The International Privacy Newswire

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December 1998

 Poland Begins Reviewing Secret Police Files. Early next year the Warsaw Appeals Court will start reviewing some 23,000 statements by current politicians, parliamentary deputies, and other top public post holders on whether they collaborated with the Communist-era secret police, PAP reported on 23 December. Such statements are a requirement under Poland's lustration law passed in 1997. The law stipulates that those who admit having collaborated with the secret police will not be forbidden to participate in politics or public life, whereas concealment of such facts will be punished with a 10-year ban on holding some public posts. Thus far, some 100 officials have admitted that they worked for the Communist secret services. Their names will be published in the government's official journal.(RFE/RL, December 28, 1998).



 Polish Parliament Overrides Presidential Veto on Secret Files Bill. The Polish parliament voted by 282 to 164 on 18 December to override the presidential veto on the bill providing for the opening of communist-era secret police files, AP reported. The Solidarity-led coalition scored a major victory over leftist President Aleksander Kwasniewski by mustering the support of the opposition Peasant Party (PSL). The coalition has agreed to the PSL's proposals to make some minor amendments to the bill. In particular, the PSL insisted that the head of a screening body-the Institute of National Remembrance--be elected by a 60 percent parliamentary majority instead of a simple majority. (RFE/RL, December 18, 1998).



 Romanian Parliament Approves Anti-Money Laundering Law. The chambers of the parliament approved in a joint session on 17 December a law prohibiting money laundering, Mediafax reported. A National Office for Preventing Money Laundering is to be set up under the legislation. Banks have to notify the office of any operation in excess of ECU 10,000 ($11,700). The office will also supervise casinos and pawn shops. (RFE/RL, December 18, 1998).



 Privacy International Statement on Meeting with US Officials. Privacy International staff met with US officials on December 16 to discuss the EU/US conflict over privacy laws and transborder dataflows. PI issued the following statement on the lack of agreement reached in the meeting. More information on the Project Compliance page.



 Australian Government Announces New Privacy Plan. Attorney-General Daryl Williams and Information Technology Minister Richard Alston announced in a joint statement on December 16 that the federal government would introduce a comprehensive "co-regulatory privacy protection" law to cover the private sector. Roger Clarke's State of OZ Privacy pages. (AAP, December 16, 1998).



 Iceland Debates Creating Country-Wide DNA Database. The Icelantic Parliament is considering a bill that would create a national medical and DNA database. A company, deCode Genetics would have excluse use of the database for 12 years for research purposes. The bill is being opposed by the medical and consumer groups and ethicists. Mannvernd (Association for ethics in science and medicine) overview.



 Croatian Journalists Sue Government For Spying. The editor and four journalists of the weekly "Nacional" on 11 December filed charges against the Croatian Interior Ministry for allegedly spying on them. "These illegal actions resulted in the violation of the plaintiffs' constitutional rights," lawyer Ivan Polan told Reuters. Interior Minister Ivan Penic has admitted the secret police have targeted individual journalists, but only when part of a "security problem." He has never explicitly denied allegations of spying on the staff of "Nacional." (RFE/RL, December 14, 1998).



 South Korea Approves Wiretap Law. The government approved a new law to regulate wiretapping on December 8. The law limits the use of wiretapping and imposes penalities for illegally tapping phones following allegations by the opposition that the government and state telecomm company were illegally tapping their calls. The amendment is expected to pass the National Assembly, or parliament, during its current session, which ends on December 18 this year. (Xinhua, December 8, 1998).



 Polish President Vetoes Law on Access to Communist Secret Files. Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski on 4 December vetoed a law on opening Communist-era secret police files, AP reported. The law stipulates the creation of an Institute of National Remembrance, which is to collect files compiled between 1944 and 1989, make them available to victims of the totalitarian regime, and reveal the names of secret informers. Kwasniewski argues that a court, not the institute, should decide who was a victim. He also believes that all citizens, not only victims, should have access to secret files. In order to override Kwasniewski's veto, the parliament needs a three-fifths majority. (RFE/RL, December 4, 1998).



 Australian Government May Seek Privacy Legislation. Following state-level plans to adopt privacy legislation that would cover businesses' use of personal information, a spokesman for IT Minister Senator Alston said a government privacy blueprint would be announced in January and was expected to include a national legislative framework. Story (The Australian, December 1, 1998).



