Sixteen-year debate on phone tapping wraps up

PARLIAMENTATRY parties yesterday agreed to amend the island’s constitution to allow phone tapping after almost 16 years of discussions.

House Legal Affairs Committee chairman, DISY’s, Ionas Nicolaou said the amendment would be tabled before plenum for approval possibly next Thursday after certain details were ironed-out.

The Committee yesterday presented the party leaders’ weekly meeting with the final draft of the amendment, with two suggestions: either to include the crimes that will allow communications surveillance in a separate law, or to include them in the Constitution.

Despite being deemed “unorthodox”, parties adopted, by majority vote, ruling AKEL’s suggestion to include the offences in the Constitution.

Two-thirds of MPs must approve the bill for the Constitution to be amended.

Nicolaou said MPs had finally reached a compromise and unanimously decided on the crimes that will give the authorities the right to monitor private telecommunications.

“So next Thursday the amendment will most likely be submitted to Plenum,” said Nicolaou. “All that remains is for the Attorney-general to approve the crimes that will be specified.”

Under the proposed legislation, phone and internet surveillance would be permitted in the investigation of criminal cases,  specifically: premeditated murder; manslaughter; attempted murder; trafficking of human beings (adults and minors); trade, trafficking, distribution, cultivation and manufacturing of narcotics; internet-related crimes, such as child pornography; currency forgery; and money laundering.

It would take a fresh amendment of the Constitution for the list of crimes to be refreshed, Nicolaou said.

“This is why the Attorney-general was asked to make a clear list of the crimes so we don’t have problems in its implementation,” said Nicolaou. “The crimes will be included in the constitution, then a law will be drawn up on how it can be used, specifying the procedure and the conditions under which a court order will be issued for surveillance.”

His Committee’s aim, he added, is to ensure the necessary provisions are made so that the law was not abused.

“This is of vast importance as it will help avert serious crimes,” Nicolaou concluded.

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