Freedom Not Fear 2012/Press
Press contact
Please contact us at info(at)freedom-not-fear.eu
Phone
You can contact some activists of the Freedom not fear movement via phone.
Orga
- Kirsten (Belgium, languages: en/de/fr) - Phone: (+32) (0)474 17 11 30
- Marine (Belgium, languages: fr/en) - Phone: (+32) (0)474 17 10 93
- Wim Vandenbussche (Belgium, languages: nl/en) - Phone: (+32) (0)477 744 491 - Mail: wimFehler beim Erstellen des Vorschaubildes: Die Miniaturansicht konnte nicht am vorgesehenen Ort gespeichert werdendatapanikFehler beim Erstellen des Vorschaubildes: Die Miniaturansicht konnte nicht am vorgesehenen Ort gespeichert werdenorg
- Charles ... (United Kingdom, languages: en) - Phone (+44) 44 79 71 39 16 57 - Mail: pressFehler beim Erstellen des Vorschaubildes: Die Miniaturansicht konnte nicht am vorgesehenen Ort gespeichert werdenno-cctvFehler beim Erstellen des Vorschaubildes: Die Miniaturansicht konnte nicht am vorgesehenen Ort gespeichert werdenorgFehler beim Erstellen des Vorschaubildes: Die Miniaturansicht konnte nicht am vorgesehenen Ort gespeichert werdenuk
- Michael Ebeling (Germany, languages: de/en) - Phone: (+49) (0)1577 39 19 170 - Mail: micha_ebelingFehler beim Erstellen des Vorschaubildes: Die Miniaturansicht konnte nicht am vorgesehenen Ort gespeichert werdenmail36Fehler beim Erstellen des Vorschaubildes: Die Miniaturansicht konnte nicht am vorgesehenen Ort gespeichert werdennet
Outside events
Demonstration / walk of protest
- padeluun (Germany, languages: de/en) - Phone: +49-171-5432586 - Mail: <enkode>padeluun@foebud.org</enkode>
CamSpotting
- Wim Vandenbussche (Belgium, languages: nl/en) - Phone: (+32) (0)477 744 491 - Mail: wimFehler beim Erstellen des Vorschaubildes: Die Miniaturansicht konnte nicht am vorgesehenen Ort gespeichert werdendatapanikFehler beim Erstellen des Vorschaubildes: Die Miniaturansicht konnte nicht am vorgesehenen Ort gespeichert werdenorg
Human CCTV walk
- Michael Ebeling (Germany, languages: de/en) - Phone: (+49) (0)1577 39 19 170 - Mail: micha_ebelingFehler beim Erstellen des Vorschaubildes: Die Miniaturansicht konnte nicht am vorgesehenen Ort gespeichert werdenmail36Fehler beim Erstellen des Vorschaubildes: Die Miniaturansicht konnte nicht am vorgesehenen Ort gespeichert werdennet
Introduction
English version
Freedom Not Fear
Brussels – 14, 15, 16 and 17 September 2012
This is the second year in a row that the activist movement « Freedom not Fear » is organising a weekend in Brussels with talks, protests, workshops and networking.
- http://freedomnotfear.org (Website for the international event)
- http://freedom-not-fear.eu (Wiki for the Brussels event)
What is Freedom Not Fear ?
Freedom not fear is an activist movement and a coalition of NGOs, collectives and citizens which meets in many different places once per year in September in order to defend a free and open society against the ever increasing number of restrictions of our fundamental rights. This movement organises an international activist weekend for protests, discussions and reflection with the aim to put an end to the culture of fear.
European legislation influences our daily lives more and more and some of them have a direct impact on the way we communicate, access information or take part in civic life. In 2011, several hundred people from Belgium, the Netherlands, France, Germany, Austria and the UK participated in the first Brussels edition. Around fifty participated in the following day of meetings with European policy makers in the European Parliament and the Commission.
The main goal of this weekend of information, activities and reflection, to which all citizens are invited, is to create a dynamic and to support knowledge sharing on topics such as the defense of fundamental rights in the digital era or the increase of surveillance measures, for example retention or CCTV surveillance (see page 3 for a detailed desciption of our topics). The incredible pan-European mobilisation against ACTA (Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement) has shown that civil society can have a decisive impact on draft legislations that threaten civil liberties.
Programme
14 - 17 September 2012
- 14/09: Arrivals
- 15/09 -16/09: Protest, CCTV spotting/mapping, talks and workshops
- Location: Mundo B ([www.mundo-b.org www.mundo-b.org])
- 17/09 : Meetings with MEPs and Commission officials (self-organized)
There are many ways to get involved
- Support the event and add your organisation to the list of official « supporters » (see here the list of supporters from last year, amongst them the Ligue des Droits de l'Homme Belgique, l'Association Européenne pour la Défense des Droits de l'Homme or NOCCTV)
- Spread the information (on your website, social networks, blogs, newsletter, etc.).
- Organise a workshop or a talk on an issue linked to our topics, on Saturday 15/09 or Sunday 16/09.
- Take part in the activities or listen to the talks.