 Wiretap Scandal in Brazil. Several major government officals including the communications minister, president of Brazilian Development Bank, Foreign Trade Council head, and Banco do Brasil's international affairs director have resigned following the publication of illegally tapped conversations of the Communications Minister showing undue government interference with telecom privatizations. (Associated Press)

November 1998

 Croatian Minister Admits Phone Tapping. Interior Minister Ivan Penic said in Zagreb on 24 November that "there is no systematic tapping of journalists' phones or the creation of files" on them. He added, however, that the security services conduct "random" phone taps on people they believe to be part of the "security problem." Membership in any particular profession, he stressed, does "not clear someone," and "the intelligence service has a data base of persons who in any way were a part of the security problem." He did not elaborate. The weekly "Globus" recently charged that the intelligence services keep extensive files on journalists, including information about their private lives. The opposition and moderates within the governing Croatian Democratic Community (HDZ) have frequently said that the HDZ's hard-liners use the intelligence services for political purposes. (RFE/RL, November 25, 1998).



 EU Finds US Privacy Plan Flawed. The European Union on November 23 announced that the US Department of Commerce's proposal for addressing privacy is not sufficient to protect privacy. The US proposal for "Safe Harbor" entailed voluntary self-regulation by the industry to protect privacy. A European Commission Spokeswoman, Betty Olivi, said at a November 23 briefing said that all 15 members of the EU found the proposals "unacceptable". The EU's two major concerns were individuals access to their files and their ability to stop the sale and use of their personal information.



 UK Adopts Human Rights Act. The UK Government has adopted the Human Rights Act 1998 into law. The Act will incorporate the European Convention on Human Rights into UK law and will provide for rights of privacy, free speech and other basic human rights.



 Hungarian Anti-Crime Legislation Proposed. Interior Minister Sandor Pinter on 12 November told the parliament that a comprehensive new law to combat crime is necessary because the opening of borders in recent years and the transformations in society have created "a criminal subculture." A legislative package presented by Pinter introduces new provisions to deal with arms and drug trafficking and money laundering. It increases the powers of border and custom guards and introduces stricter requirements for foreign residence permits. The opposition has protested a provision that would give police access to data banks before an investigation is ordered. Socialist Party deputy Zoltan Gal said there is a danger of creating an "information technology police state." (RFE/RL, November 13, 1998).



 German Privacy Commissioners Call for Greater Privacy Protections.Five German state governments' data-privacy agencies asked the German federal government to strengthen the country's already stringent data-privacy laws. (The Industry Standard, November 10, 1998).



 Finland Announces New Relaxed Crypto Policy. The Finnish government announced a new encryption policy on November 9. It calls for no domestic restrictions on the development and use of encryption products and relaxed policies on exports: "Finland supports free trade and use of cryptographic products. In Finland, the use of strong encryption should not be restricted by legislation or international agreements ... Finland's aims are to examine the restrictions on cryptographic products so that control lists correspond to technical development, and to ensure that the necessary restrictions will not unreasonably impede normal foreign trade of industry and businesses."



 New Spy Chief in Slovakia. The new government on 3 November appointed Vladimir Mitro as chief of the counterintelligence service (SIS), CTK reported. Mitro replaces Rudolf Ziak, who was SIS chief for just a few days, after the previous government dismissed Ivan Lexa (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 29 and 30 October 1998). Mitro headed the SIS under former Prime Minister Vladimir Meciar but was dismissed at his own request in 1995 over fabricated accusations that agents were shadowing Meciar and parliamentary chairman Ivan Gasparovic. After his dismissal, Mitro revealed that Meciar had asked the SIS to draw up lists of journalists allegedly paid from abroad. He also confirmed that Meciar's Movement for a Democratic Slovakia attempted to create parallel intelligence structures when it was in opposition for several months in 1994. (RFE/RL, November 4, 1998).

October 1998

 PI Announces UK Big Brother Awards. Privacy International held the first Big Brother Awards in London on 26 October. Awards were given to the companies, government agencies and individuals in the United Kingdom that have most directly undercut privacy.



 Czech Secret Police Files Used to Discredit Austrian Politician. President Vaclav Havel on 26 October told Czech Radio that his office was "blackmailed" by a "Sueddeutsche Zeitung" journalist into withdrawing a medal of honor that was to have been awarded to former Vienna Mayor Helmut Zilk (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 26 October 1996). "Lidove noviny" on 27 October writes that journalist Peter Brod threatened to publish information on Zilk's links to the communist-era secret police (StB) unless the award ceremony was canceled. Presidential spokesman Ladislav Spacek told Reuters the previous day that Havel received the information on Zilk from Senator Vaclav Benda, the former director of the Czech Office for the Documentation and Investigation of Communist Crimes. Citing CTK, AP reported that in his letter to Havel, Benda said Zilk was a paid StB agent during the second half of 1960s. (RFE/RL, October 27, 1998).



 European Union Privacy Directive Goes Into Force. The European Union's Directive 95/46/EC on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data went into effect on October 25, 1998. The directive requires all member countries of the EU to adopt strong privacy laws. Press release from the European Commission DG XV, 23 October 1998.



