99 lines
3.8 KiB
HTML
99 lines
3.8 KiB
HTML
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
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<html newsdate="2022-04-14">
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<version>2</version>
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<head>
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<title>EU Declaration of Digital Rights & Principles: Free Software should be included</title>
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</head>
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<body>
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<h1>EU Declaration of Digital Rights & Principles: Free Software should be included </h1>
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<p>
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On 26 January 2022, the European Commission presented its proposal for
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the EU Declaration on Digital Rights and Principles which will serve
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as a reference point in the future and as a common EU vision of our
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digital rights. The declaration is now being discussed in the European
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Parliament and Council, and Free Software should become part of it.
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</p>
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<p>
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Built on the Berlin and Tallinn declarations, this proposal aims
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to lay the groundwork for a consistent framework that will serve
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as a guideline and a reference point for the ongoing and future
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digital transformation of Europe. These aforementioned
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declarations already refer to Free Software ("Open Source" in
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their text) when it comes to digital sovereignty and
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interoperability, while they also demand more use of "Open Source"
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and strengthening the requirement for its use.
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</p>
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<figure>
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<img class="max-width-75 no-border"
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src="https://pics.fsfe.org/uploads/big/17988a8d73e40b65f32cb1895c008a2b.png"
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alt="Public body infrastructure displaying source code"/>
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</figure>
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<p>
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At the moment, the text of the EU Declaration of Digital Rights and
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Principles is being discussed in the European Parliament and
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European Council. The FSFE has been following the process and
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making sure to share its input and demands so that the wording of
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the final text is in line with previous frameworks with regard to
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the use and promotion of Free Software.
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</p>
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<p>
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Recently, the JURI and LIBE committees have agreed on including
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wording that is aligned with our demands in their amendments to
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the text. In Chapter II, covering solidarity and inclusion, the
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LIBE Committee has included a reference on the support of "Open
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source solutions whenever possible". In Chapter III about freedom
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of choice and Chapter IV, called Participation in the digital
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public space, the JURI Committee has included also the promotion
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of "Open source" standards and a reference to the need of
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interoperability and transparency of digital technologies via the
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promotion of "Open Source".
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</p>
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<p>
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From now on, we will make sure these additions to the text will be
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defined and clarified, and that they find their way into the final
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position of the European Parliament. It is important that Free
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Software becomes part of this declaration because it may guide
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Europe's digital transformation into an empowering, transparent,
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and open environment.
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</p>
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<p>
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For the last five years, the FSFE has been advocating for
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publicly financed software made publicly available under a Free
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Software licence. With its <a href="https://publiccode.eu/">Public
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Money? Public Code!</a> initiative, the FSFE has the goal, among
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others, to raise awareness of the benefits that Free Software can
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offer such as saving long-term costs, boosting the local economy,
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transparency, and more. Including Free Software in the EU
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Declaration of Digital Rights and Principles would be an important
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milestone for software freedom and for Europe's digital
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sovereignty.
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</p>
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</body>
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<tags>
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<tag key="front-page"/>
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<tag key="pmpc">Public Money? Public Code!</tag>
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<tag key="public-administration">Public Administration</tag>
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<tag key="procurement">Public Procurement</tag>
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</tags>
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<discussion href="https://community.fsfe.org/t/828"/>
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<image url="https://pics.fsfe.org/uploads/big/17988a8d73e40b65f32cb1895c008a2b.png" alt="Public body infrastructure displaying source code"/>
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</html>
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