If you need further information, please do not hesitate to contact us:
Introduction Freedom not fear 2012 - english version, pdf-file
French version
Introduction Freedom not fear 2012 - french version, pdf-file
Dutch version
Introduction Freedom not fear 2012 - dutch version, pdf-file
German version
Introduction Freedom not fear 2012 - german version, pdf-file
Press releases
First release: "Save the date" - 29-Aug-2012 (Wednesday)
English version
International meeting of digital civil rights movement
Second "Freedom not Fear" weekend in September in Brussels
Following on from last year's inaugural event, privacy activists from across Europe will once again meet for the Brussels Freedom not Fear event from 14th-17th September 2012. Freedom not Fear aims to bring campaign groups, NGOs and commited activists together under one message - to halt the surveillance "arms race" and allow the people of Europe to live in freedom, not fear. The four-day event will consist of a mixture of workshops, discussions and publicity stunts.
Participants are expected from several European Union countries, including UK, Poland, Spain, Austria, Netherlands, Germany and of course Belgium. The range of subjects already scheduled for discussion include concerns about the use of video surveillance, a European citizens' initiative against data retention, as well as a discussion of fundamental questions about how such a loose collective of civil movements could have any political influence.
The event will take place at the "Mundo B" conference centre in the heart of Brussels, and is open to anyone. Participation is free and no registration is needed. More information can be found at http://www.freedom-not-fear.eu, whilst http://www.freedomnotfear.org has information on other international actions. For more multilingual press information a wiki page has been created.
Press Release #1 Freedom not fear 2012 - english version, pdf-file
French version
Press Release #1 Freedom not fear 2012 - french version, pdf-file
Dutch version
Press Release #1 Freedom not fear 2012 - dutch version, pdf-file
German version
Press Release #1 Freedom not fear 2012 - german version, pdf-file
Second release: "Reminder" - 12-Sep-2012 (Wednesday)
English version
Reminder: "Freedom Not Fear" event is coming up!
Four days of privacy and digital rights in Brussels
The second "Freedom not Fear" event will bring together privacy and digital rights activists from across Europe. The event will be held on September 14–17 September in Brussels.
This weekend aims at supporting and empowering an international network of privacy and civil rights movements and activists. On Friday afternoon, the event will be officially launched with two discussions featuring Mr. Werner Stengg, (Head of Unit DG Internal Market, European Commission) and Mr. Peter Hustinx (European Data Protection Supervisor).
The conference is organised as a barcamp – the programme is continuously updated and offers a diverse range of activities. These include, among others, talks and workshops on the data protection reform in Europe, data retention and passenger name records as well as outside activites, such as a CCTV spotting game in the city centre. Furthermore, a protest walk through the city of Brussels has been announced for Saturday, 11am.
For more information, visit the multi-language press information site.
Press Release #2 Freedom not fear 2012 - english version, pdf-file
French version
Press Release #2 Freedom not fear 2012 - french version, pdf-file
Dutch version
Press Release #2 Freedom not fear 2012 - dutch version, pdf-file
German version
Press Release #2 Freedom not fear 2012 - german version, pdf-file
Third release: "Summary" - 18-Sep-2012 (Tuesday)
English version
That was "Freedom Not Fear 2012"
The 4-day "Freedom Not Fear 2012" event came to a successful end today (Monday 17th September). Organisations and individuals from 11 EU-member states participated to raise their voice for better privacy safeguards, to protest against emerging surveillance measures and to exchange views on data protection and digital rights.
The Brussels action was accompanied by protest events in the US, Argentina, Luxembourg and Australia.
"The idea of 'Freedom Not Fear' is to give citizens and civil rights groups time and a place for networking in order to strenghten their engagement and personal efforts", says Michael Ebeling, part of the organizing team. "We are glad that we are moving forward with this, bringing people from different countries together."
The weekend started on Friday afternoon with a discussion about the consultations of the EU Commission about a European notice-and-takedown sytem of content on the Internet. Mr. Werner Stengg, Head of the EC Unit on "Online Services" presented the Commission's point of view on this sensitive topic. The talk was followed by two hours of discussions with Mr. Peter Hustinx, European Data Protection Supervisor, about the upcoming EU Data Protection Reform. He started with a detailed explanation of his interpretation of the Freedom Not Fear motto: "Fear is always a bad adviser." He emphasized to keep on striving for positive developments on privacy issues. Mentioning the whole range of various kinds of activism from single person engagement over citizens' initiatives up to professional privacy activism: "Keep on going - we need you!"
Three more days of the barcamp-like conference filled with meetings, lectures and discussions followed also including a colorful demonstration within the city of Brussels and one more outside action named the "Camspotting Game". One of the results of Freedom Not Fear was the establishment of the International Working Group on Video Surveillance, which announced a campaign targeting the latest developments in privacy-intrusive technology such as "Facewatch" in the UK.
Press Release #3 Freedom not fear 2012 - english version, pdf-file
Dutch version
Press Release #3 Freedom not fear 2012 - dutch version, pdf-file
German version
Press Release #3 Freedom not fear 2012 - german version, pdf-file