 Russian Adopts Money Laundering Law. The Duma adopted on 21 October adopted in the third reading a law on money-laundering . According to the law's principal author, Communist party member and parliamentary deputy Viktor Ilyukhin, state comptrollers will inspect all transactions by individuals that exceed 2,000 times the minimum wage and those by firms that exceed 20,000 times the minimum wage. According to "Kommersant-Daily" on 22 October, 2,000 minimum wages equals $10,000. The newspaper also reported that Central Bank Chairman Viktor Gerashchenko protested the law's adoption in a letter, noting that the law was drafted when Russia was still able to attract funds from financial markets and individuals investors. That is no longer the case, Gerashchenko noted, adding that the law may discourage both the "reacquisition of funds from abroad" and from the Russian population. (RFE/RL, October 23, 1998).



 Croatian Spy Scandal. A parliamentary committee voted on 13 October to clear a group of hard- line politicians of charges that they used the army's intelligence service to spy on their moderate rivals within the governing Croatian Democratic Community (HDZ) (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 13 October 1998). Opposition members of the committee charged that the HDZ members did not present all the evidence before the opposition walked out of the session prior to the vote. Opposition deputies demanded the establishment of a special investigative commission to look into possible misuse of the intelligence services by leading politicians, "starting with the president of the republic," RFE/RL's South Slavic Service reported. (RFE/RL, October 14, 1998).



 Poland Moves Closer To Opening Secret Police Files? The Senate, the upper house of the parliament, voted 60 to 23 with one abstention on 9 October to approve a bill on access to communist-era secret service files (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 23 September 1998). At the same time, the Senate rejected an amendment by President Aleksander Kwasniewski to allow universal access to the files. The bill stipulates that only those who have been harmed by the files be granted access. Former secret service officers will therefore be unable to view the files. PAP on 9 October reported that Kwasniewski's lawyer said the president is unlikely to sign the bill into law. (RFE/RL, October 12, 1998).



 Privacy Internation Releases World Privacy Survey. PI released a new report, "Privacy and Human Rights" for the Global Intenet Liberty Campaign on October 7. The report reviews privacy laws and practices in fifty countries around the world and finds that most industrialized countries have or are in the process of adopting comprehensive privacy laws. the report also finds that there are widespread abuses of surveillance.

September 1998

 Polish Opposition Leader Critical of Opening Communist Files. Leszek Miller, chairman of the opposition Democratic Left Alliance, told Polish Radio on 23 September that the law on making communist secret service files available to the public guarantees access to those files only to right-wing political parties. "The real idea behind [the law] is to allow the political opposition that existed in the Polish People's Republic to check who informed on whom within the opposition [at that time] and play some political game in relation to the present opposition," Miller commented. He added that the material gathered in the communist-era secret service archives is "problematic and often questionable." (RFE/RL, September 24, 1998).



 Polish Parliament Votes to Open Secret Police Files. The Sejm has voted by 237 to 157 with two abstentions to pass a law allowing individuals to look at their communist-era secret service files, PAP reported on 22 September. The bill, which still requires the upper house's and president's approval, is seen as a means of screening secret service collaborators in order to bar them from top state posts. It provides for setting up an Institute of National Remembrance in January 1999 to maintain secret service files from 1944- 1989. The institute will make those files available by the end of 1999 to victims of the totalitarian regime and reveal the names of communist agents and informers. According to Janusz Palubicki, minister in charge of Poland's secret service, as many as 4 million people in Poland may be interested in checking their files. (RFE/RL, September 23, 1998).



 Canada Introduces Comprehensive Privacy Law. Prime Minister Jean Chretien announced on September 22 sweeping privacy legislation that will set tough new rules for all federally regulated businesses and the government. The new rules will ban banks and some other businesses from using personal information collected by computer for other purposes. The bill will be introduced in early October. (The Toronto Star, September 23, 1998).



 Russian Intelligence Bureau to Monitor Internet? "Vremya MN" reported on 15 September that the Federal Security Service (FSB) is discussing the installation of special equipment enabling FSB computers to "control" communications via the Internet. According to the newspaper, counter-intelligence officials are currently focusing on the technical problems such "control" would entail. FSB officials figure that Internet providers themselves would absorb the cost of installing monitoring devices. (RFE/RL, September 18, 1998).



