Dutch ministers find three-strikes policies “unacceptable”

In a reaction to the recent turmoil about the lack of transparency in the ACTA negotiations, Dutch ministers Van der Hoeven and Hirsch Ballin, of Economic Affairs and Justice respectively, have indicated not to support an ACTA-wide three-strikes policy, should such a proposal come to the table.

“The negotiations about the ACTA treaty to act against counterfeit and piracy need to be more transparent and a ‘three-strikes-out approach’ to downloading is unacceptable for The Netherlands,” the ministers write in a letter to Parliament.

Tackling downloading from illegal sources, say the ministers, is a responsibility of member states, not of an international society.

Furthermore, the ministers plead for increased transparency in the ACTA negotiations, says the letter. “The public, Parliament and the European Parliament need to be informed as soon as possible about what is being discussed.” This will happen in two ways. As a start, The Netherlands, like the EC, will consult stakeholders in order to map different vieuwpoints. Subsequently, in the next round of talks to be held come April in New Zealand, the EC will try to persuade the other negotiators to publish the ACTA documents and take a more transparent course.

According to the letter, ACTA will likely take the form of a joint treaty. This means that, besides the EC, all member states must ratify the agreement. 

17 March 2010