission composition. If anyone has reason to be nervous, it’s Costas Kadis, the Cypriot candidate for Fisheries and Oceans, whose nomination has been embroiled in controversy following the resurfacing of a decade-old waste scandal involving EU funds.
Von der Leyen has also used the new term as an opportunity to reshape the Commission’s structure, removing the bottom layer of vice presidents so that only executive vice presidents remain. But what will all this juggling mean for the Commission’s internal power dynamics? Strap yourselves in, because the next few weeks could be turbulent.
In other news, Freedom Party, a Eurosceptic political party rooted in Nazi ideology, won a decisive victory in Austria, spelling further stormy weather for Europe’s democracy and EU cohesion. Meanwhile, one of the EU’s more colourful personalities, Thierry Breton, has resigned from his position of European Commissioner in a letter viewed as a thinly disguised barb against von der Leyen’s leadership. As one of the leading figures steering the transformation of digital policy in Europe, his absence will be sorely missed and it is unclear who will take up his mantle.
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In a nutshell
- Democracy Drinks: Liberties kicked off the new term with our monthly networking event.
- Age verification tools untrustworthy: Liberties was one of 64 orgs & experts urging theEU to halt proposals to use Age Verification tools when implementing the Digital Services Act & eIDAS. Learn more
In focus
Election Monitoring Talks
In Conversation with XNet, Spain
Who spent more during the EP campaign in Spain - the left or the right wing parties? What are the tricks local politics used online? This and more in our chat with Xnet founder Simona Levi.
In Conversation with HCLU, Hungary
Have you ever wondered whether there is a cap on campaign spending in local elections in Hungary? Well, there isn't. The result is a Boschesque painting of microtargeting, ‘carpet-bombing’ and marketing techniques with questionable privacy approaches. Read it here.
Opportunities: Check out our vacancies
Are you a student interested in a career in the NGO sector? We are looking for interns for the following positions:
- Communications & Campaign Assistant (Intern)
- Operations Team Assistant (Intern)
- Advocacy & Research Assistant (Intern)
Member’s Corner
- Protect the protest: Read ICCL’s article, ‘Are barriers, road closures and locking down the city centre the right way to police protests?’ published in the Irish Times
- Increasing immigrant pushback: CRD was quoted in New York Times article, ‘Sweden Will Offer Migrants $34,000 to Go Home’.
- Stop publishing drug tests: APADOR-CH is calling on the results of driver’s drug tests to no longer be made public. Find out why.
What we’re reading
- Elections:
- Big Tech:
- The Antitrust Revolution: Liberal democracy’s last stand against Big Tech - Harpers Magazine
- Why EU leaders should get off Musk's X - eu observer
- Protests: Rich countries silencing climate protest while preaching about rights elsewhere, says study -The Guardian
Next month
Rule of Law Gap Analysis: We’ll be releasing our much-anticipated gap analysis, our hot take on how the EU Commission’s 2024 Rule of Law report fell short. Not to be missed!
Protection Mechanism: Liberties has teamed up with other civil rights organisations to map current protections for European human rights defenders and CSOs and propose measures to stop the gaps.
Events
Join us for our monthly networking event Democracy Drinks. Save the date 17th October. Register here.
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Take care,
Eleanor & the Liberties Team
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