 Controversy Deepens Over Hungarian Spying Scandal.Opposition Free Democrat parliamentary group leader Gabor Kuncze on 1 September said that the alleged illegal surveillance of Federation of Young Democrats-Hungarian Civic Party leaders is a "boomerang that has fallen on the head of Prime Minister Viktor Orban," Hungarian media reported. Kuncze said the governing coalition's reluctance to release alleged documents on the affair raises the suspicion that there are no documents to support Orban's allegations. Opposition representatives on the parliament's National Security Committee believe the government wants to postpone the investigation as long as possible. Laszlo Kover, minister without portfolio responsible for the civilian secret services, said the opposition's attacks are aimed at "crippling" the operation of the government. (RFE/RL, September 1, 1998).



 Hungary's Security Services Cleared of Illegal Data Collection. Minister without portfolio Laszlo Kover, who oversees the security services, told the parliament's National Security Committee on 31 August that there is no evidence that those services were involved in the illegal gathering of data on Federation of Young Democrats-Hungarian Civic Party leaders last year. Representatives of coalition parties and the Hungarian Justice and Life Party voted down a proposal that the committee investigate the allegations. The committee's chairman, Gyorgy Keleti of the Socialist Party, said that vote made it clear that the coalition does not want to clarify the case. The Swedish Embassy has denied press reports that documents on the surveillance process were forwarded to the press by one of its employees. (RFE/RL, September 1, 1998).

August 1998

 Pinpoint, Postabank Deny Illegal Collection of Data in Hungary. Former Postabank President Gabor Princz firmly denied charges that he or his bank had illegally collected information on leaders of the Federation of Young Democrats-Hungarian Civic Party (FIDESZ-MPP) (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 28 August 1998), Hungarian media reported on 31 August. The former executive manager of Pinpoint Ltd., Gyorgy Meth, called allegations that his firm carried out illegal surveillance of FIDESZ-MPP politicians "false assertions." Meanwhile, "Nepszabadsag" reported that it received an envelope, allegedly from the Swedish Embassy, containing the complete documentation of the secret investigation. According to the documents, the investigation was based exclusively on company registers and not on secret or illegal sources. (RFE/RL, August 31, 1998).



 Hungary's Postabank Involved in Spying Scandal? Postabank may have ordered the private company Pinpoint to collect information on the business interests of Federation of Young Democrats-Hungarian Civic Party leaders, "Nepszava" reported on 28 August, quoting administration officials. Postabank officials refused to comment on the allegation. Former Prime Minister Gyula Horn told Hungarian media that neither the previous government nor his Socialist Party ordered the illegal collection of data. "Vilaggazdasag" reported it is possible that individuals who had high-level contacts with the previous administration, rather than the administration itself, ordered the surveillance. (RFE/RL, August 28, 1998).



 Spying Scandal Continues in Hungary. "Magyar Hirlap" on 27 August reports that the illegal gathering of information on Federation of Young Democrats-Hungarian Civic Party leaders under the previous government was carried out by a private company with secret service connections. The daily's report was confirmed by police and secret service sources, but it is still unknown who ordered the company to gather the information. The government on 26 August authorized Interior Minister Sandor Pinter, political state secretary at the Prime Minister's Office, Ervin Demeter, and senior adviser Bela Gyuricza to open an investigation into the case. (RFE/RL, August 28, 1998).



 Hungarian Premier Says His Party was Spied On. Orban on 25 August said that data on him and other leaders of the Federation of Young Democrats-Hungarian Civic Party were illegally collected before the May parliamentary elections. He said members of his cabinet are facing "a well-constructed slander campaign based on information illegally obtained under the previous government." Former Prime Minister Gyula Horn and other leading officials of his administration firmly deny the charge, saying the secret services worked within the law. Orban has ordered a government investigation into the case. (RFE/RL, August 26, 1998).



 Romanian Interior Minister Denies Police Surveillance of Politicians. Interior Minister Gavril Dejeu on 20 August denied accusations made earlier this week by Democratic Party deputy chairman Traian Basescu that he has been placed under police surveillance at Dejeu's orders, RFE/RL's Bucharest bureau reported. Dejeu said that neither himself nor any other Interior Ministry official has issued orders "for any cabinet member to be put under surveillance for his political activity."(RFE/RL, August 21, 1998).



 Romanian President Denies Knowledge of SRI File on Former Minister. The presidential office on 12 August denied allegations earlier this week by a former employee of the Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI) that the presidential office has received information about the SRI file of former Health Minister Francisc Barany. Barany resigned after former SRI official Constantin Alexa leaked to the press Barany's pledge to act as a communist secret police informer in the 1950s. Alexa, who was dismissed for having acted unlawfully, claimed in an interview with the daily "Cotidianul" on 10 August that Baranyi's SRI file shows him as having acted against Romania's "national interest and security" after the overthrow of the communist regime and of having had links to Hungarian "separatists" in Transylvania and Hungarian intelligence. Alexa says he passed on this information to his superiors, who, he claims, must have forwarded it to the presidential office. (RFE/RL, August 13, 1998).



