Home | About Us | Advanced search | Link Versione Italiana  English version  France version

 Europeanrights.eu

European Observer on fundamental right's respect

  Advanced search

Other Acts 1551 (2007) (19/04/2007)

Type: Acts of the Council of Europe: Resolution

Authority: European Authorities - Council of Europe: Parliamentary Assembly

Date: 04/19/2007

Subject: Fair trial issues in criminal cases concerning espionage or divulging state secrets. The Parliamentary Assembly finds that the state’s legitimate interest in protecting official secrets must not become a pretext to unduly restrict the freedom of expression and of information, international scientific co-operation and the work of lawyers and other defenders of human rights. It recalls the importance of freedom of expression and of information in a democratic society, in which it must be possible to freely expose corruption, human rights violations, environmental destruction and other abuses of authority. It underline that Scientific progress critically depends on the free flow of information among scientists, who must be able to co-operate internationally and participate in the scientific process without fear of prosecution. Lawyers and other defenders of human rights must also be able to perform their indispensable role in establishing the truth and holding perpetrators of human rights violations to account without the threat of criminal prosecution. The Assembly notes that legislation on official secrecy in many Council of Europe member states is rather vague or otherwise overly broad in that it could be construed in such a way as to cover a wide range of legitimate activities of journalists, scientists, lawyers or other human rights defenders. At the same time, prosecutions for breach of state secrecy are very rare in most Council of Europe member and observer states and generally lead to light sentences, if any. By contrast, a series of high profile espionage cases against scientists, journalists and lawyers in the Russian Federation have caused much hardship to the individuals concerned and their families. It calls on the judicial authorities of all countries concerned and on the European Court of Human Rights to find an appropriate balance between the state interest in preserving official secrecy on the one hand, and freedom of expression and of the free flow of information on scientific matters, and society’s interest in exposing abuses of power on the other hand. It therefore considers some principles

Classification: Justice - Art. 47 Fair trial, public hearing

Text download English French