European Parliament
A7-0204/2012
Francesco De Angelis  (S&D ).
(IT)
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, the committees have already stressed their opposition to this agreement. Tomorrow, it is up to Parliament to confirm this vote and put an end to this controversial dossier. The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) is a treaty that seeks to introduce a new framework for the protection of intellectual property rights, but does so without distinction, without distinguishing between commercial use for financial gain and consumer use by individual users not seeking profit.
I think we need to fight the fake goods market, to combat counterfeiting, but without undermining the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. In a nutshell, I believe that commercial interests must not allow us to eliminate civil liberties. For this reason, ACTA is the wrong way to go about this, which is why tomorrow’s vote is very important. Tomorrow, therefore, we need to say no to ACTA to ensure the transparency and protection of citizens’ rights.