 Controversy Over Albanian Secret Service Law. Namik Dokle, the deputy speaker of the parliament, told "Gazeta Shqiptare" of 11 August that he opposes the recent draft law regulating the National Information Service. He said the bill bans the service from giving any information to government ministers or parliamentary deputies without the prior approval of the parliamentary speaker and the prime minister. Dokle added that the draft also increases the prime minister's authority over the secret service at the expense of the president. "Gazeta Shqiptare," however, pointed out that most Socialist Party legislators seek early passage of the bill on the grounds that Islamic fundamentalists have recently stepped up their activities. Spokesmen for the opposition Democratic Party have criticized the draft, arguing that it undermines parliamentary control over the service and allows the service to investigate politicians. (RFE/RL, August 12, 1998).



 Privacy International Announces Project Fishbait to Oppose National Roadblock Day. Privacy International has started a new project - Project Fishbait - to oppose Operation Mermaid, a planned national roadblock by the combined UK police forces that will randomly stop and question tens of thosands of motorists across the UK on an undisclosed day in September 1998. People will be asked to provide identification and be questioned by customs, immigration, and government benefits agencies after their cars are stopped. We are asking people to contact us with stories about their experiences. PI will be creating a database of information on the Operation. Don't forget to ask the officials for National Insurance Numbers!

July 1998

 Phillipine Supreme Court Strikes Down National ID System. The Philippine Supreme Court declared on July 23 that the Ramos administration's order requiring all Filipino citizens to secure uniformed national identification card was unconstitutional. Manilla Times story.(Manilla Times, July 24, 1998).



 Wiretapping Up 25 Percent in UK in 1997. Lord Nolan, Interception of Communications Commissioner, reported that 1,712 phone and mail intercepts were issued in 1997, compared with 1,370 in 1996. A total of 1,647 phone taps were issued during 1997 - a 25% rise on 1996 figure of 1,301. The surveillance included the tapping of several law-abiding members of the public whose phones were bugged by mistake after operators got the wrong numbers (PA News, July 24, 1998).



 Romanian Secret Service Refuses To Identify Former Agents in Government. Responding to the Chamber of Deputies' resolution of 29 June, Romanian Intelligence Service director Costin Georgescu on 1 July told the parliamentary commission supervising the service's activities that under existing legislation, the service is prohibited from making public the links of parliamentary deputies to the former secret police. In order for the chamber's request to be met, legislation prohibiting the disclosure of information from Securitate files for 40 years since the legislation's enactment would have to be changed, RFE/RL's Bucharest bureau reported.(RFE/RL, July 2, 1998).



 Albanian Secret Service Chief Says His Predecessors Committed Murder, Spied on Opposition. Secret Service (SHIK) chief Fatos Klosi told the parliament on 30 June that he has evidence proving that the SHIK was involved in illegal activities after former President Sali Berisha failed to push through a new constitution in 1994. Klosi said that SHIK executed people without trial and spied on almost all prominent opposition politicians as well as Supreme Court Chief Judge Zef Brozi, trade union activists, and the Albanian branch of the Soros Foundation. He added that his predecessor, Bashkim Gazidede, received his orders directly from Berisha, "Koha Jone" reported. (RFE/RL, July 1, 1998).

June 1998

 Romanian Parliament Approves Law on Access to Securitate Files. The Senate on 25 June approved with a vote of 109-7 a law making possible access to the files of the former secret police, provided this "does not affect national security." The law is yet to be approved by the Chamber of Deputies. Senator Constantin Ticu-Dumitrescu withdrew his sponsorship of the law in protest against the amendments made to his draft. The law sets up a National Council for the Study of the Archives of the Former Securitate, but leaves the files with the Romanian Intelligence Service, the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of Justice. The council can request information from these bodies but cannot store the files itself.(RFE/RL, June 26, 1998)



 Nambia Wiretapping Questions. MP Eric Biwa of the United Democratic Front gave notice in Parliament last week that he will ask Prime Minister Hage Geingob whether Government has installed the latest phone tapping technology, with British assistance, and whether the National Intelligence Service (NIS) is tapping private telephone lines illegally. (Africa News, June 22, 1998).



 Commission Investigating Intelligence Agencies Spying on Top Lithuanian Officials. A Lithuanian parliamentary commission investigating alleged spying on top officials by one of the country's security services has invited former President Algirdas Brazauskas to testify about possible spying on him, BNS reported on 17 June. Brazauskas recently told "Lietuvos Rytas" that during his tenure as president, he had felt at times that he was under surveillance. "Certain words or even entire sentences that I said in my office were quoted in conversations with other officials," Brazauskas said. Earlier, the commission had informed the parliament that it had not found sufficient evidence that high-ranking state officials had been subject to surveillance. The scandal emerged following press reports that the Third Department of the Interior Ministry had spied on the country's top leaders (RFE/RL, June 18, 1998).



