October 14, 2004
Well Done Tony B
Congratulations go to Tony Bunyan (who else could I mean?), editor of Statewatch (a non-profit voluntary group that investigates and reports on European justice, accountability and civil liberties) for his selection as one of the 50 most influential people in the EU for 2004 by the European Voice newspaper. He is nominated within the Campaigner of the Year category for his campaign to protect civil liberties, put at risk by the package of anti-terrorism measures.
Tony commented: It is very good to see that our work the “war on terrorism” and its effect on civil liberties in Europe has been recognised.
It’s a pity that the TV and press do not fulfill their potential by investigating and discussing some of the issues that both Statewatch and Media Lens examine. It is, after all, in the interests of everybody that we analyse and challenge new laws proposed by Government(s), especially as:
- most of the security issues are down to the actions of those same Governments, and
- Statewatch’s “Scoreboard” [pdf] and analysis finds that 27 out of 57 EU proposals have little or nothing to do with tackling terrorism - they deal with crime in general and surveillance
