By Hans de Zwart, EDRi member Bits of Freedom, the Netherlands
“You can’t uphold the law by breaking the law”
The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) invited EDRi member Bits of Freedom to speak at their annual New Year’s Seminar. Hans De Zwart, Director of Bits of Freedom, talked about how the rule of law can only be defended by the European Union taking an exemplary role including by strictly adhering to the rulings of the Court of Justice of the European Union and urgently taking action to be more transparent in its legislative processes.

The European Council is scheduled to meet on 29 April 2017 to discus the UK’s announcement to withdraw from the European Union.

By Julian Hauser, EDRi intern
Copyright has seen a spectacular rise in importance, both politically and legally, in recent decades. The digitisation of cultural and scientific goods has led many rights holders to see strengthened copyright protection as the only means of ensuring the survival of the cultural industry. To a large extent the rights holders' quest for more legal protection has succeeded - today's copyright protections are as strong and broad as never before.

By James Petras
The Greek government is currently locked in a life and death struggle with the elite which dominate the banks and political decision-making centers of the European Union. What are at stake are the livelihoods of 11 million Greek workers, employees and small business people and the viability of the European Union. If the ruling Syriza government capitulates to the demands of the EU bankers and agrees to continue the austerity programs, Greece will be condemned to decades of regression, destitution and colonial rule. If Greece decides to resist, and is forced to exit the EU, it will need to repudiate its 270 billion Euro foreign debts, sending the international financial markets crashing and causing the EU to collapse.

Following the informal meeting of Justice and Home Affairs Ministers in Riga on 29 and 30 January, the following statement has been released by the EU.
“Profoundly shocked by the terrible terrorist attacks in Paris in early January which have endangered the core values of EU, the Latvian Presidency adjusted the agenda of the informal meeting of Justice and Home Affairs Ministers in Riga to dedicate the whole session for discussions by Ministers of Home affairs to the EU's fight against terrorism and to add an information point for Ministers of Justice on judicial aspects of fighting terrorism.

by Maryant Fernández Pérez, EDRi
On 6 January 2015, the European Ombudsman, the EU authority dealing with maladministration in the institutions of the European Union, adopted ten recommendations for the Commission to become transparent in the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) negotiations. In her decision, the Ombudsman followed recommendations made by EDRi in our response to the public consultation on the transparency of the TTIP.

Brian Hayes, Fine Gael Dublin MEP, has been appointed as the Vice President of the European Parliament's Iraq Delegation.

From 20 April 2011 Ireland joins other E.U. countries, such as Finland, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium in offering an Enterprise Exchange Programme for new entrepreneurs.