Slovak Economy Minister says ACTA puts copyrights above basic freedoms

Economy Minister Juraj Miškov (Freedom and Solidarity party (SaS)) said on February 6 that the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) contains a lot of vague formulations and offers many interpretations that pose a potential risk of undesired outcomes, the TASR newswire reported.

"I won't support an agreement that would curtail basic human rights in any shape or form, particularly the right to freedom and privacy and that will superimpose copyright protection over these rights," Miškov stated, as quoted by TASR. "We want to prevent Slovakia and Slovak citizens becoming hostages in the hands of agreements that are not fully clear which could restrict the basic human rights and freedoms of every individual," added the minister.

Miškov's view is shared by Smer party chairman Robert Fico who said that Slovakia should not ratify ACTA in its current form, adding that if Smer is part of the future government, it will not lend any support to ACTA. Fico also said the agreement was drafted under wraps to a large degree and its protocols are unknown.

"We still don't know what certain parts of the agreement mean and how they will be interpreted in practice,“ Fico stated, as quoted by TASR.

Source: TASR

Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
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