Activities of Gilles LEBRETON related to 2022/0117(COD)
Plenary speeches (1)
Protection of journalists and human rights defenders from manifestly unfounded or abusive court proceedings (debate)
Shadow reports (1)
REPORT on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on protecting persons who engage in public participation from manifestly unfounded or abusive court proceedings (“Strategic lawsuits against public participation”)
Legal basis opinions (0)
Amendments (18)
Amendment 59 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 6 a (new)
Recital 6 a (new)
(6a) Increasing numbers of journalists are being harassed, threatened and attacked either while reporting on or after having filed reports on Islamism; it is vital to ensure their safety and to address this specific threat;
Amendment 68 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 4
Recital 4
(4) The purpose of this Directive is to provide protection to natural and legal persons who engage in public participation on matters of public interest, in particular journalists and, human rights defenders and academics, against court proceedings, which are initiated against them to deter them from public participation (commonly referred to as strategic lawsuits against public participation or ‘SLAPPs’).
Amendment 69 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 7 a (new)
Recital 7 a (new)
(7a) Human rights defenders play an important role in democracies, particularly in defending national and European borders, when deterring irregular immigrants from taking potentially life-threatening risks such as crossing the Mediterranean or the English Channel;
Amendment 73 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 8 a (new)
Recital 8 a (new)
(8a) Is worried about the French Government’s threats to a private audiovisual conglomerate owing to ideological disagreements; notes that this is an attack on the independence of France’s Public Authority for the Regulation of Audiovisual and Digital Communication (ARCOM) and a breach of the duty of confidentiality; points out that ARCOM subsequently opposed the government, stressing that the conglomerate in question was in full compliance with rules on political pluralism;
Amendment 74 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 7
Recital 7
(7) Human rights defenders also play an important role in European democracies, especially in upholding fundamental rights, democratic values, social inclusion, environmental protection and the rule of law. They should be able to participate actively in public life and make their voice heard on policy matters and in decision-making processes without fear of intimidation. Human rights defenders refer to individuals or organisations engaged in defending fundamental rights and a variety of other rights, such as environmental and climate rights, women’s rights, LGBTIQ rights, the rights of the people with a minority racial or ethnic background, labour rights or religious freedoms. Other participants in public debate, such as academics and researchers, also deserve adequate protection.
Amendment 82 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 7 a (new)
Recital 7 a (new)
(7a) Through their research and teaching activities, academics play a key role in public participation by helping students of all ages develop their competences and especially improve their analytical skills, and by carrying out individual or collective research, innovation or creative work, all of which must be done with a high degree of freedom of thought;
Amendment 89 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 9
Recital 9
(9) To foster this environment, it is important to protect in particular journalists and, human rights defenders and academics from court proceedings against public participation. Such court proceedings are not initiated for the purpose of access to justice, but to silence public debate typically using harassment and intimidation.
Amendment 95 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 11
Recital 11
(11) Court proceedings against public participation may have an adverse impact on the credibility and reputation of journalists and human rights defenderspersons targeted and exhaust their financial and other resources. Because of such proceedings, the publication of information on a matter of public interest may be delayed or altogether avoided. The length of procedures and the financial pressure may have a chilling effect on journalists and human rights defendersthem. The existence of such practices may therefore have a deterrent effect on their work by contributing to self-censorship in anticipation of possible future court proceedings, which leads to the impoverishment of public debate to the detriment of society as a whole.
Amendment 102 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 17 a (new)
Recital 17 a (new)
(17a) With a view to reinforcing freedom of expression, takes the view that something should be done to combat anonymous activist groups attempting to scare advertisers away from media outlets that do not share their ideology;
Amendment 106 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 18
Recital 18
(18) The notion of a matter of public interest should include also quality, safety, immigration policy or other relevant aspects of goods, products or services where such matters are relevant to public health, safety, the environment, climate or enjoyment of fundamental rights. A purely individual dispute between a consumer and a manufacturer or a service provider concerning a good, product or service should be covered only when the matter contains an element of public interest, for instance concerning a product or service which fails to comply with environmental or safety standards.
Amendment 127 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 21
Recital 21
Amendment 160 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point a
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point a
(a) public health, safety, immigration policy, the environment, climate or enjoyment of fundamental rights;
Amendment 261 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 9 – paragraph 1
Article 9 – paragraph 1
Amendment 266 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 9 – paragraph 2
Article 9 – paragraph 2
2. Member States may establish time limits for the exercise of the right to file an application for early dismissal. The time limits shall be proportionate and not render such exercise impossible or excessively difficult.
Amendment 270 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 10 – paragraph 1
Article 10 – paragraph 1
Amendment 272 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 11 – paragraph 1
Article 11 – paragraph 1
Amendment 277 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 12 – paragraph 1
Article 12 – paragraph 1
Amendment 298 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 15 – paragraph 1
Article 15 – paragraph 1
Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that a natural or legal person who has suffered harm as a result of an abusive court proceedings against public participation is able to claim and to obtain full compensation for that harm.