 New Report says French Spying on Telephone Conversations Worldwide. The French magazine Le Point reported that French intelligence agencies are systematically eavesdropping on American and other allied countries' telephone and cable traffic via a network of listening stations and passing commercial secrets to French and German companies competing for contracts.(The Times of London, June 17, 1998).



 Japanese Diet Considering Wiretap Bill. The Japanese Diet (Parliament) is considering a bill that would allow police to conduct wiretaps with the authorization of the prefectural police chief. The bill would give police the authority to tap telephone lines and eavesdrop on computer telecommunications, including e-mail. The Diet is unlike to vote on the bill before it goes out of session next week. The bill is being opposed by the Japan Federation of Bar Associations saying that authorizing wiretapping infringes on the constitutional right of secrecy of communications.
(Mainichi Daily News, June 16, 1998).



 Europe Presses Electronic Privacy. Privacy International will target American e-commerce companies for legal action this fall if U.S. negotiators don't deliver better guarantees of confidentiality for Europeans' personal data shipped the the US for processing. (Inter@ctive Week story. June 15, 1998).



 US to Hold Privacy Summit. The US Department of Commerce is holding a 2 day meeting on privacy on June 23-24, 1998. The meeting will discuss privacy on the Internet, self-regulation and new technologies. The US Federal Trade Commisssion found that consumers have little privacy protection on the Internet. They issued a new report based on a survey of 1,400 web sites.



 French Government Lifts Secrecy Restictions on Wiretap Probe. Prime Minister Lionel Jospin has waived defense secrecy restrictions on a probe of wiretapping practices under the late President Francois Mitterrand on June 3. In a letter to investigative Judge Jean-Paul Valat, Jospin said he "decided to lift defense secrecy" on the case involving surveillance between Jan 1 1983 and March 20, 1986. (Associated Press, June 4, 1998).



 Argentinan Presidential Candidate Wiretapped. Buenos Aires Mayor Fernando De la Rua of the opposition Radical Party told a news conference that transcripts of bugged conversations published on Sunday were the result of electronic trickery. De la Rua's lawyers lodged a criminal complaint against two former Radical city councilors and another party member, accusing them of mounting a "gigantic" phone-tapping operation "with the aim of pressuring the Buenos Aires city government," the mayor's office said. (Reuters, June 2, 1998). 

May 1998

 LANDSBERGIS DENIES INVOLVEMENT IN SURVEILLANCE SCANDAL. Lithuanian Parliamentary Chairman Vytautas Landsbergis has categorically denied that he gave orders to have anyone put under surveillance, BNS reported on 27 May. His denial follows media allegations that the Third Department of the Interior Ministry had spied on the country's top leaders (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 26 May 1998). Landsbergis told reporters in Vilnius that he could recall a handful of cases in which he had asked for information from the unit about various individuals who had threatened either him or the leadership in general, but he added he did not think "these types of psychos" deserve much attention. The leaders of the unit have also denied carrying out any surveillance operations. (RFE/RL 28 May 1998).



 Japanese Court OK's Keeping Fingerprints. The Osaka District Court on May 26 supported the Japanese government in keeping the fingerprints of foreigner permanent residents collected before the revision of the Alien Registration Law in 1993. Presiding Judge Yasukazu Watanabe said the fingerprinting of foreign permanent residents was legitimate and necessary before the revision of the law. He also said the keeping of such fingerprints by the government, which is now in the process of expunging them, is not illegal. (Kyodo News Wire, May 26, 1998).



 LITHUANIAN PRESIDENT ORDERS PROBE INTO ALLEGED SURVEILLANCE. Parliamentary speaker Valdas Adamkus has ordered the prosecutor-general to investigate media reports alleging the Interior Ministry spied on top officials, ITAR-TASS reported on 25 May, citing a statement issued by the presidential press service. According to the allegations, which were first made in the 23 May "Lietuvos Rytas, an Interior Ministry unit normally engaged in fighting crime and providing security to the president was used to carry out surveillance of the country's top leaders, including the head of state, the premier, and cabinet ministers. It is also alleged that most of the collected information was passed on to parliamentary speaker Vytautas Landsbergis and former Interior Minister Vidmantas Ziemelis, who resigned last week under pressure. The main opposition Democratic Labor Party has called for Landsbergis's resignation over the scandal. (RFE/RL 26 May 1998).



