735th meeting – 20 December 2000
Item 1.5b
Rapporteur on information policy (RAP-INF)
b. Recommendation 54 (1999) of the Congress of Local and regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE) on local and regional information society: Draft reply of the Committee of Ministers
(Recommendation 54 (1999) of the CLRAE, RAP-INF(2000)12 revised)
Decision
The Deputies adopted the following reply to Recommendation 54 (1999) of the Congress of Local and regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE) on local and regional information society :
«1.
2.
The Committee of Ministers would firstly like to emphasise that it fully concurs with the high priority attached by the Congress to the phenomenon of information technologies development, which – as the Recommendation points out - is laying the foundations for a real "information society", at national, European and world level, as well as at local and regional level. It also shares the view that a coherent and co-ordinated approach to this phenomenon is necessary, the framework of the Council of Europe offering a potential in this respect that should be exploited as far as possible. In this connection, the Declaration on a European policy for new information technologies, adopted by the Committee of Ministers in Budapest on 7 May 1999, in the context of the 50th anniversary of the Council of Europe, was a major step forward, primed by the decisions taken by the Heads of State and Government at the Strasbourg Summit (10-11 October 1997). To date, this Declaration remains the fundamental text underlying recent or ongoing activities in various Council of Europe sectors.
3.
As regards those activities, and also recent achievements within the Council of Europe framework, the Committee of Ministers refers the Congress to the work mentioned in the opinions of the CDMM, the CDCJ and the CDCC, reproduced in appendices I, II and III respectively.
Moreover, in the field of local and regional democracy, in its recent work the Steering committee on local and regional democracy (CDLR) has paid particular attention to the possibility of having recourse to the new information technologies in order:
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to improve the dialogue between local elected representatives, local administration and citizens and promote the latter's participation in the public life at local level and
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to increase the exchanges of information and synergies between public administrations thus making the offer of services to citizens more effective.
The scale and variety of the activities are eloquent testimony to the high priority attached to the development of the information technologies in the intergovernmental work undertaken in the Council of Europe.
4.
More specifically in connection with the proposal to draw up a European information technology charter and in the light of the opinions of the three committees consulted, the Committee of Ministers has reached the conclusion that it does not seem expedient at this stage to follow up the CLRAE proposal. However, it draws the attention of the aforementioned committees to the interests and concerns expressed by the Congress in this context and asks them to take these into account as far as possible when implementing their current programme of activities.
5.
Finally, the Committee of Ministers wishes to draw the attention of the Congress to Resolution (2000) 2 on the Council of Europe's information strategy, in which the Committee of Ministers recommends that high priority be given to the use of the new information technologies in efforts to promote and build awareness of the European political project (for which the Council of Europe forms one of the pillars), and confers a major role on the Organisation's four main bodies (one of these being the CLRAE) in this respect. The Committee of Ministers has forged a dialogue to this end with its three main institutional partners within the Council of Europe. It is counting on the availability and the support of the Congress to bring that dialogue to fruition and develop the potential opened up to the Council and to all Europeans.
Appendix 1
Opinion on paragraph 18 of CLRAE Recommendation 54 (1999) on
Local and Regional Information Society
1.
Following the adoption of Recommendation 54 (1999) on local and regional information society by the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE) the CDCJ noted that the CDCJ as well as the Steering Committee on the Mass Media (CDMM) and the Council for Cultural Co-operation (CDCC) have been invited by the Committee of Ministers to examine the necessity and the feasibility of elaborating “a European Information Technology Charter in order to establish a set of principles on issues such as the protection of minors, norms on international commerce, taxation, consumer protection, copyright, data protection, cryptography and many other issues” as mentioned in paragraph 18 of the Recommendation.
2.
As indicated in paragraph 18 of the Recommendation, the CDCJ is convinced that the transition towards an information society needs to be counterbalanced by the drafting of a set of protective rules for information users and diffusers.
3.
