WEEKLY GROSS-OUT: ACTA

MEPs on a key European parliamentary committee voted last week to reject the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) by 19 votes to 12. Many regard it as the deathblow for the controversial treaty because the trade committee formally recommends how to vote to the wider parliament. The European Parliament vote is due to take place next week. The treaty aims to tighten rules on both online and offline piracy but has attracted many critics. One of its harshest detractors has been UK MEP David Martin, the lead member of the committee. Speaking after the vote, he said: "This was not an anti-intellectual property vote. This group believes Europe does have to protect its intellectual property, but ACTA was too vague a document." He said that it left many questions unanswered, including the role of ISPs in policing the internet. He also said that many on the committee felt that the sanctions for breaches of copyright, which include possible imprisonment and fines, were disproportionate. In the end, the committee vote came down to a vote on intellectual property or civil liberties, and civil liberties won over like it should always do. Critics argue that the embattled treaty will stifle freedom of expression on the internet, and it has been likened to the controversial Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) that they tried in America. I hope the European Parliament vote no on this abomination.