 CZECH PARLIAMENT APPROVES CLASSIFIED DATA LAW. The Chamber of Deputies on 20 May passed a law on the protection of classified data and the National Security Office's role in implementing the law. The new legislation will make it possible for the Czech Republic to receive such information from NATO. The absence of such a law had been one of the more serious reservations expressed in NATO circles over the admission of the Czech Republic to the organization, CTK reported. (RFE/RL, 21 May 1998)



 RUSSIAN BANKER FINED FOR REFUSING TO DISCLOSE CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION. A city court in Vladivostok has fined Valentina Panteleeva, the acting head of the Primorskii Krai branch of the Central Bank, for refusing to reveal confidential information about a local commercial bank, "Kommersant- Daily" reported on 12 May. Panteleeva refused to comply with a request from krai prosecutors to send information obtained during a Central Bank audit of the commercial bank. The case highlights the contradictions between the federal law on the activities of Russian prosecutors (which gives prosecutors the right to demand information necessary for conducting an investigation) and the federal law on banking secrets (which does not list the prosecutor's office among the agencies that have the right to ask for confidential information about banks). LB (RFE/RL, 15 May 1998)

April 1998

 Japanese Prime Minister Calls for Better Privacy Protections. Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto said on April 22 that to protect the privacy of computer network users the government will completely reconsider guidelines it established only three years ago to promote the information age. (The Daily Yomiuri, April 23, 1998)



 Ireland to Investigate Illegal Taps of Journalists. Garda Commissioner, Mr Pat Byrne, has appointed a senior garda to investigate allegations that two journalists who revealed corruption at the National Irish Bank have been under surveillance by former Defence Force rangers using high-tech equipment to listen to mobile phone and home telephone conversations. The two were told that the bank had placed them under surveillance after the story was published and strong interferance began on their phones. (The Irish Times, April 18, 1998).



 Hungary Issues Internet, Cell Phone Tapping Decree. The Hungarian government on 16 April decided to allow the Civil Secret Service to tap mobile phones as of next year in its fight against organized crime, Hungarian media reported. The decision makes it possible also to tap messages on the Internet. Providers of communications services will have to install the necessary equipment at their own expense, Hungarian media reported. (RFE/RL April 17, 1998).



 Massive DNA Tests in Germany. Police have asked 18,000 men in 12 towns to submit to DNA tests to find the murderor of a young girl. By next week, federal lawmakers are expected to approve a national database of DNA from convicted sex criminals. "Several recent cases, especially sexual crimes against children, showed that police in the German states needed to start working together," says Helga Schumacher, spokeswoman for the Federal Commission for Data Protection. (Associated Press, April 16, 1998).



 Mexican Spying Scandal. Tipped off by an anonymous note pressed into her hand during a campaign rally, a raid led by Senator Layda Sansores Sanroman in Campeche found a wiretap center with thousands of pages of wiretap transcripts of citizens, political foes and prominent business leaders dating back to 1991. They also unearthed records that showed state government checks had been used to buy more than $1.2 million in surveillance equipment from Israel. Recently, hidden microphones and cameras were also found in the offices of the new government of Mexico City and the interception of the telephone calls of a state governor were also revealed. There is also evidence of 22 other centers around the country. International Herald Tribune, April 14, 1998).



 Thai ID Cards Used for Banking. The Local Administration Department is considering a proposal for a computer link-up with the Thai Military Bank to allow the use of new ID cards with the bank's automatic teller machines. Chumphol Wanchai, manager of the bank's ATM section, said new ID cards with magnetic strips which could also be used as ATM cards proved unpopular due to limited access to ATMs. Earlier, the LAD had signed a deal with the Siam Commercial Bank to allow the use of new ID cards with the bank's ATMs. However, few cardholders used theirs with the Siam Commercial Bank's ATMs. (Bankok Post, April 8, 1998).



 Netherlands Internet Taps. On April 2, the Second Chamber of the Dutch Parliament approved a new Telecommunications Act that includes a chapter intended to force cable operators and ISPs to make their networks tappable by the police and intelligence services. The first article states: "Providers of public telecommunications networks and public telecommunications services shall not make their telecommunications networks and telecommunications services available to users unless they can be wiretapped." A further paragraph adds that the operator of the network or the service must supply the necessary equipment and bear its full cost, while later in the text it is stated that "one or more articles of this chapter" may apply also to private networks if they are "in fact open to third parties." (New York Times, April 14, 1998). News.com story.



 Canadian Supreme Court Rules on Photography Privacy. Canada's Supreme Court ruled on April 9 that news photographers in Quebec who take pictures of ordinary people outdoors violate their subjects' right to privacy. (Reuters, April 9, 1998).