The CDCJ noted that under its authority several committees are entrusted with the examination of the consequences of the development of new technologies. Thus:
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the Committee of Experts on Information Technology and Law (CJ-IT) is currently examining issues concerning the authenticity of data and of electronic/digital signatures in the legal sector in order to elaborate guidelines. This Committee is also in charge of organising the 14th Colloquy on information technology and law in Europe (Cambridge, May 2000) which will be on the following topic: “Information technology and law: linking systems and their users – modern communication technologies in the legal fields”.
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the Project Group on Data Protection (CJ-PD) is currently in charge of examining the issues concerning the impact of new technologies on data protection.
4.
The CDCJ also noted that the European Commission proposed to the CDCJ a new common initiative on “Information Society services” which aims to create, among members States and candidates to the Council of Europe, a network in which all draft laws concerning the Internet and its services, that derive from one state, should be circulated for prior examination and observation purposes. This question will be examined by the CDCJ during 2000.
5.
Furthermore, the CDCJ noted that, taking into account Recommendation (89) 9 on computer‑related crime and Recommendation (95) 13 on problems of criminal procedural law, in connection with information technology, the European Committee on Crime Problems (CDPC) is elaborating a draft Convention on cyber-crime.
6. The CDCJ noted that new information technologies constitute a field in constant evolution in which all aspects due to their diversity and capacity to evolve would be different to cover in a single European Charter.
7. The CDCJ pointed out that paragraph 18 of the CLRAE Recommendation deals with many different issues, some of which fall within the Council of Europe expertise (eg information technology and law, data protection, certain crimes), others (eg electronic commerce) are being dealt with by other international institutions, such as the Hague Conference on Private International Law and UNCITRAL. In any event the CDCJ considered that it was very important to avoid duplication of effort by international institutions.
8.
If so requested by the Committee of Ministers and in the light of the priorities of the Council of Europe, the CDCJ is ready to consider, in more detail, aspects of problems which fall within its competence in particular problems linked to information technology and law and data protection.
Appendix 2
Opinion on paragraph 18 of Recommendation 54 (1999)
of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe
on Local and Regional Information Society
The Steering Committee on the Mass Media agrees to a very large extent with the views of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE) concerning the impact of the development of the information society in Europe and the challenges and new opportunities it will bring.
The CDMM recalls that these issues have already been addressed in the policy texts adopted at the 5th European Ministerial Conference on Mass Media Policy (Thessaloniki, December 1994) and in the Declaration on a European Policy for New Information Technologies adopted by the Committee of Ministers in May 1999, which the CLRAE Recommendation refers to in its preamble.
Although the CDMM agrees, to a certain extent, with some of the strategies suggested to governments of member States in the CLRAE Recommendation, it has serious doubts about both the necessity and the feasibility of drafting a European information technology charter, as envisaged in paragraph 18 of that Recommendation.
Although the different areas mentioned in paragraph 18 raise important issues that require particular consideration in the light of the development of the Information Society, some of them do not come within the remit of the Council of Europe and are already being addressed by other international bodies such as the European Union and the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO).
Moreover, the areas listed are very varied; each one raises different issues - which may sometimes be interlinked - and requires specific expertise.
In practice, the drafting of a single text encompassing these different areas would certainly be hampered by difficulties such as the need to combine different expertises and to cover a wide range of issues with complex ramifications. It is therefore highly likely that such a project, if undertaken, would take a long time to be completed.
Lastly, the Council of Europe has already undertaken, or is currently preparing, a number of initiatives in some of the areas referred to in paragraph 18 of the CLRAE Recommendation.
The CDMM itself is working on the issue of protecting minors from harmful content disseminated via the new information and communication services, and on the impact of these new services on the protection of copyright and neighbouring rights. In addition to the activities of the CDMM, work carried out under the supervision of the CDCJ should be taken into account, for example the draft Convention on Crime in Cyberspace currently being prepared by the PC-CY and the work on data protection which gave rise to Recommendation No. R (99) 5 of the Committee of Ministers for the protection of privacy on the Internet.
In the light of these activities, and bearing in mind the arguments outlined above, the CDMM considers that the drafting of a charter along the lines suggested by the CLRAE is neither necessary nor appropriate, not to mention the fact that there appear to be very serious doubts as to its feasibility.
