ATTORNEY-general Petros Klerides yesterday suggested the appointment of an independent committee that would be in charge of monitoring private telecommunication, telling deputies that he would be the sole person entitled to authorise permission for observations.
Klerides’ proposals were voiced during yesterday’s House Legal Affairs Committee, where deputies met again to discuss an amendment to Chapter 17 of the Constitution and the Law for the Protection of Personal Data.
The amendment was centred on two main aspects: the monitoring of telecommunications and the use of the material as evidence in court.
Stressing the urgent need for an amendment, Klerides told the Committee that the Republic of Cyprus had signed four international treaties that enforce special intelligence gathering methods, among which was the observation of private telecommunications.
As the AG explained, a suspect’s phone bill can be used in court as evidence to prove that calls were made.
As for itemised bills, although they can currently be accepted in court until the telecommunication company has received payment for the account, they cannot be used in court as testimony in criminal cases. Klerides indicated the need for a separate amendment regarding this specific matter.
He then proposed that warrants for observation of private telecommunication be issued by him in writing and that the observation be carried out by a specially appointed committee, not by the police.
He explained that the observation would concern just the subject in connection with which a suspect was being investigated, and not his entire communication.
Klerides also pointed out the need for a specific list, listing the offences for which observation orders could be issued.
The AG was keen to point out that the amendment was centred on crime and added that “there is something more important than crime, which is the state’s security”.
Responding to concerns over the destruction of records, Klerides assured deputies that the same methods would be used as those to destroy finger prints and photographs of suspects who were not convicted.
Police Chief Charalambos Koulentis submitted a list of crimes for which the force wanted the law for personal data lifted, among which were the trafficking of children and child pornography, terrorism and drug trafficking.
Committee Chairman Ionas Nicolaou, who has long been fighting for the constitutional amendment, said the next meeting would see deputies exchange view on the restrictions that would be imposed by the amendment.
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