March 1998

 Digital Wiretap Fight Continues in US. The US Department of Justice and the FBI asked the Federal Communications Commision on March 30 to set technical standards for digital wiretapping. The petition demands that the FCC require telephone companies to redesign their switches to allow for easier and enhansed wiretapping of telephones. (Wireless Today, March 30, 1998).



 French Prime Minister Refeuses to Fully Lift Secrecy Claim in Wiretap Invesitgation. Prime Minister Lionel Jospin rfused to release all documents in an long standing invesigation of the illegal tapping of journalists, lawyers, politicians and a noted model and film actress from 1982 to 1986 by a presidental anti-terror unit. The late President Mitterrand's aides acknowledged last year he personally ordered the wiretaps, in apparent violation of French law. (Associated Press, March 31, 1998).



 EU Releases Telecomm Privacy Directive. The European Union published the Directive concerning the processing of personal data and the protection of privacy in the telecommunications sector (DIRECTIVE 97/66/EC OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 15 December 1997). The directive governs telecommunications related privacy issues such as Caller ID, wiretapping, and billing. It goes into effect 24 October 1998. [EN] [FR] [DE]



 Fight Continues on Residential Registration Requirement in Moscow. Moscow Mayor Yurii Luzhkov on 10 March announced that the capital will not do away with residence permits, ITAR-TASS reported. The Constitutional Court recently ruled that local authorities can keep records of citizens' places of residence but cannot use the registration process to grant or deny citizens permission to live in a given location. Luzhkov called for overruling that decision, saying that residency permits (also known as "propiski") are needed to protect Moscow from an influx of citizens seeking benefits. He noted that social benefits payments already make up 41 percent of city budget expenditures. He did not specify how the court's decision could be overruled. Article 27 of the constitution grants citizens the right to choose their place of residence. Constitutional Court Judge Vladimir Yaroslavtsev has warned Moscow Mayor Yurii Luzhkov not to defy a ruling that prohibits authorities from using permits to deny some citizens permanent residence in their localities, "Kommersant-Daily" reported on 12 March. Luzhkov has said that owing to budgetary constraints, Moscow will not implement the court ruling. Speaking on behalf of the court, Yaroslavtsev told "Kommersant-Daily" that judges will "use all legal means" in order to ensure adherence to constitutional principles. The mayor has asked Yeltsin to exempt Moscow from the ban on residence permits. But Sergei Shakhrai, presidential representative in the Constitutional Court, says the court's rulings are final. He has advised Luzhkov to ask the parliament to grant Moscow special status by amending the federal law on citizens' right to travel and choose their place of residence. (RFE/RL, March 11, 12, 1998).

February 1998

 Albanian Supreme Court Chief Judge Former Spy. The Albania parliamentary lustration commission gave evidence to the legislature on February 23 that Constitutional Court chief judge Rustem Gjata was a communist-era secret service agent. The commission proposed that the parliament dismiss him from office, "Gazeta Shqiptare" reported. (RFE/RL, February 23, 1998).



 Russian Supreme Court Strikes Down Residence Requirement. The Russian Constitutional Court on 2 February ruled that a federal government directive issued in July 1995 contained unconstitutional rules on registering citizens' places of residence, "Kommersant-Daily" and "Nezavisimaya gazeta" reported. The judges ruled that although citizens must register their residences with local authorities, they retain the right to choose where they want to live. In other words, the registration process is a matter of notifying authorities--not seeking permission for temporary or permanent residence in a given location. The only valid restrictions are contained in a federal law on citizens' rights to travel and choose their place of residence. For instance, authorities may refuse to register an apartment in an area that is restricted because of an ecological disaster or an epidemic. Some cities have ignored previous Constitutional Court rulings against the "propiska" or residency permit system. (RFE/RL, February 3, 1998).

January 1998

 New Kazakhastan Spy Agency. Kazakhstan has set up a Foreign Intelligence Service, ITAR-TASS and Interfax reported on 28 January. Major-General Zhenis Ryspayev, who will head the service, said the new agency does not intend to spy on other countries but will coordinate activities with the special services of CIS states. He added that the new service, who is directly subordinate to the president, will monitor the activities of extremist religious groups, drug smugglers, and mafia groups in order to assess potential threats from foreign terrorist groups. (RFE/RL, January 29, 1998).



 Albania Secret Files Missing. The Albanian State Control Agency, which is tasked with combatting corruption, asked the Albanian Prosecutor-General's Office on 17 January to open an investigation into Blerim Cela, a former head of the agency. The officials say that hundreds of secret files compiled under the previous Democratic government are missing. Mustafa Kercuku, who is the agency's current director and belongs to the conservative National Front Party, also charges Cela with having destroyed most of the agency's correspondence with high-ranking Democratic government officials, including President Sali Berisha, "Koha Jone" reported. (RFE/RL January 19, 1998).

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