Appendix 3
Opinion by the CDCC on Recommendation 54 (1999) of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe on Local and Regional Information Society
1.
The CDCC welcomes Recommendation 54 (1999) of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe on local and regional information society.
2.
With regard to the specific request by the Committee of Ministers concerning the proposal to elaborate a European information technology charter (paragraph 18 of the Recommendation), the CDCC believes that it is inherent in the global nature of internet technology that regional agreements on such matters cannot be effective enough. The CDCC would encourage the development, item by item, of a common European position in any international negotiations. Such positions should take due account of the need to establish a framework which will secure protection for minors as well as the need to fight against the use of new technologies for the propagation of ultra-nationalist, xenophobic, racist and anti-Semitic messages.
3.
As concerns the other issues raised in the Recommendation, the CDCC would like to make the following observations.
4.
The CDCC, through its specialised committees, has carried out numerous activities on the structures of education system in general, with an emphasis on decentralisation of the education system and the clear division of responsibilities between the various system levels (local, regional and national). The guiding principle behind these activities has been to identify the optimum form of decentralisation to ensure that developments in local and regional needs can be quickly taken into account and that schools are in a position to become more closely connected with their immediate social, cultural, economic and political environment.
5.
The Recommendation also ties in with current discussions within the Education and Higher Education and Research Committees on developments in the education system in response to the communication society. These deliberations should in principle result in the launch in 2001 of a project on learning and teaching in the communication society to be carried out jointly by the CC-ED and CC-HER.
6.
Accordingly, the CDCC believes that the subject matter of the Congress recommendation raises a number of questions which should be addressed in its future programmes on educational facilities and new technologies.
7.
The CDCC endorses the appeal launched by the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe to member countries "to elaborate national plans and strategies for the transition to the information society in each of their countries…". It feels it is important to point out that such plans should include education and lifelong training programmes designed for and open to all members of the population. The CDCC believes that if the information society is to become a democratic and pluralist society no one should be excluded. Appropriate training is as important a precondition as access to technical resources.
8.
The CDCC believes that all policies for the application of new information technologies should encourage access and participation, competence and empowerment, creativity and diversity, while ensuring the protection of the individual's rights and freedoms.
9.
The CDCC agrees with the CLRAE, which, while acknowledging the positive aspects of the development of new information technologies, recommends adopting an interdisciplinary approach so as to increase public awareness and understanding of the opportunities, benefits and possible risks of the development of new technologies.
10.
Thought must also be given to the implications of the development of the information society for local and regional management of the education system. The initial activities carried out in this field show that the new communication technologies, above and beyond their direct impact on teaching, should lead to a much more flexible and dynamic functioning of educational facilities (more rational and responsive management, closer involvement between the education system and its environment, transparent and rational educational strategies, etc).
11.
As regards the teaching and methodological dimension of introducing new communication technologies in the education system, it is generally held that this should represent a factor for change in traditional school practices as regards curricula, the relationship to knowledge, pupil-teacher relationships, the cross-curricular approach, and even operational structures (architecture, classroom function, role of schools, etc).
12.
In this context, the problem of training citizens (not only pupils but also teachers, administrators, parents and all partners involved in developing education at local and regional level) is a major factor in any educational policy designed with lifelong education in mind. It is a question of providing not only the means to use new systems but also the means to master their development and use from the angle of democratic citizenship.
13.
Recommendation R (99) 2 of the Committee of Ministers to member states on secondary education highlights the fact that the key competences to be developed in the new curricula should include new technologies, an understanding of their applications, advantages and dangers and the ability to make critical judgements about the information carried on the new communication technologies.
14.
The declaration on a European policy for new information technologies adopted by the Committee of Ministers on 7 May 1999 in Budapest for the 50th anniversary of the Council of Europe underscores the importance of mastering new information technologies, particularly in respect of formal, non-formal and lifelong education.
15.
In this context, the CDCC can endorse the recommendations contained in paragraph 12 of Recommendation 54 concerning awareness-raising, education and lifelong training in new communication technologies.
16.
The same is true for paragraph 14 on the need for education and training systems to have at their disposal sufficient resources for optimum use of the new possibilities offered by the new communication society.».