The European Court of Human Rights ruled on Tuesday (May 28) that Poland's surveillance laws infringe upon the right to privacy as stipulated in the Human Rights Convention. The court also found that said laws lacked sufficient safeguards against misuse.
The lawsuit challenged the 2016 legislation which allowed Polish authorities to monitor and retain telecommunications, postal, and digital data, including SMS and emails, under anti-terrorism measures.
The case was brought by several Polish lawyers and activists.
The court found that the laws permitting secret surveillance and data retention by Polish intelligence agencies lacked sufficient safeguards against misuse.
Due to their professional and public roles, the plaintiffs believed they were likely targets of surveillance.
They argued that the laws in question allowed authorities to monitor their communications and collect data without their knowledge, without any obligation to inform them even after the surveillance ended.
This, they claimed, violated their constitutional rights and prevented them from seeking legal recourse.
"There had been three violations of Article 8 (right to respect for private and family life and correspondence) of the European Convention on Human Rights concerning the operational-control regime, the retention of communications data for potential use by the relevant national authorities, and the secret-surveillance regime under the Anti-Terrorism Act," the European Court of Human Rights said in a press release following the verdict.
The plaintiffs stressed on Tuesday that they expect the government to fully and promptly implement the court's judgment and to present a specific plan for working on changes in the law. In their opinion, an independent institution overseeing the services should be established.
Źródło: TVN24 News in English, PAP
Źródło zdjęcia głównego: Shutterstock