ARTICLE 19 and 37 other civil society organisations have written to France’s National Assembly to express opposition to a proposed law for the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. If passed, the law will allow the use of algorithm-driven cameras to detect specific suspicious events in public spaces, paving the way for the use of invasive algorithm-driven video surveillance.
The groups argue the proposed surveillance measures, set out in Article 7 of the new law, will violate international human rights law, as they contravene the principles of necessity and proportionality, and pose unacceptable risks to fundamental rights, such as the right to privacy, the freedom of assembly and association, and the right to non-discrimination.
The organisations call on the French government to reject Article 7 and to engage with civil society on the matter in order to avoid setting a worrying precedent of unjustified and disproportionate surveillance in publicly accessible spaces.
Read the full letter in English
Read the full letter in French
Read the letter on the Le Monde website
Signatories:
Access Now, Global
AlgoRace, Spain
AlgorithmWatch, Germany
AlgorithmWatch CH, Switzerland
Amnesty International, Global
ApTI, Romania
ARTICLE 19, Global
Association Nationale des Supporters, France
Big Brother Watch, UK
Bits of Freedom, The Netherlands
Centre for Democracy & Technology, Europe
Chaos Computer Club Lëtzebuerg, Luxembourg
Citizen D / Državljan D, Slovenia
Civil Liberties Union for Europe, Europe
Deutsche Vereinigung für Datenschutz e.V. (DVD), Germany
Digitalcourage e.V., Germany
Digitale Gesellschaft, Switzerland
Digitale Freiheit e.V., Germany
Elektronisk Forpost Norge, Norway
Eticas Tech, Spain
European Center for Not-for-Profit Law Stichting (ECNL)
Europe European Digital Rights, Europe
Fair Trials, Global
Forum Civique Européen, France/Europe
Football Supporters, Europe
Homo Digitalis, Greece
Human Rights Watch, International
Irish Council for Civil Liberties, Ireland
IT-Pol, Denmark
Iuridicum Remedium, Czech Republic
Liberty, UK
Panoptykon Foundation, Poland
Privacy International, Global
Privacy Network, Italy
Share Foundation, Serbia
Society Vrijbit, The Netherlands
Statewatch, Europe
Today is a new day / Danes je nov dan, Slovenia